LFA students come from so many places across the world, and the differences and similarities between the places we are from have never been more prevalent than now. A global pandemic had caused the world to shut down, but countries have started to reopen as government’s have learned how to deal with the virus. Across the three very different places of China, Ukraine, and Wisconsin students have experienced the virus very differently, and reopening of their homes have shown just how different but similar our world is. 

China was hit the earliest during this global pandemic, as the source of the spread was in Wuhan, China. After an intense and strict quarantine across the country, China has learned to bounce back economically and socially. The country started to re-open in the Spring of this year, and things have changed drastically since the initial panic about the virus. In China, they created three different levels of protocol depending on the province. Masks are used on public transportation but not really required outside anymore. People in restaurants are not distancing. All these rules have been established by  the federal government.

When asked about how people feel towards the pandemic, Haili Sun ‘22, a student from Chengdu, China, responded with, “In China people are just relaxed and don’t even care that much … It’s like normal now.” Most provinces are on the first and second level of protocol, meaning that following rules are optional. Sun says that most people don’t care very much anymore, and in places like restaurants, people are not distanced at all. 

Initially, Ukrainians were not hit very hard by the pandemic compared to other countries. However, there was a three-month lockdown in order to prevent further damage. Recently, Ukraine has started to open up. According to federal law, Ukrainians are required to wear face masks when indoors. Restaurant seating is only outside and there are sanitizers everywhere to promote healthy habits. 

However, the general population became antsy after such a long time in lockdown and started to stop following these protocols. Illia Slipchenko, a junior from Ukraine, stated that, “People hate it, nobody wears a mask”. Slipchenko said that despite the laws put in place, nobody really cares anymore, and nobody gets reprimanded for not following the rules.

Only three hours from here in Wisconsin, COVID-19 is dealt with like many other places in the United States. The United States has an incredibly high amount of cases and state governments were the ones to create lockdown and mask protocols. Despite the United States being one of the countries worst hit by the pandemic, reopening happened very quickly.

When asked about how her state was reopening, Sophia Sokhi ‘22, stated that, “No one really abides by the rules. Bars are open and everyone is drinking … People are mad they had to stay quarantined because people still believe the virus is a hoax.” Local laws are not enforced and the fact that many believe this virus is fake shows the misinformation that is spread so easily around the United States.

Despite there being many different protocols countries are making in order to reopen, the response by the population is generally similar. People are simply tired of this virus and most just want to be done with it, despite the consequences that it can make.