Easter Around the World

We have been traveling overseas on annual vacations since 2009. Sometimes we go in the Spring and sometimes we are away when Easter hits. This happened to us three times since 2009 and one other time way back in 1981.

Easter Sunday at the Vatican in 2009.

Italy

In 2009 we traveled to Ireland and Italy and were in Rome on Easter Sunday. We were among the millions (all right, only 400,000!) of people crammed into St Peter’s Square for the Pope’s Mass. I think that was the first time I had to go through an x-ray station to get to Mass. See here for more details and photos.

New Zealand

In 2011 we spent 11 days in New Zealand, including three days in Wellington where we celebrated Easter. We attended Mass at St Mary of the Angels. I remember being thrilled by the choir’s rendition of the Hallelujah from Handel’s Messiah.

St Mary of the Angels Church in Wellington, NZ.

In the afternoon we took the bus to the suburb of Miramar where we toured the Weta facility and their Lord of the Rings museum.

We had to scramble to find dinner that evening because almost all of the restaurants were closed. We finally found a sports bar that was open only if you promised to eat there and not just drink!

See here for more details and photos.

Guam

In 1981 we traveled to Japan in April to see the cherry trees in blossom. We then visited Guam for two weeks during Easter time.

Sandra and Lisa’s brother Joe and his two aunties. I met Joe four times: in 1972 when he was just a kid; in 1981 when he was a teenager and showed us around the island one day; in 2004 when he invited us to his house in Talafofo and we got acquainted with his wife and four sons; and now when his kids have kids of their own. [Update: We met Joe several times during our most recent visit to Guam in 2018.]

In 2015 we again visited Guam over Easter and attended Mass in Sinajana where my wife grew up. Afterwards we joined my wife’s niece and her husband’s family Easter celebration. There were more than 50 people there – four generations. My older daughter and her family left California on Saturday and arrived in Guam Sunday night.  So they spent most of Easter in the air!

See here for more details and photos.

Some Covid-19 Stats

After reminiscing about these places where we found ourselves over Easter I decided to check the latest statistics to see how the people are doing in these places.

Italy has reported 156,363 confirmed cases of Covid-19. Of these 34,211 have recovered and 19,899 have died. The region of Lazio where Rome is located has reported 4723 confirmed cases. Of these 720 have recovered and 273 have died. Most of the confirmed cases and deaths in Italy have occurred in the northern regions, especially Lombardy. (These stats are as of April 11th.) Lazio has approximately 6 million inhabitants. There are about ten million people living in Lombardy.

New Zealand has reported 1049 confirmed cases. Of these 471 have recovered and 4 have died. (Stats are as of April 11th.)

The territory of Guam has reported 133 confirmed cases of Covid-19. Of these 41 have recovered and 5 have died. These stats are as of April 13th but exclude military personnel. There are 165,000 people on Guam but the government has only been able to test  678 people. The USS Theodore Roosevelt has about 4,800 crew members. Almost all have been tested. As of April 10th, 447 have tested positive. 3696 sailors from the TR are presently living in various hotels around the island and confined to a 14-day quarantine.

On March 23rd there were a total of 15 unstaffed ICU beds on Guam excluding the military area and another 6 ICU beds at the naval hospital. I have not been able to find any more recent stats.

According to Statista.com Guam as of April 9th is fourth in the US in regards to the rate of Covid-19 per 100,000 people. New York is in first place with 762. New Jersey is in second with 534. Louisiana is third with 365 and Guam is fourth with 249.

And here are the latest stats regarding the USA: We have reported the most confirmed cases in the world: 549,131. Of these 32,334 have recovered and 21,656 have died.

Stay safe, everybody!