Traveling on an airplane during a pandemic is certainly not ideal—but traveling on an airplane when you find out you have COVID-19 mid-flight may be quite possibly one of the worst experiences of your life. That’s just what happened to one recent traveler named Marisa Fotieo.
The Michigan schoolteacher was on her way to Reykjavik, Iceland a few days before Christmas when she suddenly realized her throat was hurting. It was a good thing she was prepared and had a few rapid COVID tests with her. Just out of curiosity, she went to the bathroom to take one, and sure enough, the line appeared, showing that she indeed had the virus.
“I just took my rapid test and I brought it into the bathroom, and within what felt like two seconds there were two lines (indicating a positive test),” Fotieo said.
Out of caution for the other people on the plane, Fotieo didn’t exit the bathroom again. If you’ve ever been on an airplane bathroom, you know just how tiny they are—and Fotieo remained inside for the remainder of the flight, which was about five straight hours. “There’s 150 people on the flight, and my biggest fear was giving it to them,” she said.
While the space was limited, she was able to survive the flight with peace of mind thanks to the help of one flight attendant, Ragnhildur “Rocky” Eiríksdóttir.
“She made sure I had everything I needed for the next five hours from food to drinks and constantly checked on me assuring me I would be all right,” Fotieo said.
She did run into the problem that as soon as she landed, Fotieo was required to quarantine in a Red Cross hotel.
She probably felt like the lowest of the low at that point, but this flight attendant continued to be there for her, even after she was off the plane. Eiríksdóttir had given Fotieo her contact info just in case she needed anything. During her isolation, she was met with a little surprise from her.
“She bought me flowers and a little Christmas tree with lights so I could hang it,” Fotieo said. “It was so heartfelt, and she’s just an angel.”
If you ever want to know what it’s like to spend five hours in an airplane bathroom, be sure to check out the video below. “Shout out to @Icelandair for my VIP quarantine quarters,” Fotieo captioned the video.
@marisaefotieoShout out to @Icelandair for my VIP quarantine quarters.. #luxuryliving #imsolucky #covid #vaccinated #fyp #viralvideotiktok #quarantine♬ I’m So Lucky Lucky – Grandzz
What would you do if you tested positive for COVID-19 mid-flight?