Anderson South America Misadventure Day 24 - Anchored off of the Panama Canal "Honesty is the Best Policy - Yeah, Right" March 27, 2020

If you are hoping to read one of my typical funny posts this is not the day to read it. Sorry, it is just the way that things are. This morning we kept waiting for the announcement from the captain. He said that there was a statement to read to us and we were wondering what it had to do with the face masks. He finally came on and told us that one passenger had passed away overnight, two yesterday and one the night before. That was the medical emergency call that I heard the night before. Keep in mind that these people had been in the medical unit and no country would allow us to dock to get them to a properly equipped hospital. Would they have died anyway, I do not know, but they were not given a chance. Overnight they transferred medical equipment and personnel to our ship from the MS Rotterdam. The plan is to run wellness checks on all passengers not currently identified as being ill. They would transfer well patients to the Rotterdam giving priority to those with inside cabins and those over 70. We started to pack so that when the time came we could be ready to go. We were given health forms to fill out. One of the questions was have you had a cough, chills or fever in the past 10 days. We felt that we had to tell the truth. I had a sinus infection and a cough resulted. I am still coughing. Rob had a cold and has had fever and chills. They came to the door, told us to put on our masks and get our forms ready. He checked my temp 36.1, yea, no hot flash then he checked Rob's temp. We do not know what his was but then the doctor looked at our forms and asked a few questions. Yup, honesty sure does pay off. We will not be transferred to the Rotterdam. I wonder how many people told the truth on those forms? We put the suitcases away and went back to existing in our 200 sq ft. I did a little video for GMA, do not know if I will be on. I did an interview with USA Today. The link is posted. I know that I am supposed to keep my spirits up, but it is getting rougher. Victoria is going all out to drum up support. The entire Synchronized Swimming South Zone and North Zone have been asked to pray for us. Victoria contacted my church to make sure that we were on the prayer chain and has asked an Episcopal Priest friend of hers to pray for us. If you happen to have a little spare time we could use any prayers you have to offer. They are not able to start transferring people to the Rotterdam tonight because they are still refueling. Since the ship was unable to pull up to a dock they had to refuel from a boat, which takes longer. Will we be allowed to go through the Panama Canal? We do not know. If we go through the Panama Canal will we be allowed to disembark in Ft Lauderdale, We do not know. I am trying hard to keep my spirits up, but stress has taken over. Rob is having to force me to eat, I just do not have an appetite. If you know me well you know how much I love food. Today they got busy with other things and we did not get our Coke Zero delivery. I sip on one of those first thing in the morning to settle my stomach. Sorry this was a depressing post, but well, it kind of matches my mood. https://www.usatoday.com/.../coronavirus-4.../2927031001/

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