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Worldcon 2022 - the Hotel and Health
Sep. 8th, 2022 07:04 pmThis should be brief but necessary.
Hotel
The Hyatt Regency on Wacker Drive is ginormous. I am not certain how many people were actually AT the convention because there was a virtual component. There has been some virtual presentation since COVID began and this was the third pandemic Worldcon according to one t-shirt I saw. I saw one membership count of around 4300 people but one of the newsletters says that there were only 2000 people onsite. In any event, except for meal times, this hotel convention center could have held another convention of a similar size at the same time with no problem. The only issue would have been the dining areas at meal time.
There were three dining areas, one of which I never ventured into. There was a large open air American style dining area with a two level bar which took up most of the lobby. There was a (I assume) ritzy steak and sushi restaurant and there was a market area that may have started as a coffee bar but sold everything from fruit cups, yogurt cups, to soup/salad/sandwich. There were a myriad of places in the neighborhood also but I only ventured outside on my own on one day. A lunch at Chipotle (more affordable) and a dinner at the Billy Goat (most affordable).
I spent a lot of the first few days just trying to find out where everything was. And finding it disorienting to descend two levels to the ballroom only to find that the dealer’s room was even lower. I’ve lived in New Orleans for over 30 years—depth surprises me.
The staff of the hotel was amazing considering the number of strange folk in costume (or merely strange folk) that wandered their halls at all hours of the night.
Health-wise
This was indeed another pandemic convention. Masks were required in convention space and encouraged everywhere else. Even though there were water stations in the hall, we were encouraged to sip our water and immediately put our mask back on. People who removed their mask to ask a question where immediately told to put the mask back on. I was impressed.
Consequently, I didn’t take many pictures of panels and authors. A picture of a person wearing a mask?! I have some—but not the dozens that I usually take when I get a chance to see people that I’ve read but never seen.
With all the precautions, there were exposures. As the convention neared its end, we started to receive emails about exposures. For example:
--------------------
Case 34
Reported 9/7
Tested positive 9/6
Masked when in all convention spaces. Occasionally spent some time in the Discworld Exhibit. Went as a spectator to the karaoke night but did not attend any program sessions, events, or meetings. Quarantined at the hotel as soon as they tested positive, and checked out of the hotel on Tuesday.
--------------------
I was nervous when I saw one
--------------------------------
Case 9
Jewish Fan Gathering on 9/2
Friday Night Services on 9/2
--------------------------------
So I tested and I am negative so far. I was wearing a mask but I also received a COVID-19 exposure alert on my phone for Sept 4-5. I don’t know if this was from the convention or from travel. I kept my mask on except when eating, but I had to eat.
I do wonder if COVID reporting will be a convention standard from now on. Also—I realize that these are reports from people who were responsible enough to tell the convention leads that they were sick. In all of these cases, the people left the convention or isolated in their room when they realized they were sick. Human nature being what it is, I suspect that there were another set of people who (a) realized they were sick and still attended with a mask, (b) realized that they were sick and left without telling anyone, (c) never realized that they were sick and attended, and any other number of permutations.
Hotel
The Hyatt Regency on Wacker Drive is ginormous. I am not certain how many people were actually AT the convention because there was a virtual component. There has been some virtual presentation since COVID began and this was the third pandemic Worldcon according to one t-shirt I saw. I saw one membership count of around 4300 people but one of the newsletters says that there were only 2000 people onsite. In any event, except for meal times, this hotel convention center could have held another convention of a similar size at the same time with no problem. The only issue would have been the dining areas at meal time.
There were three dining areas, one of which I never ventured into. There was a large open air American style dining area with a two level bar which took up most of the lobby. There was a (I assume) ritzy steak and sushi restaurant and there was a market area that may have started as a coffee bar but sold everything from fruit cups, yogurt cups, to soup/salad/sandwich. There were a myriad of places in the neighborhood also but I only ventured outside on my own on one day. A lunch at Chipotle (more affordable) and a dinner at the Billy Goat (most affordable).
I spent a lot of the first few days just trying to find out where everything was. And finding it disorienting to descend two levels to the ballroom only to find that the dealer’s room was even lower. I’ve lived in New Orleans for over 30 years—depth surprises me.
The staff of the hotel was amazing considering the number of strange folk in costume (or merely strange folk) that wandered their halls at all hours of the night.
Health-wise
This was indeed another pandemic convention. Masks were required in convention space and encouraged everywhere else. Even though there were water stations in the hall, we were encouraged to sip our water and immediately put our mask back on. People who removed their mask to ask a question where immediately told to put the mask back on. I was impressed.
Consequently, I didn’t take many pictures of panels and authors. A picture of a person wearing a mask?! I have some—but not the dozens that I usually take when I get a chance to see people that I’ve read but never seen.
With all the precautions, there were exposures. As the convention neared its end, we started to receive emails about exposures. For example:
--------------------
Case 34
Reported 9/7
Tested positive 9/6
Masked when in all convention spaces. Occasionally spent some time in the Discworld Exhibit. Went as a spectator to the karaoke night but did not attend any program sessions, events, or meetings. Quarantined at the hotel as soon as they tested positive, and checked out of the hotel on Tuesday.
--------------------
I was nervous when I saw one
--------------------------------
Case 9
Jewish Fan Gathering on 9/2
Friday Night Services on 9/2
--------------------------------
So I tested and I am negative so far. I was wearing a mask but I also received a COVID-19 exposure alert on my phone for Sept 4-5. I don’t know if this was from the convention or from travel. I kept my mask on except when eating, but I had to eat.
I do wonder if COVID reporting will be a convention standard from now on. Also—I realize that these are reports from people who were responsible enough to tell the convention leads that they were sick. In all of these cases, the people left the convention or isolated in their room when they realized they were sick. Human nature being what it is, I suspect that there were another set of people who (a) realized they were sick and still attended with a mask, (b) realized that they were sick and left without telling anyone, (c) never realized that they were sick and attended, and any other number of permutations.
