I have been so careful about always wearing my mask, since March! How I let my guard down in January is perhaps all If people didnt make my exact same mistake, the global pandemic would be over by now.
After writing for almost a year about other people having Covid, I now have the opportunity to give a first person account of having Covid in Cusco. Thankfully, I had a very mild case. I had a fever for two days and a slight cough the third day after the fever was gone. Unfortunately, the person who brought it to my home was so sick that I had to play nurse for about a week, before a family member get him. Ive done the contact tracing, which goes from my to his family, who live in a small town in the Sacred Valley.
When I first realized that this was probably Covid, I found a list online of places in Cusco that supposedly can test for Covid. Of the 57 places listed, I called about a dozen, of which only two could do a rapid test. None of the ones I called could do the more thorough, and more accurate, molecular test. My first test came back negative, though the clinic told me back in a week to do the test again, since it has a high rate of false negatives. A week later I
Cusco, and Peru for that matter, is covered with signs telling people to wear a mask. This one is in Aguas Calientes, the town nearest to Machu Picchu.
The body first produces the IgM antibodies, as an early immune system response to an infection. The clinic technician explained that the presence of IgM mean that the infection is ongoing and that I am still contagious. The IgG antibodies take longer to form and provide a longer lasting protection against the infection. I was told back for a third test, in another week, to check if I still have IgM antibodies. Until then, I should consider myself highly contagious and must stay home.
The positive Covid test brought a lot more paperwork than the previous negative test. All of a sudden, the technicians were very interested in knowing exactly where I live, asking for descriptions of the house on top of the actual address. They also had to fill out a form for contact tracing. I was asked if I had had any contact with somebody with Covid and who they were. I gave the names of my houseguest and his sister, the healthcare worker who was the first person in their family house to get sick. I was surprised that I wasnt asked for their addresses or phone numbers, or
The main plaza of Cusco was cordoned off for months. We were all so careful in 2020 and I feel like Im not the only one who got careless when the vaccine came out and we entered a new year.
any way to get in contact with them. Instead, I was instructed to ask them to get another Covid test. I was also told to contact Diresa, the Direccin Regional de Salud, and report myself.
Each Covid test cost me s/100, which is less than $30, but thats a lot for most people here. That can be food for a whole week for a family of five in the city, or a months budget for a family in the countryside. Calling around to testing centers, most charged more than s/100. So far, Im in for s/200, plus everything Ive spent on cough syrup, cough drops and ibuprofen for the fever and headaches. Few Cusqueans would pay another s/100 to be told that Im not contagious anymore. While the French woman has been documented, the other two people I got this from have not had a positive test. By that logic, the number of people with Covid in Cusco is probably double the official numbers. If testing was free, that would be a different story.
The positive Covid test also brought a new anxiety: would I be able to travel in three weeks? In order to get on a
plane from Cusco to Lima, and now also to enter the US, I need a negative Covid test. Since the only rapid test here is for antibodies, I wont be able to get a negative test again. The molecular test takes longer and since the test must be done within 72 hours of leaving, I might not be able to get that back in time.
