On the evening of March 9, right after Italy announced a nationwide blockade, Ly Dat Thu, 26 years old, a medical student at the University of Rome, witnessed people lining up at food stores to buy food.

Previously, the Italian Government announced a blockade of the Lombardy region and 14 provinces in the northern regions, including: Emilia Romagna, Marche, Veneto and Piedmont.

On the morning of March 10, Thu called her parents in Ho Chi Minh City to update the situation.

The Colosseum, capital Rome, was empty on the first morning after the blockade.

After the phone call, he went to the Asian market, about an hour away from the boarding house if he took the subway, not forgetting to print out the information declaration form, and present it if he met the inspector.

The Asian market is located in the Chinese area in District 1, the stalls are full of food, prices do not change.

After two years of living in Rome, Thu got used to the crowded conditions on the subway, but now things are completely different.

Italy decided to close schools nationwide from preschool to university from March 5.

Currently, the University of Rome has switched to online teaching on the eLearning system.

After a week of quarantine, Thu got more sleep.

If he meets someone he knows, instead of hugging and kissing cheeks like before, he greets by nodding or waving.

Asian market in the capital Rome, full of food on March 10.

At 3:00 pm on March 16, while studying on her own, Thu suddenly heard the melody of the song `Ma il cielo è sempre più blu` (The sky is still blue and blue).

For three days now, at certain times, Italians have poured out onto their balconies to sing cheerful songs to encourage each other to stay optimistic and to thank medical staff for their hard work during this difficult time.

One week of living in lockdown, Nguyen Ha Thu, a student at Ca’Foscari University, Venice, spent a lot of time taking care of herself instead of being busy with studying.

Most Asian stores in the city have closed and have not announced when they will reopen.

During quarantine, even though her roommate woke up late, Thu still kept on time.

After breakfast, the four girls chose four separate corners in the 40 m2 room to study on their own.

Venice city, Veneto region, one of the epidemic centers in Italy, had few tourists on March 10.

In her free time, Thu and her three roommates practice yoga, meditate or read books to relax their minds and get rid of negative thoughts.

At the end of March, it was Thu’s birthday. Friends in the room planned to visit the city of Milan, but had to cancel.

`Maybe the world thinks that Italian people’s lives are turning upside down, but apart from the lack of people passing by, Italy is still no different from usual. I try to remember every moment during this time because who knows what will happen next.`

Pham Hung Vuong, President of the Vietnamese Student Association in Italy, informed that the number of Vietnamese international students in this country is nearly 700. Since the outbreak until now, about 120 students have returned home.

The Embassy and the Student Association have established a hotline to support Vietnamese citizens in Italy as well as students studying.

For students who want to return home, the Association often updates information on travel instructions and new regulations of airlines, and keeps in touch with students who have returned home or are in the quarantine period to understand the situation.

As of today, Italy recorded 3,233 new nCoV positive cases in one day, bringing the number of infections to 27,980, of which 2,158 people died.