On the evening of Monday, March 9 2020, the Italian Prime Minister spoke live on national television to announce new emergency measures limiting the movements of the entire nation in order to contain the spread of the novel Coronavirus causing COVID-19.
This is not meant to be a discussion of the effectiveness of that measure.
This is simply a diary of life under lockdown.
Day 0 - Monday, March 9
For some time it had been clear that the situation was getting serious. On Saturday evening the government had announced restrictions to the movement of the population of Lombardy and 11 neighbouring provinces with particularly high infection rates. On Sunday we agreed to prepare for a possible extension of those restrictions: my husband was to commute to work as usual, but come home with his computer in order to prepare to work at home, while I was to skip the gym and stock up on supplies instead. As soon as the shops opened on Monday morning I bought enough groceries to last at least a week: a case of oranges, a few kilos of flour, some dried legumes, as many bags of fruit and vegetables as I could carry.... Stocks were as plentiful as usual and there were very few people in the shops, possibly because it was raining. I returned home to work for the rest of the day, as usual. In between jobs, I baked a couple of loaves of bread and a cake.
Meanwhile, municipal police vans could be heard patrolling the town playing an announcement on their loudspeakers "inviting the population to stay at home". At that point, it was a suggestion, rather than an order!
When the announcement of the nation-wide quarantine was made on national television in the evening, I found myself involuntarily checking the corner of the screen, imagining it was an excerpt from some disaster movie. But no: the whole nation was to be restricted to home, in the largest quarantine ever. Travel beyond the borders of one's home municipality would be allowed only with a signed statement declaring the reasons (for work, medical reasons or urgent need) and even moving about within the municipality would be limited to the strictly necessary (grocery shopping, work, medical appointments, care of elderly relations...). Schools and universities were to remain shut, as they already had been for some time; bars and restaurants would be allowed to stay open until 6 pm, so that people who work far away from their homes would be able to eat lunch, but would close before dinner time. Customers in all shops and restaurants, and even people on the street, were to maintain a distance of at least one metre from each other.
Day 1 - Tuesday, March 10
I have worked at home for the past twenty years, and don't go out much in the evenings in winter. Basically I stay home for half the year and go out permanently for the other half... as you may gather from the rest of this blog!
So Day 1 under lockdown was pretty much life as usual for me, with two major differences: 1. I didn't spend the first two hours of the day in the gym, but did some exercises at home; and 2. My husband was also working from home. Having a job that permits work from home, and being used to working from home, are big advantages in this situation! I already have my permanent home office all set up, and so does our son, who is currently working on his thesis, but my husband had to take over the living room table!
Day 2 - Wednesday, March 11
Sunshine. Took breaks from work to sit out on the balcony sunbathing!
Day 3 - Thursday, March 12
Let us surround ourselves with what bits of nature we have been able to bring into confinement with us!
Day 6 - Sunday, March 15
Never did I think I would live in a time when you can be arrested for going out for a walk without a permit, or where newspapers publish articles on the safest way to do your grocery shopping!
Went out this morning for the first time since Monday, to stock up on groceries from the supermarket around the corner. Wore latex gloves and a homemade mask made from ovenproof paper, staples and elastic bands. Not sure how effective it is but it sure doesn't hurt to wear one! At the entrance to our neighbourhood supermarket was a man wearing a proper surgical mask, dressed all in black with black latex gloves. You'd think white would be equally effective as a uniform, and less gloomy and ominous-looking... Inside the supermarket, the (few) customers all wore plastic or latex gloves, which the supermarket provides to those who don't arrive already wearing them; many also wore masks, or had pulled up a scarf to cover their mouths. Everyone shopped alone, because only one person is supposed to do the shopping for the whole household; without speaking to anyone else, because it's pretty difficult to hold a conversation through a surgical mask, or even a piece of oven-proof paper. It's even kind of hard to breathe, and it causes your glasses to fog up! Everyone moved about the store as quickly and efficiently as possible. Frequent announcements, and strips of coloured tape on the floor by the cash registers, reminded us to maintain an obligatory distance of one metre from each other - not easy in the aisles of a supermarket! We all side-stepped and waltzed our way from the milk to the cheese, to the eggs in the corner and up the pasta aisle, patiently waiting our turn if another shopper was contemplating the oranges and we wanted some of the lemons right next to them. The shelves were all well-stocked, except that there was no yeast left - I believe this to be a temporary shortage, attributable to the fact that everyone has decided to make pizza for the weekend! Seeing as you can't go out for a pizza... or have one delivered... and people have a lot of time on their hands. Judging by the number of pictures of homemade pizzas posted on social media the past couple of days, Italians are all turning into amateur pizza-makers!
It's odd to have the feeling you are living under seige, and yet be able to go round the corner and buy chocolate, or ice cream, or even champagne, if you should feel inclined.
Last night we arranged to meet our neighbours on the balcony for an aperitif. They stayed on their side of the wall that divides our two adjoining balconies, and we stayed on our side. We video-called a mutual friend who was having his own campari and soda in his kitchen with his wife - while making pizza, of course! At 7 pm we made a bit of noise bashing pots and pans, whereas at 12 noon yesterday, everyone came out on their balconies to applaud the doctors, nurses and medical staff who are working round the clock. Someone in our neighbourhood with a very powerful amplification system played the national anthem, and we brought out the Italian flag that we had put away since the last World Cup, and hung it out to get some fresh air and brighten up the neighbourhood!
The first of this series of flash mobs organised via social media was the night before, Friday night, when at 6 pm all the musicians in Italy performed on their balconies or by open windows. I contributed with my flute. The Ave Maria seemed an appropriate choice, in a town which has historically turned to Our Lady for deliverance in times of plague. And survived.
Never did I think I would live in a time when people sing and play to one another from their balconies!
Let us surround ourselves with what bits of nature we have been able to bring into confinement with us!
Day 6 - Sunday, March 15
Never did I think I would live in a time when you can be arrested for going out for a walk without a permit, or where newspapers publish articles on the safest way to do your grocery shopping!
Went out this morning for the first time since Monday, to stock up on groceries from the supermarket around the corner. Wore latex gloves and a homemade mask made from ovenproof paper, staples and elastic bands. Not sure how effective it is but it sure doesn't hurt to wear one! At the entrance to our neighbourhood supermarket was a man wearing a proper surgical mask, dressed all in black with black latex gloves. You'd think white would be equally effective as a uniform, and less gloomy and ominous-looking... Inside the supermarket, the (few) customers all wore plastic or latex gloves, which the supermarket provides to those who don't arrive already wearing them; many also wore masks, or had pulled up a scarf to cover their mouths. Everyone shopped alone, because only one person is supposed to do the shopping for the whole household; without speaking to anyone else, because it's pretty difficult to hold a conversation through a surgical mask, or even a piece of oven-proof paper. It's even kind of hard to breathe, and it causes your glasses to fog up! Everyone moved about the store as quickly and efficiently as possible. Frequent announcements, and strips of coloured tape on the floor by the cash registers, reminded us to maintain an obligatory distance of one metre from each other - not easy in the aisles of a supermarket! We all side-stepped and waltzed our way from the milk to the cheese, to the eggs in the corner and up the pasta aisle, patiently waiting our turn if another shopper was contemplating the oranges and we wanted some of the lemons right next to them. The shelves were all well-stocked, except that there was no yeast left - I believe this to be a temporary shortage, attributable to the fact that everyone has decided to make pizza for the weekend! Seeing as you can't go out for a pizza... or have one delivered... and people have a lot of time on their hands. Judging by the number of pictures of homemade pizzas posted on social media the past couple of days, Italians are all turning into amateur pizza-makers!
It's odd to have the feeling you are living under seige, and yet be able to go round the corner and buy chocolate, or ice cream, or even champagne, if you should feel inclined.
Last night we arranged to meet our neighbours on the balcony for an aperitif. They stayed on their side of the wall that divides our two adjoining balconies, and we stayed on our side. We video-called a mutual friend who was having his own campari and soda in his kitchen with his wife - while making pizza, of course! At 7 pm we made a bit of noise bashing pots and pans, whereas at 12 noon yesterday, everyone came out on their balconies to applaud the doctors, nurses and medical staff who are working round the clock. Someone in our neighbourhood with a very powerful amplification system played the national anthem, and we brought out the Italian flag that we had put away since the last World Cup, and hung it out to get some fresh air and brighten up the neighbourhood!
The first of this series of flash mobs organised via social media was the night before, Friday night, when at 6 pm all the musicians in Italy performed on their balconies or by open windows. I contributed with my flute. The Ave Maria seemed an appropriate choice, in a town which has historically turned to Our Lady for deliverance in times of plague. And survived.
Never did I think I would live in a time when people sing and play to one another from their balconies!
Day 15 - Monday, March 23
Here's my typical day under lockdown:
Wake up to the sound of trucks disinfecting the city streets between 7 and 7:30 am. They make a unique sound, different from the delivery trucks bringing supplies to the nearby supermarket, or the garbage trucks making the rounds in the evening. The sound is different depending on whether they the trucks are spraying or just moving from one street to another. Because of that they remind me of paper wasps, that make a different sound when they're flying and when they're building a nest.
Get dressed and do my morning exercise routine. Starting with Qi Gong and continuing with some arm strength exercises adapted from the gym using a broomstick and a couple of 1.5 litre water bottles.
Have breakfast and then work until noon. This part hasn't changed since pre-lockdown times...
At noon, if the sun is shining, I go and sit on the balcony in the sun reading for half an hour or so. Then I go back to work for an hour before making lunch.
In the afternoon, more work, and sometimes an online yoga class, or some pedalling on the training bike in the living room.
Make dinner, watch TV, read or play a game.
Here's my typical day under lockdown:
Wake up to the sound of trucks disinfecting the city streets between 7 and 7:30 am. They make a unique sound, different from the delivery trucks bringing supplies to the nearby supermarket, or the garbage trucks making the rounds in the evening. The sound is different depending on whether they the trucks are spraying or just moving from one street to another. Because of that they remind me of paper wasps, that make a different sound when they're flying and when they're building a nest.
Get dressed and do my morning exercise routine. Starting with Qi Gong and continuing with some arm strength exercises adapted from the gym using a broomstick and a couple of 1.5 litre water bottles.
Have breakfast and then work until noon. This part hasn't changed since pre-lockdown times...
At noon, if the sun is shining, I go and sit on the balcony in the sun reading for half an hour or so. Then I go back to work for an hour before making lunch.
In the afternoon, more work, and sometimes an online yoga class, or some pedalling on the training bike in the living room.
Make dinner, watch TV, read or play a game.
