January 18. Zhang Lifei could not believe his ears. The 35-year-old tour guide from Henan province in central China gasped incredulously when I asked about the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak in China. I was worried because a few deaths had been reported.
“Coronavirus, what’s that! I don’t know about it. You must have been misinformed,” he said with a smirk. I shrugged; half in relief, half unsure.
January 20. It had just been two days since Zhang pooh-poohed my concerns. But the past 48 hours had changed China and Zhang. Today, he was a bag of nerves and was hurriedly scanning through Chinese news web sites on his phone. “What the f***. The government says there are less than 10 deaths, but I am not buying that,” he said in exasperation.” This virus has to be controlled. Somehow. I hope this does not escalate further. Please pray for us. And you guys stay away from the crowd till you return to India.”
January 21. Just days ahead of the Chinese New Year, when THE WEEK’s Photo Editor Sanjoy Ghosh and I reached Tiananmen Square in Beijing, the usual hustle and bustle was missing. The few scattered tourists were all wearing masks. The tension in the air was palpable. I saw a woman chiding her young daughter who was trying to remove her mask.
January 22. We visited the Silk Street Market in the Chaoyang district of the city, which has close to 2,000 retail vendors selling local specialities. Our taxi driver was not wearing the mask. I asked him about it, and he gestured that it was in the glovebox. Beijing is known for its heavy traffic. But, on that day, there were fewer cars on the roads and the pavements were emptier. Most foreigners come to Silk Street Market looking for a bargain, so the vendors are pushy and ready to haggle. But, today, they were hooked to their phones, possibly trying to find more about the mystery disease that had hit their beloved nation.
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