Chef Willin Low, 48, has just returned from working at his restaurant outpost Roketto in Niseko, Hokkaido, for the past month. The mod Sin chef also runs the Singapore-inspired pop-up izakaya of the same name at Frasers Tower in Singapore (by day, it's known as restaurant Relish and serves burgers and pastas). As with other citizens and permanent residents returning from recent trips overseas, he's required to serve a mandatory 14-day stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore. This recent measure is in response to the growing number of citizens who had contracted the Covid-19 virus on their travels and brought it back to our island. What's a stay-home notice (SHN)? “Persons issued a SHN should remain in their place of residence at all times during the 14-day period,” states www.gov.sg. Those who fail to comply with the SHN may face penalties, “as you have put the well-being of the wider community at risk”. Such as being prosecuted under Section 21A of the Infectious Diseases Act where one can expect fines up to $10,000 for first offenders and $20,000 for subsequent offenders. Or/and, gulp — even time in jail.

Willin is currently on Day #2 of his SHN at a terrace house in Hougang, where he lives with his mother who just turned 80 years old yesterday. FYI: folks serving SHN are allowed to live with family members — those relatives aren’t required to remain at home. He tells us how he and his family celebrated their ma’s big day while safe distancing at home, and also what he’s been up to so far.

“After a state of emergency was declared in Hokkaido, the number of tourists dropped drastically and we survived on guests who chose not to go home. As the situation wore on, the number of guests started to dwindle and on our worst day at the restaurant, we sold seven bowls of laksa. So we decided to shut it three weeks in advance of schedule. I spent the rest of the time snowboarding on powdery empty slopes! My favourite way of social distancing. Actually, Niseko was probably the safest place on earth by then because there were no tourists — all the streets, slopes, shops and restaurants were empty. It was a winter wonderland ghost town, which I loved.”

“Everything was normal [when I touched down at Changi airport] until just before I reached the auto immigration gates. We were all given a notice to read and a form to fill up. Thereafter, we were free to collect our luggage, buy duty-free stuff and go home however way we chose to. Upon reaching home, I went straight to my room, dumped my clothes into the washing machine and showered. My mother was prepared and briefed by my brother and sister who both work in medical fields [on how to practise safe distancing]. She was there to greet me at the gate from a distance of two metres. As for the authorities keeping tabs on people serving SHN? They SMS you to check on you and you have to tell them your location — when you click on the link provided, they’ll be able to track where you are. I just got a message today (pictured).”

“I keep to my room mostly, and wash my hands when I leave my room. I don't touch my face and try not to touch anything else [while out of my room]. My mother and I eat apart from each other at different tables. Usually, she buys breakfast and I’ll cook lunch and dinner — we take turns going into the kitchen.” Pictured: Willin enjoying a meal of lontong and rice with his mother, albeit seated at separate tables spaced a few metres apart.

“Mum’s 80th birthday was yesterday. We were supposed to celebrate it in Tokyo [until the Covid-19 pandemic occurred]. Instead, my siblings tapowed food, my brother baked a cake and they came over for dinner. They all sat at one table and me at another — they avoided me like the plague! That said, we were all very happy to be reunited and that I got to celebrate her 80th, because there was a chance I wouldn't have been able to come home.” Pictured in background: Willin with his ma, about 10 years ago (“my mum still looks young and can pass off as a 70-year-old!”).

“I intend to make good use of these 14 days — by losing weight (I ate too much in Japan), gaining muscles, cleaning out unnecessary possessions from my room by at least 50%. And also to catch up on studying Japanese — I took lessons for a month in Japan last year.”

8am: Wake up and read the bible.

8.30am: #Prisonfit workout (“basically if I’m stuck in a prison — how do I get fit?”), with push-ups, kettle bell swings and an abs roller wheel.

9.30am: Breakfast with vitamins and supplements.

10am: Marie Kondo-style spring-cleaning.

Noon: Lunch.

1pm: More Marie Kondo-ing.

4pm: More #prisonfit exercise.

5pm: Admin work for restaurant.

6pm: Walk in the garden.

6.30pm: Dinner.

7pm: Japanese homework.

9pm: Netflix (“currently watching ‘The Crown’, ‘Kingdom’, ‘Messiah’, ‘Terrace House’”)

1am: Sleep.

“Go back to work. And talk to my landlord about reducing our rent. [The current situation is] unsustainable when the lunch crowd has dropped by 40%. Profit margins are thin to begin with, and we go in the red the moment biz drops like this.”

Photos: Willin Low/Instagram/8 Days