How Covid-19 and cancelled flights left a Chinese student stranded in Seattle
- Hundreds of flights have been cancelled as a result of the Omicron variant, leaving many Chinese unable to fly home for New Year
- One of those affected says she now faces a ‘Catch-22’ and is unsure whether she can afford a flight home or whether she will be able to stay in the US
Instead of spending New Year’s Eve back in China as she had planned, Alin found herself stranded in a strange US city.
She had travelled across America from Connecticut, where she is studying on an exchange programme, and had initially planned to fly from Seattle to Shanghai on December 23, before making her way home to Fujian province.
As she posted on a year-end review on WeChat, “I flew three-fourth across the globe in my 2021 and I’m on the last leg of my journey home”, only for her flight to be cancelled at the last minute, leaving her scrambling to find somewhere to stay.
Unlike many other Chinese students with wealthy parents back home, Alin is on her own because her parents’ bakery is struggling to stay afloat.
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The limited number of flights available mean she cannot afford the exorbitant costs of a ticket home.