A passenger onboard MV Hondius has shared his experience of completing his first week under quarantine in the United States, as the ship officially arrives at its final destination
MV Hondius, the Dutch cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak has now docked at its final destination in Rotterdam to be disinfected. Only the ship’s crew were aboard for the last leg of the journey, as all passengers docked off the ship in the Canary Islands between May 10 and 11.
Among these passengers were Jake Rosmarin, a travel enthusiast who was travelling though South America, before boarding the MV Honduras in Ushuaia, Argentina. This would have taken him to the Netherlands.
Instead, the ship had all remaining passengers disembark in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, where they were sent to their home countries to quarantine. This is when Jake was sent back home to the United States.
Jake is one of eighteen Americans that are currently under observation at specialized healthcare facilities in the United States designed to treat people with dangerous infectious diseases. He has taken to his TikTok account to share his experience, both onboard the ship, but also in his quarantine room in Omaha, Nebraska.
In a recent post, Jake shared photos to summarise his first week in quarantine, where he shared insights on his room, and what he as been up to, as he’s not allowed to leave.
“Week 1 in quarantine. I just made it through my first week of quarantine here at the National Quarantine Unit at University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, and for the first time in a while I can honestly say I feel at peace with my situation,” Jake wrote in the caption of his post.
He shared photos of his room, which looks like a modern hotel room, complete with an ensuite bathroom, a double bed, a coffee maker, and an exercise bike, which Jake has taken advantage of, as he doesn’t have much room to move around.
“I’ve done a lot of reflecting over these last two weeks,” Jake said, claiming he’s been trying to come to terms with everything he’d gone through, from being stuck on the infected ship, to now being at the quarantine centre.
“It’s honestly crazy to look back and see how far I’ve come in just a week,” he added. ” “This photo series really captures that for me. From where I am now with my almost fully set up room complete with my tea & coffee corner, new bedding, pillows, blankets, photos on the walls, and all the little comforts that have helped make this place feel more like home…”
He also shared he’d made the most of ‘small joys’ around him, such as getting the exercising bike to his room, to getting takeaways from Starbucks, and receiving packages and presents from friends and family members. As he arrived in his room, he was also amazed to see two welcome notes from staff, who welcomed him, and said they wanted to make his stay as comfortable as possible.
Jake has previously also showed clips of him ordering his food, as he gets to pick what meals he has for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day from a long list of alternatives.
The last photos also showed Jake onboard the cargo plane he was put on to move him from the Canary Islands to the United States, as he claimed it felt like a surreal experience.
“Boarding a plane that honestly felt like something straight out of a movie. It all somehow already feels like a lifetime ago,” he said.
He went on to thank his friends and family, as well as the healthcare staff and people on the internet for making his experience more bearable, claiming he’s gone through a lot of emotions over the past week.
“It’s because of all of you that I’ve been able to stay positive through something that at first felt impossible,” he said.
Jake has not experienced any symptoms of Hantavirus, but is expected to stay in quarantine 42 days in total.
