Gen.T’s digital editor Samantha Mei Topp is currently locked down in the world’s longest mandatory quarantine. Here, she shares what she’s learned on how to make the most of the experience
At 21 days, Hong Kong has the world’s longest mandatory quarantine period. Travellers arriving into Hong Kong must also undergo the three-week quarantine period in a hotel room at their own expense, rather than at home.
Flying back from the United States, which is considered a high-risk country due to its high coronavirus infection rate, I knew I had no choice but to undertake the maximum quarantine of three weeks in a local hotel.
Thankfully I had some family members and friends who had gone through it too and were more than willing to share some tips and tricks to help make my time in quarantine go as quickly and smoothly as possible. As of writing this, I’ve finished two-thirds of my quarantine, so for those of you who are about to start day one of your ‘staycation’, here are some tried and tested tips you need to know.
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Set yourself a few realistic goals to achieve each day
I tried to see this time as an opportunity to finally get around to doing those things I’d always wanted to do, but never had time to do when I was working in the office. I packed a stack of books to read—which also served as some nice decor for my room—and set time almost everyday to get reading. I also set some time aside to use DuoLingo and practise my Spanish, and even set a goal to watch some Netflix shows in Portuguese to learn a few words for fun.
Keep in mind that these goals shouldn’t be incredibly hard or anxiety-inducing, they should be fun and somewhat relaxing. The purpose of doing this is to help you dedicate some time to yourself, while helping you feel like you accomplished something each day.
