Mr. Le Hung Doanh, 36, from Thanh Hoa province, got up very early to prepare personal belongings. Smiling and looking at the phone lock screen, with a picture of his two children as the background, he said that every day the kids called him to say they miss him very much and ask him when would he come home. The kids, 7 and 4, had not seen their father for 17 months.

“I am looking forward to the moment of reuniting with my family. After finishing the isolation, what I wish the most is to hug my two children tightly,” Doanh told VietNamNet.

Many others also got up very early to prepare luggage.

Their blankets and daily-life tools are put into medical waste bags for proper disposal.

Mr. Bui Van Cuong, 29, from Nghe An Province, was infected with Covid-19 virus in Equatorial Guinea. Fortunately, when he came back to Vietnam, Cuong had completely recovered and had negative testing results.

“Leaving the homeland to make a living, we always expect the day to return home. When getting sick, our homesickness and the desire to return home are even greater than ever. I'm really happy and grateful. Thank the Party and State for giving us the opportunity to return home,” Cuong said.

"When getting sick, our homesickness and the desire to return home are even greater than ever. I'm really happy and grateful," said Mr. Cuong.

Many people made phone calls to inform their relatives and friends of their return.

Mr. Kim Van Binh, 32, from Hanoi called their family last night and the whole family was very happy and excited to hear that he was coming home.

Cao Van Phuong, 40, from Nghe An is not a Covid-19 patient, but he will be still monitored for malaria developments so he could not leave the quarantine center today.

Phuong was detected with malaria when he was in Equatorial Guinea and the disease got worse by the time he came back to Vietnam. “The fever lasted for about a week, there were times when I had a fever of 39 or 40 degrees. Thanks to the dedicated treatment and care of the doctors, the symptoms have gradually reduced,” Phuong said.

Doctors said the man will continue to be monitored until the malaria parasites are completely removed before being discharged from the hospital.

“I am very happy for others who can return home today. I am not sad or sorry because I have come back to my homeland, then it is okay to wait a few more days,” said Phuong.

Mr. Cao Van Phuong

Workers receive a discharge note to submit to their local health centers. The paper states that they have at least 3 times tested negative for nCoV by RT-PCR technique.

Before leaving the hospital, many people could not hide a little sadness and regrets because they had to say goodbye to the people who they had been living and working together for nearly 2 years.

They talked before saying goodbye.

Dr. Vu Minh Dien, Head of the Quality Control Department of the National Hospital for Tropical Disease, said the 183 people will be still monitored by the local health agencies for the next 14 days.

Although they had been isolated for 16 days, these people are recommended to still wear masks, stay at home, and limit contact with people, Dr. Dien said.

Dr. Vu Minh Dien, Head of the Quality Management Department of the National Hospital for Tropical Disease.

The 183 Vietnamese citizens returning from Equatorial Guinea and doctors of the National Hospital for Tropical Disease took picture together.   The people left the National Hospital for Tropical Disease at around 11am. They will be monitored by the local health agencies over the next 14 days

Nguyen Lien - Le Anh Dung

37 hours on flight from Equatorial Guinea bringing Vietnamese citizens home

“We’re about to go home” was something Vietnam Airlines’ flight attendants said repeatedly to Vietnamese citizens on a flight from Equatorial Guinea a couple of days ago.

Hundreds of Vietnamese citizens from Equatorial Guinea, Indonesia, and Brunei return home

A special flight carrying 219 Vietnamese laborers in Equatorial Guinea, 140 of whom infected with coronavirus landed at Noi Bai International Airport on July 29.