Back in December 2020, I remember hanging out with my friends in Shanghai and hearing about a new virus circulating Wuhan. We thought nothing of it. We continued making plans for winter break, excited to finish our senior year of high school with a bang.
Little did we know, by February shit would hit the fan. Not understanding how bad things actually were, I remember getting upset because my family trip to Malaysia was cancelled. I had spent weeks planning it, adamant on going even though the news of the virus had the rest of my family worried. But, within a few weeks, Shanghai had completely shut down. We were all stuck in quarantine, and needless to say, the flight to Malaysia was cancelled.
I watched as a big city like Shanghai slowly turned into a complete ghost town. I didn’t leave my house for months, and would worry every time my parents dawned hazmat suits just to go grocery shopping.
It was a pretty scary and lonely period of time. I wasn’t in the best head space and like everyone else, I felt extremely isolated. But looking back, I realize how lucky I was to have my family with me. My grandparents had come to visit for Chinese New Year, and although we couldn’t properly celebrate it, we were all together and that’s what really counted. We spent the days watching Chinese dramas, playing cards, and playing with my dog, who was more than happy to have us home every single day.
Before I knew it, June came around and things in Shanghai began to calm down. The amount of new cases started to slow, stores began to open, and schools started to welcome in-person classes again.
By July, things were basically back to normal. I had an in-person graduation and was able to spend the summer celebrating getting into college with my friends. We were still cautious and wore masks everywhere we went, but it was nowhere near as bad as it was in New York.
The Chinese government took extreme precautions to contain the virus. They closed their borders to foreigners and implemented very strict quarantine rules. Airports tightened security and would escort new arrivals to quarantine hotels. When I arrived in America around September, I was shocked at how easy it was to get through customs. It took barely 5 minutes for me to get out of the airport, where they didn’t even ask to check my temperature.
I’ve been in New York for six months now. For the first few months, it was tough because I really missed my family and knew it would be a long time before I got to see them again due to the travel restrictions. This virus has killed so many people, separated so many families, and ruined so many lives — and yet there are still people who do not take the pandemic seriously. It was frustrating to see cases rising by the thousands every day here, only for people to continue partying and refusing to wear masks. Even today, a whole year later, many Americans still hold the attitude that COVID-19 is a hoax. With the vaccine being distributed now, I really hope things will go back to normal soon.
I think the main difference I’ve noticed between China and America’s response to the virus is in the behavior of the citizens. In China, it wasn’t even a question that everyone had to wear masks. In fact, even during pre-COVID, Chinese people would wear masks whenever they had the slightest cold. Wearing a mask was never seen as a restriction on one’s freedom, but rather a sign of respect to not only protect ourselves, but also the people around us.
It’s been interesting to see the difference in the Chinese and American response to this deadly pandemic. A year later, ignorant Americans continue to blame China for the virus, harassing Asian-Americans for absolutely no valid reason while doing nothing to prevent the spread. A while ago, a video of a party in Wuhan went viral on the internet, and people were getting upset, even saying things like “If this is all China’s fault why do they get to party?” The thing is, China is basically back to normal. I guess that’s what happens when your country and your people actually take the pandemic seriously.
To end on a comparison — on March 20th, 2021, China reported 7 new cases (all imported), while New York City alone reported 6,667 new cases.