The days in quarantine move quickly marked by sunrise, meal delivery three times a day, and sunset. The in-between is filled with exercise, reading and movies, back patio games, and work when wifi will allow. Information is a moving target; emotions rise and plunge with each tidbit, while joy and gratitude juxtapose sadness, frustration and worry within each moment.

Fabio, the quarantine hotel coordinator, is the contact for all things COVID related. He is kind and clearly overwhelmed managing “guests” in at least two hotels that are at capacity. He will communicate only through What’s App using a translator. Questions from all of us but Chris typically go unheeded. Chris’ charm and patience have won Fabio over though. “Dear Chris, it is a pleasure to chat with you,” he wrote, “you are a very ok person.” Luigi is the on-site director and contact for our basic needs – coffee, wine, toilet paper. I’m pretty sure he is weary by now of all our requests, but he remains pleasant and after a sincere heart to heart about our frustrations, he delivered a bottle of champagne to each of our doors to celebrate the new year. Though sweet, both Fabio and Luigi have their limits, invoking the police any time we push too hard or too often.

A croissant and jam are served every morning then meat, pasta and bread for lunch and supper. Most dishes are quite tasty, though generally cold, and it’s become a fun game to see what iteration of pasta we will receive next. All the carbohydrates have inspired us to exercise. We do planks on the hour and have calculated that 146 laps on our patio make a mile. Push-ups, sit-ups and jumping jacks round out the routine. Next door, Will is teaching himself to do a handstand and upstairs Liv is setting burpee records. Once a day, in masks, the Lindas slip through our glass door to soak up some sun and stretch on the patio.

Team Seng meetings continue daily. Cathy, Sarah and Feng who are other detainees with backside windows, have become affiliate members. Through our respective portals, we discuss the latest information about our predicament, review the most recent pasta dish, vent, cry and laugh. At a distance we’ve played Farkel and Scattergories and shared a New Year’s Eve toast. Between games, Jonah and Lianne patiently watch the spinning wifi wheel while attending to work and job applications, and Tyler provides regular sporting updates. We keep the Quarantini group chat buzzing with jokes, memes, questions and musings.

While grateful for their window and the beautiful ocean view, Liv and Tyler have a challenging situation with no way to get outside. Feeling down and needing some sparkling water, they got creative. A Navy seaman, Tyler fashioned a rope by knotting together extra sheets and Liv lowered it to the patio below where Will attached a backpack filled with goodies. It’s the simple things.

And time passes. We hold onto gratitude for the simple things, for good health, our advocates at Semester at Sea, and love and prayers sent from afar. We support one another through disappointments as we ride the waves, remaining hopeful to trade the metaphorical ones for some in the Mediterranean soon.