COVID19 Thread

[KeithS]

Well - I guess we just should use a single COVID-19 thread from here on out.

On top of the news this morning that Disneyland Anaheim was closing, Disney have now announced the closure of Disneyland Resort Paris, Walt Disney World, and the suspension of all Disney Cruises until the end of March.

So in summary - all parks are now closed and the cruise line is not operating.

So how does this affect you guys?  What's happening in your own lives that have been affected by this?

At my work, we are undertaking business continuity planning in case we need to work from home - all domestic and international travel is off at the moment as are large meetings.  I suspect we'll be told to work from home soon.

2020 is going to be an interesting year...

[calisota]

For me its put all travel plans on hold. Had been planning to go to Hong Kong and Tokyo in the next month or two. Guess I'll just have to look at a trip around Thailand instead, especially since there are some accommodation bargains to be had.

The stock market is more of a concern for me. Big losses obviously with no stop in sight. It's a paper loss at the moment but if it doesn't start to head back up in the next 12 months it will be an issue.


Greg

[calisota]

It kind of feels like we are in one of those speculative science fiction novels about how the world would change if something global happened. 9/11 changed the world, especially regarding air travel, and I wonder what lasting effects this will have. It's certainly not helping the credibility of a lot of politicians. 


Greg

[KeithS]

Yeah - you have to be in for the long run with the share market.  Look at today, it was down 8% in Sydney at one point, then rallied to be up over 4% at the close...I should have bought more CBA shares at lunchtime when they were $59, they are back to $65 already!

Now the government is implementing no mass gatherings over 500 people from Monday.  So that'll be an end to live sports fixtures after this weekend.  I'll sit and enjoy the footy on TV though.  My sister flew to Bali today despite warnings about doing so - she's only there for a week.

[DisneyKaren]

How fast things change.  Sad as it is for those with trips booked, it is smart to close down and try and stop this.

My company isn't meeting until Monday to even discuss what we're doing.  We still have trainers with domestic travel booked, however as we do quite a bit of school-based training I suspect things could change quickly.  I have no annual leave so hoping I can work from home, otherwise I'll guess I'll take the time to get into photos from travel.

The only holiday I have is for late Oct/early Nov which I can only hope will go ahead - if the world is still under lockdown then, we'll have bigger problems!  There are concerns more people will face bankruptcy than death by the end of this.  So sad, but the closures are also necessary.  Someone I work with has said it will take a lot to keep his personal cafe afloat if there is full closures so 12 months of working every weekend could be lost - he still believes people's safety over money though.

I don't have many personal shares thankfully however my super fund is naturally likely to take a hit.  Just wait it out though.

[calisota]

Now the government is implementing no mass gatherings over 500 people from Monday.  So that'll be an end to live sports fixtures after this weekend.  I'll sit and enjoy the footy on TV though.  My sister flew to Bali today despite warnings about doing so - she's only there for a week.

I'm watching the Super Rugby now and there are very few people in the stands in Brisbane. This might be the last game they play this season though because it's an international competition played between 5 different countries and that amount of travelling is not going to be happening.

Your sister may end up being there for longer than just a week. Did she check the pandemic clause on her travel insurance? 

Greg

[Lauren05]

We were meant to be heading to Queenstown next Saturday but after the news today we have cancelled. We were only going for 4 nights but I think we would have had to stay in self isolation for the 14 days so wasn’t worth it. We were still prepared to go as they have only had 6 cases in NZ as of today but we probably would have been a threat coming in...
We luckily don’t have any other travel booked this year. Looking at doing a cruise to Hobart and Adelaide in October so we’ll see how things are looking in a few months before we do anything.
My work hasn’t got any real restrictions in place yet, just asking for notification of planned travel. That may change depending on how bad it gets over the coming days/weeks.
I do have some friends planning to come from the US in mid April and a friend coming home for a visit from the Uk at the end of March so it’ll be interesting to see how their trips pan out

[KeithS]

Disney are releasing Frozen 2 onto Disney+ this week, three months earlier than scheduled due to Covid19. They realise a lot of people are stuck at home. It will be available on the Australian platform on Tuesday so the is a nice surprise.

[calisota]

Disney are releasing Frozen 2 onto Disney+ this week, three months earlier than scheduled due to Covid19. They realise a lot of people are stuck at home. It will be available on the Australian platform on Tuesday so the is a nice surprise.

That is nice.

Greg

[KeithS]

I spoke to Wayne tonight and my understanding is that the club is cancelling the Disney Movie day in a few weeks.  We originally planned a trip to Mulan, but that movie has been pushed back so we were looking to go see Onward instead.  However in light of all the recent developments around social distancing, my understanding is that we will not be organising that now.  I think Wayne will send out an email shortly.

[calisota]

I spoke to Wayne tonight and my understanding is that the club is cancelling the Disney Movie day in a few weeks.  We originally planned a trip to Mulan, but that movie has been pushed back so we were looking to go see Onward instead.  However in light of all the recent developments around social distancing, my understanding is that we will not be organising that now.  I think Wayne will send out an email shortly.

Makes sense. I'm sure everyone will understand.

Greg

[Lauren05]

I’m hoping to see Onward this weekend in gold class - not as many people in the cinema. I’m still needing to catch the train to work so haven’t been isolating yet.
My friends who had trips booked have rescheduled until later this year.
Do we know if any club members who had holidays booked but have had to cancel now?

[KeithS]

Do we know if any club members who had holidays booked but have had to cancel now?

I understand Elissa and Judy had a trip including a cruise cancelled, and Jess isn't confident her 40th birthday trip to Disneyland in September will happen but it isn't cancelled yet.

[calisota]

I’m hoping to see Onward this weekend in gold class

They closed the cinemas here literally the day I was planning to go and see it.

Greg

[DisneyKaren]

Sorry to hear Greg, I'm not planning on going out other than work, shopping and Pilates as long as I have these open.  My company had to stand staff down yesterday, a few of us are on 2 days a week so I am fortunate to have some work and pay.  Tough times for business owners as well as staff.  Hoping to spend my free time working on photos and albums!

I'd hope that Jess's trip will go ahead in September - China is starting to reopen and it's been almost 2mths since they closed (25 Jan).  I know every country is different and we're relying on the USA being open by then.  Could the parks really cope if they're not open by then?

I'll certainly be watching the Tokyo Disney shows online while I can.  Maybe put on a Disney t-shirt and Minnie Ears to make me feel like I'm there.  Loving the creative pretend Disney tours people are posting on Facebook, creating a good laugh for many readers.