I know many people are starting or in the middle of their self quarantines and limiting their contact with other people. These are some of the thoughts that I have been having in the midst of this virus.

I had just gotten back from Milan when Northern Italy was shut down. I saw firsthand what it was like to see a country go from safety to no one walking around. I went into quarantine once I got back. I wasn’t tested in Greece because it would have put at me at risk if I wasn’t already showing symptoms. I was fine after getting out of quarantine and from there it truly just got out of hand.

I had cancelled all trips outside of Greece for the remainder of my study abroad trip. I went to the Meteroa Monasteries in Greece on March 7th. Things were starting to get errie when we got back. After hearing that AU Madrid student were going home on March 10th, I emailed my AU Abroad Advisor on March 10th at around 5pm (GMT+2). She replied not an hour later saying at this time, there are no cases at American College of Thessaloniki (ACT) and that for the time being I was going to stay in Greece.

I called my mom and we started getting a little worried. Maybe two hours after I sent that email, we get news that Greece is going to be shutting down schools for two weeks start March 11th. There was no news from ACT, just an article saying that the Greek Ministry of Health has put this into place.

I start calling my parents and saying I will most likely have to go to online classes and I will most likely come home. Do I want to? No. My friends aren’t really looking at going home into an option. There are still kids in the program that think they can travel because tickets are so cheap. I know that whatever they do I will probably be home within a week.

We get an email on April 11th at 4am saying, AU will be pulling students from Greece and that we need to be home by March 16th. Other schools have not pulled their kids, we are one of the first students to think about going home. AU then decides to extend their spring break and move their classes online. It is all getting very overwhelming. There are students still acting like this is a joke and saying even if they get it, they won’t die.

I felt obligated to tell them that we didn’t have health insurance in Greece. If AU was pulling us out, I knew that meant if we didn’t leave by the 16th, we would probably not be getting the emergency health insurance for abroad students. If we got the virus, we would still be sick. We don’t suddenly get immune, because we are young. The fact of the matter is, we should be getting home before we can’t anymore.

I spent the day debating which flight to get and getting some of my last memories in Greece. It really don’t feel real. The week before I was starting to feel really homesick and asking God to send me home and oh boy did he listen.

I wake up on March 12th with pounding on my door with my friend saying “Trump will be closing the borders, we need to go home.” It is 3:30am in Greece. It becomes very chaotic. I don’t even think about anything except getting a hold of my parents and getting on a plane home immediately. AU sent us an email stating we needed to be home as soon as possible.

I was so lucky to get on a flight thanks to a family friend who works for United who was on the phone as soon as she heard the announcement because she knew I was in Greece. She waited in line, got a hold of someone and got me a ticket for 8:15 am to Munich then straight to Denver. The United website had crashed, many of my friends were preparing to pay over $1,000 to go home and I had to finish packing.

I got to the airport after seeing my last sunrise in Greece, I didn’t even properly say goodbye to a lot of my friends. I was supposed to get on a flight to Munich with my friend Owen, when they said his reservation was cancelled. He was not able to purchase a ticket to Munich and was stuck in Thessaloniki for another day. Panic was setting in for many students who couldn’t get a hold of their parents, who are financially independent, or were supposed to stay for the second semester in Greece.

It is true that it was for 30 days and that US citizens were able to get back into the country, but with airlines cancelling flights, it’s no surprise that it was going to be more and more difficult to get home. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were no flights going to the US from Europe. At that point, your citizenship status would not have mattered.

My flight to Munich was turbulent and I didn’t get any sleep. I had been awake for 6 hours and it all felt like a dream. I wasn’t able to eat, and was very dehydrated.

As I am getting off the plane in Munich, there is a man who had been staring at me for awhile. As he gets off the plane, he spits in my direction and mutters “coronavirus” under his breath. I start to have a panic attack and wonder if I will be safe during my two hour layover in Germany.

I get off the plane and tell airport personnel but there is only so much they can do for me. I try to find the nearest bathroom, and get lost in the huge international airport. I’m sweating, near tears, and simply wishing to be home. I find a bathroom and just cry. I know I need to get food because I’m shaking and I need water.

It takes me 20 minutes to find my gate, food, and some water. I sit finally and just zone out at how crazy the last 24 hours have been. I woke up thinking I was going to take advantage of my last day in Greece. Was ready to get my last bougatsa from Andy’s and yet here I am in front of gate H18 in the Munich Airport, getting ready to board a 10 hour flight back home.

I get on the flight, I sleep very little. You can feel the stress in the air. I heard people talking about their own experiences. There was a man who had just gotten laid off and came to Germany for his mental health. As he landed, he found out about the news and got the first flight home. He spent over $2,000 trying to get home. There was a group of filmmakers who had intended on staying in Europe to document the homeless population in Greece. There were many study abroad students who were heartbroken at this once in a lifetime opportunity getting cut short. There were a lot of emotions, not many people slept. Many were concerned about money, about connecting flights, and just simply the crazy situation that we were all sharing together.

I get off of the plane, make my way through customs and I look at the customs officer and he says, “Oh honey…”

“Hello officer, how are you doing today?”

“I’m doing okay. Were you studying abroad?”

“Yes sir. I was in Greece and got on the first flight possible.”

“Well, welcome back to the States. Welcome home. Glad you’re back safe.”

I start crying as he hands me my passport and I say, “Thank you officer. Stay healthy.”

I reunite with my mom, give her a quick hug. We disinfect my luggage, I change my clothes and we make our way home.

It was overwhelming. I didn’t sleep much. I came home and ate a meal that I had originally anticipated eating in a month. I was scared that I was going to get my family sick. I was nervous for my friends. I was feeling everything and nothing all at the same time. I feel better and will be documenting my quarantine, but it’s been a wild 48 hours to say the least. I am home. I am healthy. I am thankful.