Stranded Abroad During Covid in 2020: A 5-Year Reflection

Remaining stranded abroad during COVID was one wild ride! We certainly chose the road less traveled by riding out a global pandemic in a foreign country.

To make it more unusual, we remained somewhere we didn’t have residency instead of returning to our country of passport when borders closed. Despite a few bumps, for us the choice was one the best one by far!

So where were we all that time? Oh, my! It is a tale to tell!

Before We Were Stranded Abroad During COVID

When we headed to Myanmar in February 2020 for a few weeks, Malaysia beat COVID-19. There were zero cases. It hadn’t (yet) reached Myanmar, officially anyway.

We made friends with a Japanese couple, had a blast seeing the sights, and declined when we were offered free surgical masks at the Schwedagon Pagoda in Yangon.

News reached us about mask and hand sanitizer shortages in Malaysia. On a lark, we bought a 10-pack of surgical masks (just in case).

We arrived in Johor Bahru, Malaysia (next to Singapore) at the end of February to meet up with other traveling families. Most of us booked apartments in the same complex so we could easily swim together and go to Legoland.

We planned to sprinkle in other group activities, like day trips to Singapore or at non-LEGO local Johor Bahru places. No one really watched the news because we were having too much fun.

We had pool parties until sunset. Kids passed out right after dinner because we spent all day at an amusement park. It was travel bliss.

Cases Increased

All good things come to an end. Soon, we heard about a massive gathering of over 10,000 people at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur. People from all over the world attended the religious celebration.

Opinion pieces chastised the government for not canceling the gathering. Local media claimed coronavirus would return due to the government’s failure to prohibit large religious gatherings. Unfortunately, they turned out to be correct.

Within two weeks, infection rates began increasing throughout Malaysia. Infections also popped up in other countries linked back to the “Tabligh Cluster”.

Around the same time, we also heard about an outbreak in Italy. That was so far away, we didn’t know if it would even impact us. 

Because Malaysia had beaten the virus once, we didn’t think much of the new outbreak. We still went to Legoland almost daily and we had a moms’ night out at a local restaurant.

In addition, we also planned movie theater days and cultural center excursions. Getting stranded abroad during COVID was the last thing on anyone’s mind.

Getting Stranded Abroad During COVID

Seemingly out of the blue, a couple of families left because their travel insurance informed them Malaysia was a Level 3 travel risk country. This development meant they were no longer covered if they stayed.

We all learned quickly about insurance in a new way. Seeing how willingly travel insurance companies dropped coverage and left people hanging was disappointing.

It was a stark reminder to always read the fine print! I contacted our insurance company. They told me we were still covered. That was a relief! I was grateful we chose an expat health insurance plan instead of travel insurance!

Things changed fast at the beginning of March. Within a week of the first families leaving, Malaysia announced it was going into lockdown.

Foreigners would be permitted out of Malaysia but not allowed to return. That meant we could still fly home from Singapore if we wanted. The original announcement for a two-week lockdown didn’t seem like a big deal, at least not for us.

However, another family decided to leave. One parent was back in the US while the other was still traveling with the kids. Family separation isn’t ideal under any circumstance.

The choice to leave seemed like an easy one for them as opposed to getting stranded abroad during COVID as a solo parent.

We got a report back from the family they were given a bit of a hard time by immigration officials crossing the land border from Malaysia into Singapore. Thankfully, they made it to the airport in plenty of time for their flight.

Stranded Abroad During COVID: SINGAPORE CHANGES

Just before Malaysia’s lockdown started, Singapore announced it was closing its border with all ASEAN countries. This included the border with Malaysia.

More families got nervous. We did too, honestly. The possibility of getting stranded abroad during COVID weighed heavily on us.

Every time a new change was announced, we grew uncertain all over again. How could we not?

In light of Singapore’s announcement, another family left immediately. Both adults work remotely full-time and travel with a South American Au Pair to help care for their children. Some countries in the Americas have difficulty getting visas.

These changes meant border closures would make it difficult for the family unit to get around for a while. So they all flew to Mexico in order to stay together. It seems to be a good fit for them.

Our family group text blew up during all these developments. Two other families nervously made a visa run to Singapore for the day, to reset their three-month limit to the maximum available.

It was a precaution, just in case the lockdown stretched that long. We considered doing the same thing, and met up to discuss it with friends we’d been traveling with since November.

Our kids quickly became very close, and we had summer travel plans with them. When we got to their apartment, however, they told us they were leaving.

I was shocked. I never considered that possibility. As they explained their reasoning, it made sense. Their travel ended later that year with a return to the US in September anyway.

They didn’t want to get stranded abroad during COVID for a long period if things got really bad. We discussed our reasons for staying, but still felt unsure. How can any decision in situations like this be the ‘right’ decision?

Stranded Abroad During COVID Without Our Besties

Ultimately when they decided to leave, we chose to stay. We officially committed to being stranded abroad during COVID. It was so stressful. And a bit scary.

To ensure they could leave Malaysia via Singapore, they departed that same afternoon to stay in a hotel near the airport for an early morning flight the next day. Less than six hours after we chatted about making a visa run, our travel besties were gone.

I cried a bit when their car rolled away from the apartment complex. Little Man refused to say goodbye to their kids.

I know we chose a lifestyle that is typically full of goodbyes, but this was so sudden that we both struggled to process it. That day is one of the hardest we experienced in 2020.

Our friends sent us photos of an empty Changi Airport, and the stringent disinfecting protocols Singapore enforced. We felt really impressed and reassured that they at least would have a safe trip back to the US.

In hindsight, seeing their selfies on airplanes without anyone wearing masks is strange. Knowing what we know now about viral transmission, I wonder if they were as safe as we assumed. Thankfully, none of them got sick from their repatriation flights.

Stranded Abroad During COVID Lockdowns

The day before Malaysia’s lockdown started, we went to the grocery store along with what felt like the rest of Malaysia. Some friends with a car picked me up so I could shop at the mall in town for lifestyle essentials, too.

The suddenness of the lockdown announcement in Malaysia sent the country into a round of what felt like panic buying. Everyone was buying groceries for two weeks, so they didn’t have to leave the house.

While the checkout lines were long, the only thing running in short supply was bulk bags of rice. Thankfully, in contrast to the shortages experienced in the US nothing was fully out of stock.

We foolishly assumed that because our building was private that we could play in the pool and on the playground for two weeks. We thought the closures were only being applied to public facilities.

I only bought a couple extra toys and games. And some gin. Lockdown essentials!

The next morning we awoke to signs all over the community floor stating that everything was closed. Oops! But it was only two weeks, right?

We could make do with what we had that if we were only going to be stranded abroad during COVID for that long.

Lockdown Extension

Over the next week, it became increasingly clear that the two-week lockdown would be extended. Borders around the world were closing. When Malaysia announced that they would extend it for two additional weeks, another two families decided to leave.

Since these two groups were the only two families willing to socialize (responsibly) with us during the lockdown, it was really sad for us to see them go.

Ultimately, the decision was best for them because both families were on a gap year with physical homes to which they could return. 

Five families remained with us in Johor Bahru. Two even lived in our same complex but seemed too nervous about the virus to socialize.

During that time, we all left our apartments solely to grocery shop weekly and go to the ground floor for meal delivery pickups.

Stranded Abroad During COVID Lockdown Extensions

Video calls became essential to my existence. I chatted with some US friends on Sunday mornings. On Friday nights, David and I played virtual Cards Against Humanity with two other couples who stayed in Johor Bahru with us but didn’t live in our building.

The distance meant we couldn’t socialize with them during lockdown.

David spent the entire lockdown working 60-70 hours a week. He didn’t understand why I was so anxious and depressed. Especially at the beginning, being stranded abroad during COVID was really difficult for me. I gave up writing for quite some time.

I couldn’t get out of my own head to focus on anything long enough to write about it. It took quite a while to get past that funk, honestly. Mental health is a very tricky thing.

With so much free time, I instead spent a lot of it compulsively researching where to possibly go next. In retrospect, this was clearly a coping mechanism.

Almost all the borders worldwide closed, at least to US passport holders, so the destination choices were slim. With the last-minute nature of the lockdown extensions, we had very little time to book flights if necessary.

Remaining stranded abroad during COVID didn’t quite seem so idyllic.

Stranded Abroad During COVID & Losing Support

The lockdown was extended a third time, for two more weeks. The government warned that more extensions could occur.

We were supposed to head to Singapore on May 12 for a couple of nights before flying to Hong Kong and Shanghai to visit both of the Disney parks with our friends who’d left in March. Clearly, that wasn’t happening.

We finally realized that all our summer plans would be canceled. We would be stranded abroad during COVID a lot longer than originally planned.

The US Embassy sent emails telling its citizens to return to the US or prepare to be abroad indefinitely. That seemed like a ludicrous suggestion at the time. Ultimately, they were right.

I should have realized long before that our year would be canceled. However, I felt denial about how long-term the border closures would actually last. A year later, I never dreamed they would still be in effect for so long.

I worked to cancel our lodging and airfare bookings for those trips. Thankfully, due to our past bad experiences with booking engines, we booked all our flights directly with the airlines.

Ultimately, we were fortunate enough to get full refunds on all our flight and Airbnb bookings.

It was depressing to see so many of our life plans for the year totally canceled, but I know that was a much better scenario than many people faced around the globe.

Stranded Abroad During COVID with Lockdowns Lifting

The lockdown finally relaxed a little in mid-May, right before David’s birthday. Two families still around joined us for lunch at the local grocery store to celebrate his big day. It was the first time Little Man had been out of the apartment in six weeks.

Each table had a limit of two people, so families of four took up two tables. All three families took up six of the eight tables in the dining area.

It was definitely an unsanctioned social gathering but because we all sat correctly at the designated tables, no one said anything to us.

Part of the lockdown relaxation included a one-month extension, instead of just two weeks. Unfortunately, the lockdown relaxation did not include children being permitted to go to many places.

Most malls and grocery stores prohibited children under 12 or adults over 60 from entering. It was so hard for Little Man to stay indoors all day, every day.

A couple more families gave up on being stranded abroad during COVID, at least in Malaysia. One family flew home to Sweden, where they would be allowed a lot more freedom of movement.

The other family returned the US, despite having no home base, and spent a month there traveling around before heading to Mexico for a while. They both seemed very happy with their decisions, so I’m glad they made the choices they did.

Surprises While Stranded Abroad During COVID

We expected another extension because things hadn’t really opened back up yet. When the government announced the Movement Control Order (MCO) was extended through August 31, it was such a great surprise!

That gave us 2.5 more months to stay put and stay safe. Remaining stranded abroad during COVID in Malaysia started to seem like a good idea after all.

At first, not much changed for our family. Shops reopened but trying on clothing was prohibited until early July. A few more restaurants reopened but at half capacity, so every other seat at each table was removed and there were fewer tables.

A family of three or four still had to sit at two separate tables when dining out. We could exercise alone or in a family group outdoors, but parks and hiking areas were still closed.

Children were prohibited in almost every park. All the fun stuff was also still shut down, including outdoor playgrounds.

Thankfully, that phase passed like all the others. I knew that we were much safer in Malaysia than we would be almost anywhere else. There hadn’t been a single case of the virus in our neighborhood, let alone our building.

Despite our frustrations being stuck inside, the Malaysian government handled the pandemic incredibly well. Throughout everything we had access to quality healthcare if we needed it, there were no food shortages, and the overall infection rates were remarkably low.

We knew we were very fortunate to be stuck there when the borders closed.

Stranded Abroad During COVID Summer 2020

Throughout the summer, things felt almost normal again. Legoland reopened. We were one of the first families in the door on re-opening day.

During the welcome dance party, I choked up a bit. Despite new physical distancing signage and mandatory masks everywhere, it felt like things would eventually be normal again. Some day we wouldn’t be stranded abroad during COVID.

In July, the water park even reopened and we went there a couple of times a week. We also took our first mini-trip since the lockdown started.

It was just a beach town 90 minutes away for a few days, with another family waiting things out in Johor Bahru with us. However, swimming in the ocean and waking up to a change of scene was incredible.

We all returned to Johor Bahru with a renewed sense of readiness to face our new reality.

Summer was filled with many activities we’d canceled due to the lockdown. We visited cultural centers, game shops, and local pet cafes.

We also went to Legoland and its water park several times a week. During that time, we grew very close to the remaining families who had stuck things out with us in Malaysia. 

Our building pool closed for renovations during the lockdown and finally reopened in early August. To make up for lost time, Little Man and I went swimming in our pool almost daily.

We even had our friends over to swim a few times because building security didn’t seem to mind. There weren’t any rules against it!

Changes While Stranded Abroad During COVID

Halfway through August, we started worrying that things were going too well in Malaysia. There was a real possibility that we would have to leave the country.

We’d grown too comfortable being stranded abroad during COVID, and the reality of flying again was intimidating. Other families felt the same and we all began to research where we could go before the possible border reopening occurred.

We couldn’t return to the US because it was becoming the hardest-hit country in the pandemic. Sadly, taking our chances abroad remained safer than going ‘home’.

I told our landlord that if the border closures were extended that we also wanted to extend our time living there. He agreed, so we felt secure.

A few days before the end of August, the Malaysian government gave us another gift. Border closures and our overstay amnesty were extended until the end of December!

Our property management company reversed his decision on extending our rental so we panicked. That gave us only a week to find a new apartment, in the midst of planning Little Man’s birthday party.

Despite efforts to find an apartment in Johor Bahru, we couldn’t find anything we liked in our budget. So we made the difficult decision to return to Kuala Lumpur.

We had friends there, and we had annual passes at an indoor trampoline park as well as another amusement park to keep us busy. So we rented an apartment in KL for a month and hoped to find a longer-term place once we arrived.

Birthdays While Stranded Abroad During COVID

We decided to have a small pool party for Little Man the day before his birthday, close to the end of our stay in JB. He and I made a chocolate cake from scratch, decorating it at his request with chocolate frosting and M&Ms.

He had a blast at his party! It was so nice to see him enjoy time with all his friends together one last time before we headed to KL for a while.

I thought it would be difficult to tell our friends we were leaving them to go three hours north for a few months. However, one of the other families had bigger news. They were so sure that MCO might end that they’d booked tickets out of Malaysia.

As a family of seven from the US, it was much harder to find affordable airfare to a country accepting Americans. When they found an incredible deal, they couldn’t pass it up.

They flew to Albania, where Americans can stay for one year visa free, the same day that we were moving to KL. The news they were leaving hit me really hard.

Little Man had really bonded with their kids, and the mom had quickly become a close friend as well. Who knew when we’d see them again. We still haven’t…

The Big Move

Our move to KL was an adventure. We helped so many families leave Malaysia quickly over the prior five months that we inherited a LOT of stuff.

Since we were going to stay for a while, we wanted to keep some extra comforts (like the countertop oven, blender, and extra toys).

Instead of simply having two bags each, we had so much stuff that it barely all fit in the small, six-seater minivan we hired to drive us north.

Right after getting situated in our new apartment, we visited the nearby mall with our favorite burger place in the city. It was bittersweet to wander through there as a solo family unit.

I reminisced about our last visit with our travel besties who’d left prematurely back in March. Thankfully the tasty, western-style burgers brought back happy memories as well!

Our first month back in KL was full of visits back to places we’d previously enjoyed, including KLCC and the trampoline park.

We also had some new adventures, including a night at Le Petit Chef and going geocaching for the first time! In addition to catching up with old friends, we even managed to make some new ones.

Signing a Lease While Stranded Abroad During COVID

A week after arriving in KL, a Facebook group advertised an apartment in the complex where we lived over the 2019-2020 holiday season. I’d had no luck finding Airbnb or short-term rentals there.

On a lark, I contacted the landlord to explain our situation. He empathized and agreed to rent to us! When we toured the unit, we realized it was right next door to friends we’d made during our prior stay in KL. I was thrilled!

Cases had been rising again in Malaysia, and we knew that we did not want to be stuck in a high rise again if there was another lockdown. Having friends right next door was a huge bonus!

Just before moving into our new place, we took a quick trip down to Melaka for a few days. It’s a beach town about 90 minutes outside Kuala Lumpur with a lot of historical sites.

When we moved to KL, we agreed that we would take one week each month and visit a new part of Malaysia. We wanted to see more of the country before we had to leave.

The plan was to see Melaka in September, Cameron Highlands in October, Langkawi in November, and Penang in December.

Second Lockdown

Shortly after we moved back to Kuala Lumpur, a large COVID-19 outbreak started in Borneo, Malaysia. It transitioned to mainland Malaysia in September and October.

The government banned interstate travel and implemented a moderate stay-at-home order for high-case areas, including Kuala Lumpur.

This meant our plans for October were canceled. The ban on interstate travel extended into early December so all our plans for the rest of the year were canceled, too.

Thankfully, interstate travel reopened in mid-December. I immediately booked a one-night stay to visit friends in Genting Highlands, a mountain area just an hour away.

Some friends we’d left in Johor Bahru invited us to join them for Christmas week at a glamping beach resort a few hours away. Since the kids club opened every evening from 5pm to 10pm, how could we say no?!

David worked for so much of the last nine months that we easily agreed he deserved a total technology break. After all, what is all the work for if not to enjoy ourselves? That week away was exactly what we needed. 

Stranded Abroad During COVID in 2021

We expected that with the cases still moderately high, the border closures would be extended again. However, border closures do not always mean that our overstay amnesty would also be extended.

On New Year’s Eve we expected an announcement but did not get one.

David and I barely slept that night because we heard a rumor that we had to leave Malaysia immediately, and would be penalized for overstaying despite the government’s initial statements that we would not.

2021 began with a tense couple days, full of conflicting information. I actually started packing and planning to leave, with the assumption that we might actually need to travel when most of the world was experiencing a bad second wave. It was a bit scary.

Thankfully, the Malaysian government finally confirmed that tourists stranded abroad during COVID could remain on overstay amnesty through the end of March 2021. We were so relieved! 

After we got the good news, we took a trip to the local amusement park for the day. We spent most of the time in the water park area, but almost no one was there.

It was weird to see it so empty since the last time we went there were people everywhere. We felt very safe, despite cases rising in January. 

More Lockdowns While Stranded Abroad During COVID

On January 13, parts of Malaysia with the highest cases went back on lockdown. This again included Kuala Lumpur. We were so grateful we found an apartment complex with ample outdoor space to exercise.

David and I took daily walks and lifted weights our neighbor loaned us. After two weeks of self-isolation, I also took Little Man to the basketball courts in the afternoons to run around a bit.

This lockdown was so much better for all our mental health, having adequate outdoor space as well as on site friends to keep us sane. Our friends also had a cat, so Little Man was in heaven being able to give a fuzz ball some daily snuggles. 

During this lockdown, we even started a YouTube channel. David and Little Man made stop-motion Lego animation videos. Truthfully, I helped a bit as well.

It was a really fun hobby for all of us. I was concerned about what this new hobby might mean for our overall travel baggage allotment, though. Yikes!

Stranded Abroad During COVID with Vaccine Rollouts

February 27 marked the one-year anniversary of our landing back in Malaysia. We were only supposed to stay for a couple of months, to enjoy Legoland with friends old and new. Seeing how much the world changed in that time was just mind-blowing.

We remained in partial lockdown in Kuala Lumpur throughout the first quarter of 2021. Interstate travel was banned, so we had a couple of ‘staycations’ at luxury hotels in the city.

Malaysia rolled out the vaccine in February 2021. They announced that everyone in the country would be eligible to be vaccinated, including foreigners.

We were thrilled with the possibility of getting vaccinated without having to get on a plane halfway around the world!

As soon as registration was available, we registered for the vaccine. It didn’t really matter which we were offered. With so many countries still banning US passport holders or only allowing vaccinated tourists to enter, any vaccine was better than none.

Originally, we had hoped to be vaccinated by June based on the initial rollout plan. In reality, the rollout went significantly slower than expected.

Stranded Abroad During COVID & Leaving Malaysia

At the end of March 2021, we faced another tense waiting period of hoping overstay amnesty would be extended. At first, we celebrated when we found out that the MCO was extended until August 1.

Then the US embassy told us the Malaysian government announcements excluded amnesty for stranded tourists. They recommended we make plans to leave the country.

Other consulates gave conflicting information to their citizens. We didn’t know whether to stay or go.

Ultimately, the Malaysian government made an official announcement that they ended overstay amnesty for stranded tourists. Because they claimed to have found a few working illegally, we all had to leave the country with less than two weeks’ notice.

If we did not leave then we faced big fines, jail time, and/or blacklisting from Malaysia.

None of those were options, so I finally had to do the one thing I’d been dreading for a year. I booked long-haul flights halfway around the world during a pandemic.

Relocating While Stranded Abroad During COVID

When I realized that we might have to leave Malaysia, I shared my fears with several friends. Since we weren’t vaccinated, it didn’t seem safe or prudent to stay with family members who were high-risk and/or not fully vaccinated yet.

After all, we were incurring tremendous risk during 30+ hours in transit on multiple flight legs.

Several friends in the US offered for us to stay with them until we could figure out what do to next. We opted to go to Florida since we had the right documentation to qualify as part-time residents.

This meant we could spend a few weeks there AND get vaccinated! Ultimately, both David and I got the Pfizer vaccine at a drive-through facility where we didn’t even have to leave the car.

Our friends graciously drove us to both appointments. The silver lining to the entire ordeal of leaving Malaysia was getting vaccinated immediately with a highly effective option.

Bonus Disney Break

Shortly after arriving in Orlando, our friend hosting us asked David and me to join her at Disney Springs. She wanted to introduce us to Gideon’s Bakery.

Her explanation that it strictly adhered to pandemic protocols convinced us to “test the waters. She was right. Even just the ‘free’ Disney experience was a ton of fun!

We enjoyed Disney Springs so much, we decided to buy tickets to the regular theme park for a few days. Then, we realized that there was a whole new reservation and booking process in place.

All parks were completely booked the entire month we were in Florida. I was so sad! But out of the blue one morning, my friend texted me and said she found new tickets available for some Disney parks!

It was extra special because we managed to snag tickets for David’s birthday! What man doesn’t want to spend his big day in Star Wars land?

Moving to Mexico While Stranded Abroad During COVID

Because our health insurance only covers us for 30 days at a time in the US, we left almost immediately after getting vaccinated. Although more countries were accepting Americans than the same time the previous year.

We chose to prioritize proximity to the US (for Little Man to get vaccinated), availability of food/meal delivery, and copious amounts of year-round outdoor spaces.

Mexico ticked all those boxes. Since we’ve been there a handful of times before, familiarity was a bonus in these uncertain times.

We decided to book a week at our favorite resort in Playa del Carmen before heading to an Airbnb and finding a longer-term apartment to lease. For almost a year, we made our home base in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

The real estate market in Playa del Carmen changed a LOT since the pandemic started. We lucked out in finding a place within our budget in an area we wanted.

We balanced staying home with taking excursions, like our numerous trips to local cenotes. It was great having access to so many outdoor activities!

Next Steps While Stranded Abroad During COVID

As much as we loved it there, Mexico wasn’t where our full-time travels ended. We bought a car in December 2021 and started driving the Pan American Highway. We made it to so many new countries, practiced a lot of Spanish, and even got to spend Christmas in Antarctica!

After over 2.5 years on that adventure (which was amazing!), we made a quick trip to the US to see family before heading to Australia via a repositioning cruise at the end of 2024.

After spending three glorious months house-sitting across eastern Australia, we headed to New Zealand for more house-sitting, and then on to Japan!

It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since the COVID-19 pandemic started and changed everything for us. For the world, actually.

We’re so grateful for the amazing people who’ve been there for us along the way. And, we’re looking forward to the next five years of adventuring!

Follow us on social media for real-time updates on our travels!