Going to Paris

It has been almost two whole years since the coronavirus pandemic began. It swept through the whole world like wildfire and various countries have different approaches in dealing with the plague. Europe was one of the first regions that was hit hard by the virus and initially various countries in the union locked down in a effort to control the spread of the virus. Ireland was no different. The harshest restrictions were that you can’t go beyond the beyond two kilometers of your house apart from essential stuff like groceries and exercise. Of course something like that would help to suppress the virus but this is at the cost of damaging the economy. Businesses were shut down and people lost their jobs. I was one of the lucky ones to be able to continue working despite the lock downs.

It was the hope that vaccines would help us out of the pandemic but the reality is proving quite different. Indeed the vaccines have been proven to help reduce hospitalizations but don’t, nor were expected to, prevent infections. Then there are the people who are hesitating on getting vaccinated. They would have their own reasons for not doing so but it is quite clear from the data that vast majority of the people being hospitalized are ones who haven’t gotten their shot. Some getting hospitalized further adding strain to the health care system. This is unfortunate for people who are also vulnerable as the effectivity of the vaccines seems to wane over time. This brings us to today. Some countries have started to learn how to live with the virus, knowing that it would be difficult to get everyone to get vaccinated. Europe has setup a vaccinate passport scheme that would ease travel for vaccinated passengers. While unvaccinated people can still travel, they would have to prove they are not infected before they are let on board the aircraft.

It has been two years since I last left the country and I was already itching for it. I thought that France would be a good choice for a quick trip since it is part of the European Union and it supports the vaccine passport scheme. This should help put my mind at ease when I go abroad. Masks are mandatory almost everywhere so as long as you are okay with that, this might actually be a good time to go. I spent the night at Dublin airport so I can catch the morning flight to Paris. The experience was just as I remember it. Apart from the mandatory masks in the plane, everything else was the same. I was getting tired of seeing my room for the past two years, I’m glad that I get a chance to see someplace new again.

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