Collected Item: “Meeting my niece during COVID”
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Meeting my niece during COVID
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Text story
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In August of 2019, my sister gave birth to a baby girl, my first niece. At the time I had just started a new job and was accruing vacation time but did not have enough to cover travel to San Diego, CA for a week. In February of 2020, I booked a flight to visit my sister and meet my niece in May of 2020. Those plans were then canceled the very next month when a pandemic was declared and the country was placed on lockdown. In April, I was able to reschedule my trip for July of 2020.
Flying from Bismarck, ND to my hometown while most of the country was still on lockdown was a different experience. Before COVID, every plane I had boarded was near, if not at, capacity. Flying during COVID saw several empty seats with no two people sitting directly together - even if they appeared to be part of the same party. One observation I had was that while every plane was sanitized upon passengers deboarding, I never saw anyone sanitize any gates while I moved through and sat in airports.
Driving through San Diego, I was shocked to see open freeways with far less traffic than I had ever seen during peak hours. Restaurants were still limited to takeout (though I was really only there for the taco shops anyway) and most indoor venues were still closed unless necessary businesses. The businesses that were open to the public naturally required masks. As I was there to meet my niece and spend time with my sister, I loved not having to make up excuses to avoid meeting up with any old friends and being able to focus on time with family. It was strange to see my hometown, a vibrant and busy city, locked down and the roads and businesses empty. I felt even more grateful for the opportunity I had to travel and still be able to spend time with family since we never know when it will be too late.
Flying from Bismarck, ND to my hometown while most of the country was still on lockdown was a different experience. Before COVID, every plane I had boarded was near, if not at, capacity. Flying during COVID saw several empty seats with no two people sitting directly together - even if they appeared to be part of the same party. One observation I had was that while every plane was sanitized upon passengers deboarding, I never saw anyone sanitize any gates while I moved through and sat in airports.
Driving through San Diego, I was shocked to see open freeways with far less traffic than I had ever seen during peak hours. Restaurants were still limited to takeout (though I was really only there for the taco shops anyway) and most indoor venues were still closed unless necessary businesses. The businesses that were open to the public naturally required masks. As I was there to meet my niece and spend time with my sister, I loved not having to make up excuses to avoid meeting up with any old friends and being able to focus on time with family. It was strange to see my hometown, a vibrant and busy city, locked down and the roads and businesses empty. I felt even more grateful for the opportunity I had to travel and still be able to spend time with family since we never know when it will be too late.
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#ArizonaStateUniversity, #History643, #SpringASession2025, #HistoryofTourism, #SanDiego
Who originally created this object? (If you created this object, such as photo, then put "self" here.)
self
Give this story a date.
2020-07-01