Repatriated from paradise
How paradise does a tropical island remain if you may have to stay there much longer than you would like? Erik Hoekstra (26) was on Palawan in the Philippines when the area was 'locked' due to the corona virus. Suddenly you are really far from home. Erik says that with a lot of help from the home front and the embassy, he came home safely.
What started as a dream in a breathtaking paradise quickly turned into a nightmare. I wanted to spend a month in the Philippines recovering from graduating from the Master's in Architecture in Delft. The home front did have some concerns about whether it was a smart idea to travel in this uncertain corona time. But at that time we were not yet aware of any harm. Things went worse in Germany and Belgium than in the Philippines.'
Highlight
'We started our journey on March 2. Via Manila we reached our first destination, the island of Coron. Beautiful nature with rocks, palm trees, turquoise water and lots of untouched greenery. From Coron we sailed to El Nido on the island of Palawan, a fantastic boat trip that took us to the most beautiful places, both above and below water. This might be the highlight of the whole trip, I thought!'
Find way out
“Unfortunately, we had peaked then. The Philippines began taking measures against the spread of COVID-19. On March 15, municipalities set their own 'community quarantine' rules. The municipality of El Nido closed to travelers, people were only allowed to leave. A curfew was also imposed. Because we had found a relatively good place to stay, a hostel, we tried to find a way out from there'.
'Our mode changed from enjoying and recovering to survival. It reminded me of the month of January when I graduated. It didn't go smoothly, of course, but it worked out in the end. That is why I managed to remain relatively level-headed and assertive even now. Every day I tried to address and reach as many people as possible via social media, and I informed the embassy via Facebook that our group (12 Dutch people and one French woman) was stuck in El Nido. Finally we received a notification via the BZ Reisapp that there would be a repatriation flight from the capital Manila on March 21. The Travel app is a handy tool to keep in touch with the Netherlands in terms of updates and advice.'
Whole job
'But getting tickets from El Nido to Manila turned out to be quite a job, partly because of the language barrier. Moreover, more people wanted to go home. We were registered with the local 'Bureau of Tourism', which organized these domestic 'sweeper flights'. We were eventually able to obtain local flight tickets to Clark at a distance of 100 kilometers from Manila, plus an international flight ticket to Amsterdam through this agency.'
The Dutchies are back
“The next day, at the El Nido airport, I saw our sweeper flight on a flight tracker app make a U-turn, much to my surprise. I hoped the app was confused, but our flight was really cancelled. Why, that was not disclosed. I remember when we turned white. Fortunately, group members were able to arrange overnight accommodation in our hostel in El Nido. The guests and staff welcomed us with open arms. “The Dutchies are back!” We obviously liked this a little less. But our mentality remained: don't give up, find a way home, because we heard that every now and then a commercial flight departed from Manila.
However, we declined a new sweeper flight that we were offered. The airport in question is 7 hours from El Nido and the chance that we could encounter roadblocks was too great. And what if this flight was also cancelled? Then we couldn't go back to El Nido. Our decision was supported by the Dutch embassy. Their message was 'stay put and we'll send you an update'.
Komenton / Shutterstock.com
Help
'At a certain point we heard that the Dutch government was working on a new repatriation flight back to the Netherlands. We again worked hard to find a way to Manila or Clark. The embassy advised us to rent a private plane. But such a private flight does not just happen. Declarations and a permit had to be drawn up and confirmed very quickly, and a lot of money had to be paid. My mother and her husband set their watches to Philippine time and arranged a lot for us as our 'Flying couch® Rescueflights'.
'With sober thinking, but also a lot of stress and sleepless nights, and a lot of help from the consulate in the Philippines, they managed to get a charter company to take action after 48 hours. For us, this was finally a moment of hope. However, a hotel stay in Manila still had to be arranged. Quite a challenge, because many travelers wanted to return home via Manila. Eventually, again with the help of the home front and the embassy, an overnight stay could be arranged for our entire group in a hotel.'
Tension and relief
'At El Nido Airport we were still tense, after all we hadn't progressed further than last time. When our private plane landed, everyone cheered and a few tears were shed. The next morning, at the airport in Manila, I was so happy when I saw a blue colossus land out of the corner of my eye. In my seat in the KLM plane, I realized that I had succeeded, that the battle was over. I was on my way back to the Netherlands! And that too on the originally planned return date. Now I rest from the whole adventure. Things are going well, especially now that the bad dreams are over'.
Hard-working Dutchman at the embassy
“As a group, we did our best to get everything done. But I realize all too well that we are lucky, because a very hard-working Dutchman at the embassy in Manila has been dealing with our situation. This tyrant fought hard to get us home safely. On behalf of the whole group I am very grateful to him!'
Source: Netherlands Worldwide
The article states “But getting tickets from El Nido to Manila turned out to be quite a job, partly due to the language barrier.” It is understandable that it was quite a job to book a flight during that period, but I cannot imagine a language problem in a country where people generally speak the English language very well and certainly on the famous tourist island of Palawan.
You think so, but in practice it is not so! Filipinos are very bad at saying "no" or just telling the truth. So I can imagine that there was a lot of talk but little clarity was provided.
The home front was right to be concerned. You have caused people to worry and stress because of this.
Many young people (especially backpackers) do not realize what a repatriation costs in terms of energy, time and money.
However, leaving Europe on March 2 was already risky. I was in Phuket at the time and was already following the situation.
Also lucky that they didn't first have to quarantine for 14 days or the holiday would have ended immediately
“Our mode changed from enjoying and recovering to survival. It reminded me of the month of January when I graduated. It didn't go smoothly, of course, but it worked out in the end. That is why I managed to remain relatively level-headed and assertive.” Call that sober. It's really unclear to me why there is a "survival" mode in this story, neither in graduation nor in El Nido. I understand you want to go home. But was this involuntarily extended residence situation really so life-threatening? Especially for young people, far outside the risk group, in a warm paradise. I know some who, completely 'involuntarily' but still gladly, thought this extended stay was a godsend and stayed there. With which I don't disapprove of the narrator's choice, but, come on, that wrought-up mood. I wish everyone in Thailand: relax, keep it safe, and realize that it is more stuffy in the Netherlands than in most tropical countries.
Agree with you Jan.
Waiting on a beautiful island until a flight has been arranged is, in my opinion, not as stressful as his message would indicate.
I had to stay in Kovalam for a week longer than planned due to a strike, no problem at all. I didn't mind a few phone calls every day and relaxing on the beach.
Is it me now? I don't read really nightmarish scenes in this story. Yes, a lot of hassle, inconvenience and worry. But I think a nightmare is something else.
Gr. Sheng
turning pale from a flight that has been cancelled, surviving in a hostel with food that is handed to you, what a misery, what a nightmare ...... What if something really happens to these over-indulgent twenty-somethings. Just laughable.