Russia is gradually removed quarantine measures, life returns to normal, but the borders with other countries for the most part still closed. To return home from abroad can mostly only by export flights. Thousands of Russians are still abroad fighting for and obtaining the required state financial assistance. The correspondent of “Kommersant” Marianna Belenkaya all this time followed the fate of many of them. With Oksana Philippi, which is the start of a pandemic coronavirus found in South Africa, “y” met in April when I prepared one of the first texts about stranded abroad Russians. Today she returns to Russia. Not yet in his native St. Petersburg- will have two weeks in the Observatory in Moscow, but stayed at home quite a bit. This text is a monologue by Oksana Filippova, recorded a few hours before departure.”Waiting, counting the minutes until the plane, especially the moment when will be able to see those with whom we spoke in the chat “stuck” for the past two and a half months. I want to look them in the eye and say thank you. Without them it would be difficult to live these days. Someone was looking for crumbs of information, what to do, where to go, someone responded with. With them I learned what it means “his not throw”. One of the stories that have warmed, happened when we were able to raise money for housing two pensioners from Blagoveshchensk stuck in Johannesburg. And recently, another story. A few weeks ago was the first flight to Russia from South Africa. He was free. And air travellers departing from one of the girls wrote that they are ready to transfer part of the received material assistance to those who still remain in South Africa in a difficult situation. Such a seemingly simple gesture — I got help, ready to help others. But in real life, such actions can hardly see. And here they suddenly I began to meet at every step.This was my third trip to South Africa. Flew on 20 March for ten days, but almost immediately everything went wrong. In the country announced the introduction of a national quarantine, and in a few days it became known about the closure of Russia’s borders. Felt like trapped: flight cancelled, booked in advance the hotel closes, will there be enough money, it is not known in Russia, was the elderly mother, the job that I was supposed to come out April 1, the obligations of the loan. And panic suddenly I get sick in a foreign country where the insurance is unlikely to cover a decent hospital. Plus the situation around. Everything was closed, the city seemed a Ghost, and the news are frightened by riots. All planned and thought out life, the whole world is falling apart before our eyes.And in this moment, when it seemed that I fell into the abyss, suddenly began to come through.The first hand stretched out, the General Manager of the hotel, where I planned to stay just three days before departure from Cape town. Because karanti��and they were closed but decided to make an exception for me — has agreed to come stay before departure on the condition that I will not be in contact with staff who remained on site to keep order. And then it turned out that I have nowhere to fly. And the hotel management showed humanity and allowed me to stay there for free as long as you need. Moreover, they made sure that I had everything necessary for living — microwave, kettle, coffee maker, minimum of utensils. When on Fridays the staff is locked in quarantine at the hotel, gathered for the traditional inhabitants of South Africa BBQ, and called me. Treated as a family member. So stick that in the end I asked to find me a case and I was given a small plot in the garden. Not because they really needed help, and to just to keep me busy. And when he learned that I had almost died the battery in the phone, brought the tablet so I didn’t lose touch with the world.Following the beam of light was from my superiors. I was worried I’d be forced to take unpaid leave, which naturally affects my income. But the leadership decided to support me by paying minimum wage, although the conditions of the quarantine, they had their difficulties.Suddenly the money came from classmates, with whom I haven’t spoken to in many years. Asked nothing, they found out that I was stuck and decided to help. The problem was solved and with my mother — she took care of my cousin, but we are also not talking much before. When you don’t expect anything and don’t expect anything, any outstretched to your side arm touches the soul and turns the consciousness.Half of April was spent fighting with the system. Wrote letters to state agencies — the Embassy, the Ministry, the Federal air transport Agency, the presidential Administration, hoping to learn something about the flight home. Was looking for any certainty to calculate the money. Same thing with the material assistance promised by the government. She didn’t come and we couldn’t understand — to wait or to get out yourself. It was an endless digital quest, a vicious circle from which I wanted to get out. Imagine all these hot lines, soulless answers. You’re locked in a room from which almost do not go out, and do not know what awaits you tomorrow. In one of those moments of despair from the struggle with the bureaucratic machine I just wrote in the Instagram official representative of the Russian foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova. And could not believe my eyes when she promised to investigate. And it was not just a reply, with me really messed her staff. It was some kind of fiction, usually this happens in the books, and here with me. Important was just a human response.You know, every man inside there, or Golden seed, or worm. In ordinary life you don’t know. And here I had the chance to see another life and other people. And now we’re going home, and you want to endlessly say thank you to everyone who was in these days is near”.
