COVID-19 Global Diaries: 'I was stranded in lockdown Wuhan for months'

Annabella Woo lives in Hong Kong but found herself trapped in Wuhan - coronavirus ground zero - when the lockdown hit

My boyfriend was keen to visit Wuhan, his hometown, so I didn't think, twice about travelling there with him this January. When we arrived I wasn't struck with any misgivings, there were not many people wearing masks so I wasn't worried. But suddenly, three days before the lockdown was brought in, it felt like the outbreak was out of control.

We decided to live the city and travel to his ancestral village (an hour from downtown Wuhan) in the countryside. Although we were worried that there might not be enough food or masks when we arrived, we thought it was better than sticking it out in the city. Not long after we arrived his cousin came down with a high fever and we were really afraid she was infected. Fortunately, it was a false alarm and she turned out to be fine.

At the beginning of the lockdown, we were allowed to drive to supermarkets in other districts. But later, the village was closed off and nobody was allowed in or out. We had to start buying fish from the fishpond and we traded homegrown vegetables with neighbours. When all our home-raised hens and roosters were killed for food I was really hit hard and cried a lot. To appreciate their sacrifice, I now cherish food more than ever.

During the quarantine, I spent much of my time watching films, doing housework or playing badminton in the front yard. It isn’t too bad to live such a simple life. Of course, I do eventually want to return to Hong Kong, but the outbreak is not yet under control, and returning to Hong Kong would mean another two weeks of quarantine. There's no urgent need, so I'm staying put for a while.

I've come to realise that when you can’t change the facts, the first thing you must do is adjust your mindset. I was fortunate. It’s better to be positive.

Maria Coole is a contributing editor on Marie Claire.

Hello Marie Claire readers – you have reached your daily destination. I really hope you’re enjoying our reads and I'm very interested to know what you shared, liked and didn’t like (gah, it happens) by emailing me at: maria.coole@freelance.ti-media.com

But if you fancy finding out who you’re venting to then let me tell you I’m the one on the team that remembers the Spice Girls the first time round. I confidently predicted they’d be a one-hit wonder in the pages of Bliss magazine where I was deputy editor through the second half of the 90s. Having soundly killed any career ambitions in music journalism I’ve managed to keep myself in glow-boosting moisturisers and theatre tickets with a centuries-spanning career in journalism.

Yes, predating t’internet, when 'I’ll fax you' was grunted down a phone with a cord attached to it; when Glastonbury was still accessible by casually going under or over a flimsy fence; when gatecrashing a Foo Fighters aftershow party was easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy and tapping Dave Grohl on the shoulder was... oh sorry I like to ramble.

Originally born and bred in that there Welsh seaside town kindly given a new lease of life by Gavin & Stacey, I started out as a junior writer for the Girl Guides and eventually earned enough Brownie points to move on and have a blast as deputy editor of Bliss, New Woman and editor of People newspaper magazine. I was on the launch team of Look in 2007 - where I stuck around as deputy editor and acting editor for almost ten years - shaping a magazine and website at the forefront of body positivity, mental wellbeing and empowering features. More recently, I’ve been Closer executive editor, assistant editor at the Financial Times’s How To Spend It (yes thanks, no probs with that life skill) and now I’m making my inner fangirl’s dream come true by working on this agenda-setting brand, the one that inspired me to become a journalist when Marie Claire launched back in 1988.

I’m a theatre addict, lover of Marvel franchises, most hard cheeses, all types of trees, half-price Itsu, cats, Dr Who, cherry tomatoes, Curly-Wurly, cats, blueberries, cats, boiled eggs, cats, maxi dresses, cats, Adidas shelltops, cats and their kittens. I’ve never knowingly operated any household white goods and once served Ripples as a main course. And finally, always remember what the late great Nora Ephron said, ‘Everything is copy.’