Gone up a mountain

An absent friend, Peregrine…

William: He’d been talking about buying a bag for his bicycle for a few days. Seems he was off on a train and cycle journey.

Wayne: Where did he go?

From a T-shirt

William: He just vanished. A text from him on Friday: “I tried to buy a ticket online to Suwa. I thought ordering it online a QR code would be sent to my phone. Nope, had to pick up the ticket from the station. So much for the speed of booking travel by train online.”

Wayne: And nothing since?

William: I sent a bunch of cartoons like “Never underestimate an old man with a mountain bike.” He hasn’t even checked his messages.

Wayne: Must be enjoying being out of Tokyo.

William: Or fallen off.

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Voice-over

Being an inveterate traveller and stranded for 16 months must be hard. Where Peregrine pre-pandemic would be on a flight every two weeks his recent wanderings have been no more than 30 kilometers by bicycle. But even Tokyo’s bike trails have palled evidently, the mountains call. Bit like the grand old duke of York, marching up and then marching down, with a train speeding the intrepid to the site, bike bagged.

Covid 19: How long does it last?

A virologist on Covid 19…

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Reporter: Some of the most common questions about the virus begin with “How long…?”

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We don't know...

Dr Fei Fei: Right. There is the question of how long is it contagious in the air, and how long will this pandemic last.

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Reporter: So when someone coughs or sneezes, how long does the virus stay active on a surface?

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Dr Fei Fei: On plastic or stainless steel, it could still be detectable after a couple of days. On cardboard a day.

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Reporter: And how long do you think before we can go back to normal life?

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Dr Fei Fei: That’s hard. It’s a new virus. It’s not the same as the flu, it’s not the same as SARS. It will pass, but we don’t when. Best guess is it will last months and just maybe next year it will have died down.

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Reporter: About the time when a vaccine is readied?

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Voice-over

Numbers add up to pictures and predictions. It’s complicated. Cases per million of population: Japan: 7, Italy: 600. Case fatality rate: average 2% (but higher in elderly and people with underlying health conditions: 10-30%). Country by country, case by case.

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