We are in the last weeks of 2021 and Covid is still not done with us. The newest variety Omicron which has come in just as people are planning their year-end holiday and travel has put a pause or in some cases, a full stop to many travel plans.

The variant has been detected in more than 38 countries, though there are no deaths as yet attributed to this variant. Many countries, including Singapore and India, have increased testing on incoming travellers and have stopped flights to the southern part of Africa. Other countries including Israel, Japan have already started closing their borders to all foreigners, with others probably following suit should the variant prove to be more severe or dangerous. At this point, we can only wait and see how things pan out. I am planning a trip to see my parents in early 2022 and hope things settle down by then.

In other news, the world just got a new country this week. After 396 years of rule by the British, Barbados has gained its independence with Dame Sandra Mason sworn in as president, replacing the British Queen as head of state.

Today’s quote is a very easy one to internalise. Nothing is impossible, because the word impossible itself has the word possible in it, so everything is possible, you just have to do it! This quote is attributed to the gorgeously talented Audrey Hepburn.

GG had her review with her endocrinologist this week and though her numbers are still much better, they are still a way to go before she reaches normal levels. She has another review after six weeks, so I am hoping the numbers get better by then.

That’s all from me this week. Stay safe, stay masked, and get vaccinated!

We finally got more information on the Vaccinated Travel Lane to India and I am super excited to finally be able to meet my parents. And Singapore has also started more such lanes to countries like Thailand, Fiji, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Cambodia, just in time for the year-end holidays.

Today’s quote is from Paulo Coelho which is a lesson for all of us. If we really think small, our world will be small, but if we think big, then our world automatically becomes big. This is very important for all of us because when we think beyond our small worlds, the universe opens up for us.

GG & BB are busy with school with their mid-semester exams. GG will start her industrial attachment in early March, so she needs to start working on her resume and accomplishments. BB will have his industrial attachment in his last semester, so this means the two of them will not have a holiday together until the end of their poly life, after which BB will be called up for his national service.

A new COVID-19 variant, this time from Africa has been detected and many countries including Singapore have started to put a stop to travellers coming in many countries Africa, especially Southern Africa.

That’s all from me this week. Take care and stay safe.

Another week has gone by and we are inching towards the end of the year.

We got a piece of good news earlier in the week when Singapore announced a Vaccinated Travel Lane with India starting from the end of the month. Although no details are yet confirmed, this has resulted in travel agents and airlines being inundated with queries. I am also super excited about this travel lane and have already started making plans to go down to India to meet my parents after two years. Can’t wait for more details to be released soon.

Today’s quote comes to us from the celebrated children’s author Roald Dahl. He says when we have good thoughts, these thoughts shine through our faces like sunbeams and we will always look lovely. It’s from his book, The Twits and is part of a larger that a person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. One can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if they have good thoughts, the thoughts will shine out of their face like sunbeams and they will always look lovely. So those who have good thoughts radiate a kind of positive energy all around and these people are lovely inside and out, no matter what their physical appearance.

GG & BB are busy with school and we will also start the process of her reviews for her health condition. I am hoping the tests and the doctor’s review will mean a positive change for her.

That’s all from me this week. Stay safe, stay masked and get vaccinated if you are eligible.

It’s the end of another week and well, things are pretty much the same as they were last week.

Last week, I went for my booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine and S did his before I and R did hers a couple of days later. We, adults, have all done the booster shot and once it’s available to those under 30, BB & GG will also get theirs. I suffered no ill effects from my latest shot with just some low-grade headache and slight pain in the arm where the needle was injected. This time, when the nurse injected the needle, it was more painful and I felt all the way while the previous times, it barely registered.

This week, the Singapore government announced that those who are voluntarily unvaccinated, that is who are eligible and don’t have any medical conditions which prevent them from being vaccinated are no longer eligible to get free treatment should they come down with COVID-19. They will be liable to pay for treatment which can be as much as SGD 25,000 before subsidies. This is because the majority of patients who have been hospitalised with the virus are unvaccinated and I think this is a step in the right direction. Why should almost 90% of the vaccinated resident population pay for that 7-8% who don’t think vaccinations are the way forward?

In other news, the European Union has taken off Singapore from the list of countries for which travel curbs were lifted. And with this Denmark has imposed quarantine for travellers from Singapore with Holland asking travellers from Singapore to produce a negative COVID-19 test before flying into the country. For those planning year-end trips to these countries, this may come as a blow, especially since Singapore has started Vaccinated Travel Lanes or VTLs with more than 10 countries to date. For me, unless there is a VTL to India, it really does not make a big difference because the first country I want to travel to is India to visit my parents whom I last saw almost exactly two years ago. My last trip which involved flying to another country was my last trip to India in the third week of November 2019. My last trip outside Singapore was a day trip to Johor Bahru across the causeway in Malaysia in January 2020 for S’ cousin’s engagement ceremony. I can’t wait to travel, though I don’t want to quarantine for that, so I will wait.

Today’s quote is a very positive one and comes to us courtesy of Widad Akrawi, an author, a Kurdish health expert and human rights activist. She says if one is positive, one sees opportunities instead of obstacles. Simple, but so very true right?

On this note, stay positive, stay healthy and stay masked.