I know very well that not everyone might agree with what I am about to express in this blog, but as a traveller I wish to share my thoughts and current emotions due to the situation in Malta and eventually also globally.
If you have been following our blogs you know that my husband is Hungarian and we reside in Malta. Once a year we travel home to visit our family, normally mid-August, but this year things do not look so good. Thus, seems like we have to miss seeing our relatives.
Regulations are changing within minutes, no one knows what to do in order to protect the population from this Virus which has been around for the past year and a half. At the beginning of the month we had already planned that we will be able to go by either having the vaccine or take PCR test (which we would have preferred having the test for personal reason). So far so good, apart from the fact that Hungary are not letting foreigners visit the country by plane, but if you travel to Vienna then catch a train to Budapest you are allowed. But since we are married, that did not effect us much. Until On Friday 9-7-2021 it was published by the Maltese health authorities that people who are not vaccinated cannot leave the Island and that Malta will not accept unvaccinated tourist. With that, not all vaccinations are accepted, like the Sputnik. So although Eu vaccinated people could travel to Malta, those who had certain vaccines were not able to travel here since it was not accepted as a vaccine. This has been highly unfair for those who cannot for some reason or another cannot get vaccinated. Although one can ask for permission from the superintendent of health, what one person understands as a valid reason for traveling without a vaccine, might not be considered as valid for the other.
Not even a week later, Laws have been changed and was said that those who do not hold a vaccine certificate must quaratine for 14 days. The Irony in this is that they must quarantine in a specific Hotel costing €1400. If you are a resident in Malta and have a property, one must ask for permission in order to quarantine in their own homes. If one has the vaccination certificate and has been in contact with someone positive with covid, this rule also applies. How more ridiculous than his can it get?
In my opinion, we are being safeguarded from this virus to a certain extent but being drowned in so many other difficulties, especially the fact that we live on a small Island. The rates of mental health problems, suicide and depression have increased considerably. I can speak from first hand experience, traveling was something which makes me forget about all the problems in life. Knowing that summer is approaching and I am going to be united with my in laws, always makes me feel over the moon, while now even when writing this, tears run down my cheeks as I have no idea when I will be able to physically see them again. Apart from being effected individually, our economy is being hit big time, as we highly depend on tourism. Hotels, restaurants…. They all revolve around tourism. We will definitely see the repercussions of this in a few years unfortunately.
This year we were hoping to travel at the end of September, beginning of August therefore there is still hope, since regulations change by the hour. But this uncertainty increases anxiety, stress and to say the least sadness. I honestly feel heart broken. Last year we had no vaccine and restriction wise things were much much better.
To all those reading this, lets not give up and hope for better days in the near future! Hopefully the government eases the restrictions and also consider visiting family as a valid reason to go abroad, where one mostly seek forests and mountains. Thus,I confidently can say it is much safer than Malta as you interact with fewer people.
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