River Cruisers: How Are Things Where YOU Are?

[notamermaid]

On 5/8/2021 at 7:42 PM, Canal archive said:

Portugal has a full green light already, fingers crossed for Germany and France. CA

According to the EU statistics Germany is doing a bit better than France. The incidence rate for my state is now hovering around 100. A sign of hope. Depending on incidence rate locally people can stay in their own caravans on campsites again and holiday makers rent flats, from Thursday this week. Life is slowly returning to the areas that are doing okay. With the vaccinated showing not to be a risk to public health they have got their freedom back officially. In the high incidence places now the residents of old people's homes can bop their heads to the beat way into the night in public while the youngsters have to be home by 10pm... A weird world.

 

River cruising still seems a dream, something to be accomplished in the not so near future.

 

Austria might get there before us.

 

notamermaid

 

[AF-1]

So are there any river lines cruising on the Rivers in Germany?

[notamermaid]

No, not yet as far as I know.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

What has been given the name "Bundesnotbremse" is the measures that "automatically" come into force when the incidence rate rises above 100 in a city or district. All accommodation for leisure is prohibited then. Under 100, measures are regulated by the states and may vary. That is why I cannot say when river cruises can run as I do not know such details. With the far North of Germany doing okay they may be allowed to run a river cruise next week - through the Kiel Canal only. A crazy and economically unwise undertaking. I am glad I am not an employee of a river cruise company. It is even more complicated when you try to sail the Rhine from Basel into the Netherlands.

 

I have mentioned Austria: in our neighbouring country hotels will reopen on 19 May, negative Covid test needed. Round trip Vienna sounds more of an option than a Rhine River cruise in May. We will see how things go this week. Germany may be able to reach 10 percent of the population fully vaccinated by the end of this week. Certainly looking better than two weeks ago.

 

I still cannot get an appointment for a jab unless I choose the "Freibier" option: first come first serve with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.

 

notamermaid

 

[Canal archive]

Notamermaid it’s sounds like things are progressing but I’m still worried you can’t yet get vaccinated. CA 

[notamermaid]

Thank you for your concern. I am fine about it. As I said, I could choose to have a vector vaccine but I feel safer with an mRNA vaccine as regards side effects. I am under 60 so would have to take AZ or J&J at my own risk. Not doing that. 80 million vaccine doses are in the big delivery mix in Germany for June, so that should work out fine for me then, if not before.

 

notamermaid

 

[Coral]

7 hours ago, notamermaid said:

 

I still cannot get an appointment for a jab unless I choose the "Freibier" option: first come first serve with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.

 

I wanted the Moderna or Pfizer also. I probably would have taken the J and J if it was my only choice. I sure hope you can get your jab soon!

 

I have friends who have adult children in Europe. They are flying back to the US to get their vaccines and visit their parents for a month.

[Host Jazzbeau]

57 minutes ago, Coral said:

I wanted the Moderna or Pfizer also. I probably would have taken the J and J if it was my only choice. I sure hope you can get your jab soon!

 

I have friends who have adult children in Europe. They are flying back to the US to get their vaccines and visit their parents for a month.

Several US States are not checking residency, because they have plenty of shots [UK = jabs] available.  https://www.traveloffpath.com/u-s-states-that-do-not-require-residency-to-get-a-covid-vaccine/

[Coral]

4 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Several US States are not checking residency, because they have plenty of shots [UK = jabs] available.  https://www.traveloffpath.com/u-s-states-that-do-not-require-residency-to-get-a-covid-vaccine/

They are US citizens who have married Europeans and live in Europe. They are flying back to visit their parents this summer (and some have already come back). They will get vaccinated while they are here and will probably use their parents address.

 

I wasn't clear in my earlier post. My state is not listed. I am not worried about them as I have known several who have done this.

Edited May 11, 2021 by Coral

[djh1959]

My husband and I have finally managed to get appointments to be vaccinated.  Not until 7th June, but at least the appointment is made.  We made appointments for the second vaccination too.

 

AstraZenica is unfortunately the only option, but at least we will be vaccinated.

[dogs4fun]

12 hours ago, Coral said:

I have friends who have adult children in Europe. They are flying back to the US to get their vaccines and visit their parents for a month.

Similar situation ... Relatives who are currently working in Lima, Peru flew home for their vaccinations. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by dogs4fun

[jpalbny]

My sister came here from Canada for hers.

[Daisi]

23 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

My sister came here from Canada for hers.

 

Quebec is now issuing QR codes to show for restaurants etc. to confirm you are vaccinated.  I'm curious how all those who were vaccinated outside of the country will be able to do so...the federal government is working on "passports" but they will probably only be issued to those who were vaccinated in the country, as all our vaccines are registered through the provincial health departments.

 

Right now, we have another problem here... Ontario rolled out the A-Z vaccine through the pharmacies, with the local clinics doing the Pfizer & Moderna.  Now they have lots of the P & M...but those of us who had to get the A-Z (they rolled it out by age) are getting told we may not have a 2nd shot and they are investigating the chances of giving us a P or M.  I hope we don't have to go through all this again....

[Canal archive]

There has been some discussion here about mixing vaccines as in two different makes, and one school of thought has said it would work. I pretty sure there still investigating it. CA

[gnome12]

42 minutes ago, Canal archive said:

There has been some discussion here about mixing vaccines as in two different makes, and one school of thought has said it would work. I pretty sure there still investigating it. CA

Canada is waiting on the UK on this I think. 
 

I was one of the first to get AZ in Ontario, and I am not due to get my second shot until “after June 30”. While I would happily move that up, there is some time before we are due in order to figure out what the second shot ought to be. 

[Daisi]

@gnome12, we have to wait until August for ours.  I am just a little worried about the two types of vaccine.  I could see P & M being compatible as they are one type, but A-Z is different.  Hopefully they all work together. 

 

I guess we just have to be patient and hope for the best.

[Canal archive]

Covid trial in UK examines mixing different vaccines https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55924433
This is the report on mixing the different vaccines evidently so are you Canadians great minds think alike. CA

[gnome12]

2 hours ago, Daisi said:

@gnome12, we have to wait until August for ours.  I am just a little worried about the two types of vaccine.  I could see P & M being compatible as they are one type, but A-Z is different.  Hopefully they all work together. 

 

I guess we just have to be patient and hope for the best.

I think it is possible that you might get better protection by mixing the two types, BECAUSE they work differently. But I am not a doctor or immunologist so this is just a layman’s comment. 

[notamermaid]

Mixing the AstraZeneca vaccine with an mRNA vaccine has been the recommendation here in Germany for those that had AZ as the first jab for weeks now. Our health people are monitoring the UK trial and may adjust according to outcome.

 

notamermaid

 

[Ritabob]

Ontario has discontinued the AZ as a first shot.  Not sure what the plan is if you already have had it and need a second.

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Ritabob said:

Ontario has discontinued the AZ as a first shot.  Not sure what the plan is if you already have had it and need a second.

I'm in that group.

 

From CTV Toronto news

The remaining supply of AstraZeneca in Ontario will be reserved for second doses. Officials said that data from the United Kingdom shows there is a much lesser risk of VIIT following the second shot of the vaccine.

The province is waiting for more data before making any further announcements on second doses of AstraZeneca or whether the vaccine can be paired with a different COVID-19 shot.

[notamermaid]

Drum roll - and then a victorious fanfare: 10 percent of the German population is now fully vaccinated!

 

Statistics also say that yesterday over 1 million jabs were administered (first and second jab combined figure), the incidence rate in Germany overall has dropped well and in my state Rhineland-Palatinate the incidence rate has dropped to 92.1, that is better than the German average. More than a third of the German population has now had at least one jab.

 

From 23 May my library may reopen and perhaps from 2 June I may be back at work as tourism will be back on a larger scale by then.

 

Kind of feels good. I am still sceptical of this running smoothly now, but I am hopeful.

 

notamermaid

 

[Canal archive]

Here is the latest mixing report from the BBC.

Covid vaccines: Mixing increases reports of mild side-effects https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-57075503

 

My eldest daughter has had COVID and she said her case felt like the worst case of flue anyone could wish for but luckily she’s not been left with any side effects, she had her first vaccination last Saturday, AstraZeneca, and has felt really rough for a few days. Her husband had COVID he just felt a little achy and his arm felt heavy for a week after vaccination. Curious as the Cheshire Cat would say. CA

[notamermaid]

Here in Germany the earliest you are supposed to be vaccinated after an infection is three months. I expect it is the same in Britain. @Canal archive Has it been three months since your daughter's illness already? Time seems to fly these days...

 

The same pattern with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine seems to appear as with the AstraZeneca vaccine, I only have a German news item but it says that in over 8.7 million doses administered in the US 28 cases of the serious adverse effects of blood clotting have been reported. That is an overall ratio of 1 in 311,000 (rounded up). Sounds okay until you read that here also the highest rate was in women between the ages of 30 and 49 (figures not given in report). Not good for that age group.

 

This is a real problem in areas with reduced access to health care. Let's face it: it is all very well saying watch out for the symptoms like persistent headache, but once you are in hospital with this you are scre**d. The fatality rate for the condition is between 20 and 40 percent.

 

Norway has also taken the AstraZeneca vaccine out of the vaccination programme for good, after Denmark, and has put the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on hold.

 

notamermaid

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

There is an article in today's Wall Street Journal saying that a German Doctor thinks he has figured out why the A-Z and J&J vaccines are producing this reaction [sorry, WSJ has a paywall]:

Blood Expert Says He Found Why Some Covid-19 Vaccines Trigger Rare Clots

Here is the salient paragraph:

Prof. Greinacher and his team has just begun examining Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine but has identified more than 1,000 proteins in AstraZeneca’s vaccine derived from human cells, as well as a preservative known as ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, or EDTA. Their hypothesis is that EDTA, which is common to drugs and other products, helps those proteins stray into the bloodstream, where they bind to a blood component called platelet factor 4, or PF4, forming complexes that activate the production of antibodies.  The inflammation caused by the vaccines, combined with the PF4 complexes, could trick the immune system into believing the body had been infected by bacteria, triggering an archaic defense mechanism that then runs out of control and causes clotting and bleeding.