Our family left the safety of the Atlantic Canada Bubble in October 2020 and arrived in Casteau amidst the requirement for a two-week quarantine as Belgium locked down for Round Two. Fast forward a few months following Quarantine #1 and we found ourselves facing Quarantine #2 – an unexpected trip back to Ontario for my spouse. Upon his return to Belgium, we isolated yet again for Quarantine #3. It seems that we have become accidental experts at quarantine! Perhaps our mistakes and discoveries will assist you in preparing for your upcoming move.
First, let’s talk food: keeping everyone happy and fed is the name of the game during quarantine. We found Click & Collect grocery programs useful. In Canada, we used Loblaws and Superstore though most chains now offer online shopping. Make sure to add extra snacks to your order and stock up on more food than you think you might need. Here in Belgium, we used a grocery store called Delhaize, but there are others including Colruyt and Carrefour. Our sponsors helped us select the best location, picked up our order, and dropped it off at our Airbnb before we arrived. They also have “HelloFresh” food delivery here in Belgium and it operates similarly to Canada.
We travelled with two dogs to Europe, and we were limited in the amount of dog food we could hand-carry. I ordered food in advance through “miscota.be” and had it delivered to our sponsor’s house.
We have relied on Airbnb exclusively during our quarantines. Having a backyard has been crucial to our quarantine happiness so the dogs could run, we could do outdoor workouts, and sit in the sun - yes, the sun does shine in Belgium on occasion! Having a kitchen was a must for us, though we did order take-out on occasion. In Canada, we used “skipthedishes.com” and in Belgium, we used “takeaway.com” and “deliveroo.be” to find restaurants near our Airbnb.
We found it best to keep to a daily schedule for sleep, workouts, meals, etc. and we learned to limit screen time. MFS has a fantastic lending system for books (including cookbooks and travel guides), DVDs, toys, and kitchen equipment. We brought a few games in our luggage and we also played conversation starter games (Google this topic and you will find interesting questions to ask each family member).
Don’t forget that your devices might need charging more often and ensure you have enough adaptors for that purpose. I’d recommend at least one per family member. A few other items I’d suggest include reading material in English/French, suitcase packing cubes to manage clutter during quarantine, small medical kit, portable speaker, wine opener, and extra linen (if you stay at an Airbnb confirm what is provided in advance as COVID rules vary from country to country).
My biggest piece of quarantine advice? Be prepared and then…enjoy the downtime of quarantine! Moving is stressful as it is, never mind during a pandemic. Remember…rest is a productive activity!
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