Coronavirus is real...

            There is much conspiracy about the Novel Coronavirus coming out of China. People I have met abroad doubt that the epidemic is even really happening. But what I can say from my firsthand account is that I do believe coronavirus is happening, despite not having met anyone who has had this Novel Coronavirus. I was in China up until last week, and what I experienced there was really very intense. China is almost completely under lockdown right now. People are having troubling moving from city to city, because many trains, taxis’ and planes are cancelled. There are also physical roadblocks on the roads, because the government doesn’t want people moving around in their own personal cars either, because this may spread the virus. Nobody is outside, everyone is hiding in their apartments waiting for this whole epidemic to end. And people are worried because they don’t know when they will go back to work. All schools and public places are closed. Only pharmacies, big supermarkets, and hospitals are open now. Foreign stock investors have pulled out their shares from Chinese companies, because this epidemic has had such a big financial blow on China’s economy. It is still unknown when this epidemic will end. With the SARS epidemic, the virus simply disappeared when the weather got warmer. Hopefully this can happen with the Novel Coronavirus. I also don’t like when I hear foreign people say they don’t believe the epidemic is a real thing, because they haven’t seen it with their own eyes. It makes me a bit angry. I too haven’t seen anyone with the Novel Coronavirus with my own eyes, but I believe it is happening because all world governments are acknowledging it’s happening, and international unions as well, such as the WHO (World Health Organization). Coronavirus is real and a threat. Otherwise so many countries wouldn’t stop their flights from China. It’s very dangerous now also because it’s now said the virus can be transferred through the air, in droplets of water. So one may not be in contact with people, but the Coronavirus can still be in their air. The whole world has to be cautious right now. Best of luck to China.

The Dangers of Human Trafficking

What I’ve encountered in my time as a traveller in a very serious concern for my well-being from other people. Particularly from my own family, and more specifically from my mother. I’ve been all around Asia and Europe, and in the beginning (before I got married) it was a big concern that I could be kidnapped. Now, I’m a very cautious and careful person. I don’t drink, I don’t generally go out and party at night. But I have travelled alone. My mother may have worried so much because of watching so many movies, but when researching on the web, it is possible to find examples of young girls like me who have been kidnapped and forced to live a very brutal life, or even end up dead. Now that I’m married, my mother has her huge weight of worry lifted off her shoulders, as she can see I’m taken care of. Still, it is unfortunate that some unsuspecting girls get in to some pretty bad situations.

          It seems that human trafficking has existed almost forever. In much of recorded history, from the ancient Vedas of India, to the Bible, to the writing of the English poet Lord Byron, human trafficking has been a topic that has been greatly touched upon. In earlier days, human trafficking was called slavery. Now that slavery has been legally abolished in much of the world, the term human trafficking has been used to describe the concept of modern-day slavery.

            Modern day slaves are existing in almost every country in the world. They are involuntary captive workers, forced against their will to work or live in whatever kind of inhumane conditions their captors may put them in. Humans are bought and sold on black markets, without any free will. Previously, these markets were not underground, they were in plain sight. Victims are often kidnapped, and can be any age, gender or race, though, the majority of victims are women and girls (and sometimes boys) who are sold in to sexual slavery.

            It is easy to find information about human trafficking on the internet. Organizations like the UN (United Nations) and the WHO (World Health Organization) have written various extensive documents and articles on human trafficking. They easily explain and outline the topic for all to understand. They also mention what their own organizations are doing about human trafficking, and they explain how to identity someone who is being trafficked.

            If you see someone who you think is being trafficked, please call the police, or one of the hotlines provided by various organizations online. It’s a very important issue which is affecting numerous lives all around the world. Human trafficking is no joke. It’s a very serious issue which needs to be stopped.

Hello!

Hello! My name is Allie. I was born in the Niagara Region of Ontario, Canada. Since I was 17 years old I've been travelling all over the world. Two years ago, I got married. Now, my husband travels with me too! We are learning and growing together. I love to have new experiences and see new places. Even when I'm not travelling, I always have to move. I like to sing and dance, I'm even thinking of trying out for a show like Got Talent or The Voice. My other passion is cooking. My husband and I are vegetarians and I can cook all sorts of world cuisine. My husband is Ukrainian and he particularly loves Ukrainian cuisine, of course. But I think for him, his Mom is the best chef. We both work as English teachers, wherever we go, even at home, here in Ukraine.

What Travelling Has Taught Me

When I was young, I never wanted to travel. In fact, I never wanted to leave my house or yard. I used to hate when we would go on vacation. I was always waiting to go back home.

Now that I'm older, I can't sit in one place. I always have to go somewhere. In the past 8 years, I've lived in over 5 different cities, all around the world. I've met so many interesting people. I've had some exciting new experiences. Even now, I'm trying to "settle down" to a certain extent. I've had a bit of trouble with it. I got married in 2018 and it was certainly a big adjustment for me. It was hard to learn to live with someone who hadn't travelled to the ends of the Earth as much as I had. Finally I pushed him "let's go work in China!". So we did. We had a great year together and learned alot about each other. I'm so glad we went there, because he opened up more as a person also. He had to meet new people outside his own culture, and learn to work with them. When we returned home to Mom recently, he even had a mini cultural shock. He says he likes living abroad more than living at home. And he was worried about getting a job here. But so far, he has had a plethora of interviews and opportunities are opening up even more for him now that he's travelled and lived abroad for a year. You could even say he's attracting the right things he needs. 

What I've learned from travelling is to totally break down my barriers and at the same time have good discernment. I think discernment it definitely something I didn't have much of before travelling. Travelling has made me more careful and tactful. I've also learned to be more resourceful and careful with my words. I guess you could say travelling has brought out the survivalist in me. 

The Reality of the Coronavirus Epidemic for Foreigners

There are thousands of foreigners living in Mainland China. However, since the beginning of the Coronavirus epidemic, the number of foreigners in Mainland China has greatly decreased...

Thousands of foreigners have left China in the past few weeks due to the virus. Not only out of fear that they may contract the virus (some foreigners living in Mainland China have already contracted the virus), but also the fact that many industries have been on lockdown since the beginning of the virus. Now, in Mainland China, mainly only pharmacies and supermarkets and hospitals are open. Since foreigners don't generally work in these places, they are out of work for the time being. Many foreigners work at schools or are students themselves. Schools are completely closed at this time and it is unknown when they will be open again. A few foreign governments have flown their citizens out of the country on emergency flights, and then had their citizens go in to quarantine after arriving at their home country. Many foreigners are also stuck, without any way to get home. It's all a concerning issue. Many foreigners also live in larger cities, where the virus is growing. 

Myself and my husband were among two foreigners who fled after the news of the crisis. We were in a small town, where there were no accounts of the virus when we left China. When we arrived home in Kiev after a 42 hour flight, there were then a few cases which already arose. We're grateful we left when we did. 

So great to be back in Ukraine!

For the past year I have enjoyed my time in China. It was a wild ride full of hard work and new experiences. It was also a really great opportunity to get to know my husband better. When we first got married we lived in Kiev for seven months, all the while with his mother intercepting us all the time. While we were together in China, we had a great time getting to know each other better without her intervention. Now that we've come back to Ukraine, we don't have that stressful dynamic anymore. I'm like a daughter to my mother-in-law now and my husband and I are better friends. China taught us we have to value family before anything else, and always try to co-operate with one another. It also gave me time to be more comfortable with any cultural differences I may have with my husband. I heard him speaking to his Mom on the phone every day when we were in China, and as a result I can safely say I understand much more Russian than I did before.
Another thing we learned in China was the proper way to engage our English students, and about business in general. Before going to China we didn't know much about the business of English training schools. From working in China we learned the inter-workings of this business and can now adapt this experience to working in a Ukrainian environment. Our work in China has caused us to be harder working also, we don't get as tired and we are driven to make money. Overall we learned alot of China, and let's hope we can keep going with  the lessons we've learned!