#3 - More Quarantine Life in Oz

Good morning,

Only 5 days left now before my release from quarantine! I have to admit, although I am now longing to see people and horses again and quite simply green grass, in all honesty, it hasn’t been too bad. I just have to hold it together until Monday morning, I’m not quite there yet!

I am thinking (quite seriously!) about getting a bike when I’m home and have managed two sessions a day since last Tuesday, this definitely being my key to maintaining sanity. Hand washing my underwear and gym kit in the sink, hasn’t exactly been a highlight but instead a lesson in gratitude for the appliances we have in ‘normal’ life!

Deliveroo has become a great new ally and I now include the delivery of a cappuccino and a super green smoothy from Delicia Acai into my morning routine. Thank goodness we are able to leave securely tied bags of rubbish outside the door (only between 2-3pm!) else I would be running out of space with all the brown bags and packaging that accumulate with each meal.

The Australian news this morning, having had the budget announcement here last night, didn’t add much hope for a reopening of international borders this year and as a reaction, Qantas have this morning delayed its resumption of international flights. Surely 14 days of hotel quarantine can’t become the norm?!

I hear I haven’t missed much with the weather at home! At least now we’ve had some rain there is the chance of some grass growth, it has been such a strange spring so far. David has kept me updated on the progress of our new born foals and yearlings, with many films and photos whilst on his morning feed rounds. It will be nearly a month that I am away from the farm so will be good to see the changes and hopefully improvements in that time, especially in the yearlings.

A minor scare yesterday as there was a positive covid case reported in Melbourne that was traced back to an Australian returning home who quarantined in Adelaide, in my hotel! He checked out the day after I checked in and was negative on all of his quarantine tests but he was apparently in a room next to a man who did test positive here and was moved to a hospital. We’ve been informed there has been no breach of ‘infection control’ and they say he was never infectious whilst here he was. He was 4 floors below me, so I’m just hoping there is no delay with my release! I received my 3^rd covid test yesterday and am due my final test on Saturday.

Otherwise, quarantine life continues as last week. Looking forward to getting up to the Gold Coast and getting stuck in to looking at weanlings. Antony Thompson, kindly arranging supper for Monday (release day!) asked me where I would like to go? My response ‘Anywhere at all, so long as it isn’t served in a brown paper bag!’

With best wishes

Hannah.