The restrictions that have come with the COVID-19 pandemic are nothing new for travel writer and blogger Agustinus Wibowo.

In an Instagram live session with nonprofit literary foundation Pulau Imaji, he revealed that back in 2003, he experienced firsthand the lockdown imposed by the Chinese government in Beijing due to the outbreak of SARS.

“I was in university at the time, and all the students were gathered as the lecturers informed us that those who lived outside the campus would not be allowed back in, while those staying inside the campus grounds were not allowed to go outside,” he said, adding that information was much more limited back then, leaving everyone paranoid.

As Agustinus lived outside the university campus, he effectively stopped his studies for two months, as he simply couldn’t get in while classes were still being taught.

“However, those who stayed inside were also stressed, as human nature very much opposes being confined. At the one-month mark, many students became depressed or easily angered; some even scaled the campus wall just to stand outside the grounds,” he said.

When Beijing lifted its lockdown after two months, the first thing Agustinus did was grab his backpack and set out for an adventure.

Taking a 72-hour train ride from Beijing to the border town of Kashgar in Xinjiang, he crossed the Karakoram mountain range into Afghanistan.

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