猪流感时期的爱情故事
For many, it would have been the week from hell: nearly 300 strangers, trapped in a hotel at the centre of one of the world's most populous cities, with only TV and the fear of infectious disease to keep them occupied.But today, as 296 guests and employees were finally allowed to leave Hong Kong's Metropark hotel, it emerged that the enforced quarantine had provided the setting for all-night drinking sessions and blossoming romance. At least two couples formed lasting relationships during their week-long incarceration, according to the South China Morning Post.
One week after they were confined to the hotel where Asia's first swine flu case was traced, the guests emerged clapping and cheering, discarding their face masks. A Korean businessman broke into song and hugged a policeman. "I'm happy! I love Hong Kong people," he said.
"It's nice to smell fresh air," added a British man who identified himself only as Matt.
It was a marked contrast to the serious mood a week ago when the hotel was locked down after it emerged that a 25-year-old Mexican man who had contracted the H1N1 virus had stayed there. The man, who spent the week confined to hospital, was discharged last night.
The decision to quarantine the hotel contributed to a diplomatic dispute between China and Mexico over Beijing's handling of the virus. The Mexican president, Felipe Calderón, complained of a backlash against Mexicans abroad. Chinese authorities countered that their experience of the Sars outbreak had taught them to be cautious.
Guests initially complained of being trapped. But they soon accepted their fate, and after fears about the severity of the virus subsided, spirits in the hotel began to lift.
On Tuesday a birthday party for a French guest carried on into the small hours. "They ended the night quite drunk," said Kevin Ireland, a businessman from New Delhi who wrote a daily blog of life inside the hotel. He claimed that the bill for wining and dining the guests for a week would be "astronomical". After being released from the hotel, he said: "We were treated very well."
It wasn't all fun and games. At least one woman caught in the quarantine was a prostitute who was forced to spend the entire week with her client after the management refused to give her a separate room, it was reported.
The hotel is in Hong Kong's Wanchai district, the setting of The World of Suzie Wong, a 1960 film about prostitution in the city, and the area is still said to be popular with visiting sailors.
Hong Kong officials were keen to placate the hotel guests, who were given tickets to Hong Kong's Disneyland, restaurant vouchers and film tickets. A picture posted on the Metropark's Facebook page showed guests slipping notes into a tip box for the hotel staff.
Hong Kong's health minister, York Chow, was grateful to the guests. "I want to thank them on behalf of all Hong Kong people for helping us ensure that Hong Kong is safe."
Thomas Tsang, head of Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection, said officials would be reviewing their quarantine procedures.
对很多人而言，这本应是地狱般的一周：将近300个陌生人被困在世界上人口最稠密城市之一的一个酒店里，他们的生活中只有电视和对传染病的恐惧。
但当香港维景酒店内的296位客人和职员今天最终获准离开时，人们才发现原来强制隔离还提供了通宵酒会的环境和不断升温的爱情故事。据《南华早报》报道，这次长达一周的隔离使两对客人坠入爱河。
当被限制在这个发现了亚洲第一例猪流感病例的酒店内一周后，客人们丢掉了面罩并鼓掌欢呼。一位韩国商人开始唱歌并拥抱了一位警官。“我太高兴了！我爱香港人，”他说。
一位自称叫做马特的英国人补充道，“闻到新鲜空气真好”。
这和一周前的严肃气氛形成了鲜明对比，当时，当发现一位感染H1N1病毒的25岁墨西哥男人住在这里后，这家酒店就被封锁了。这位一周来被限制在医院的墨西哥人已于昨晚获准离开。
隔离这家酒店的决定源自中墨两国关于北京对病毒处理方式的争论。墨西哥总统费利佩·卡尔德隆抱怨说（中国）对旅居国外的墨西哥人的反应过于强烈。而中国则反驳说非典爆发的经验教会他们一定要谨慎。
一开始，客人们对被隔离表示不满，但很快就接受了他们的命运。对病毒的恐惧逐渐减弱后，酒店里的情绪开始回升。
周二，为一位法国旅客举行的生日晚会一直持续到深夜。一位每天在博客上介绍酒店里的生活的新德里商人凯文.爱尔兰说，“他们在结束时都醉醺醺的”。他认为一周来招待客人们吃喝的账单一定是个‘天文数字’。从酒店出来后，他说“我们被招待的非常好。”
并非只有欢乐和游戏。据报道，被隔离的妇女中至少有一位是妓女，她被迫和他的客人度过了整整一周，因为当局拒绝给她一个单独的房间。
这家酒店位于香港湾仔区，一部讲述妓女故事的60年代的电影《苏丝黄的世界》就是以这里为背景，直到现在，这个地区还是很受来访船员的青睐。
香港的官员们很热心的安抚旅客，送给他们香港迪士尼乐园的门票、餐馆代金券以及电影票。Facebook页面上的一幅照片显示客人们将纸币塞进酒店职员的小费盒。
香港食物及卫生局局长周一岳很感激这些旅客。“我代表全体香港市民感谢他们帮助我们确保香港的安全。”
香港卫生防护中心总监曾浩辉说，相关官员将会回顾他们的隔离程序。
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