03 Monday Aug 2020
Posted in coronavirus, sevilla, sevilla shutdown, spain, welcome
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It turns out that you can get a Covid test in Sevilla at any private clinic / lab. It costs between 50-70€ and you get the results in five hours. Question. Why doesn’t our government set up a booth at the airport so arriving UNTESTED tourists can be tested and, by the time they have settled into their hotels, they will know if they are carriers or not and if they need to quarantine? Why is the focus on tourists getting tested after they get home again?
17 Wednesday Jun 2020
Posted in neighbours, sevilla, sevilla shutdown, tourism
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They are finally pedestrianising Calle Mateos Gago, where l lived for 18 years (just above those orange trees on the top left pic). I walked all through Barrio Santa Cruz the other day and didn’t see one shop or one bar open, even beyond the street works. Why? Because nobody lives there anymore. This is what happens when you turn a previously vibrant and thriving neighbourhood into a tourist ghetto.
15 Monday Jun 2020
Posted in andalucia, coronavirus, sevilla, sevilla shutdown, spain, tourism, travel
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So remember when I was mostly concerned about tourists from the EU Schengen countries (and frankly, also from Spanish virus hotspots like Madrid and Barcelona) suddenly being allowed to travel freely throughout Spain from July 1st? Well it turns out those were the days!
In a blink of an eye the Spanish government caved once again and now we are opening our borders to Schengen countries NEXT MONDAY. That’s right, the very day that we are released from lockdown after 100 days. Without giving us any time at all to adapt and see how we do here with implementing the “new now” regulations as well as dealing with our own homegrown Covidiots. Like, we now have to deal with untested asymptomatic carriers coming here ON FUCKING HOLIDAY from day one. But okay, at least this new deal excluded tourists from the UK (aka Plague Island) so I thought that was at least one less worry. Except now it looks like it actually may become a worry, and a big one.
Ah who am I trying to kid? Of course our government is going to cave again and allow UK tourists in. Bear in mind there will be no testing or quarantining involved with anybody coming here. Just a quick temperature check (useless for infectious asymptomatic carriers, approx 40% of people who test positive for Covid), fill out a form, and welcome to Spain. The only question now is when? Also next Monday? Or will they stick with the original (still way too soon) date of July 1st?
27 Wednesday May 2020
Posted in coronavirus, lockdown, lockdown sevilla, sevilla, sevilla shutdown, shopping
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So as of last Monday we are in Phase 2 in Andalucía (Madrid and Catalunya are catching up and are on Phase 1). This means that more public spaces are opening, bars and restaurants have a bit more flexibility, non-essential shops and department stores are also allowed to open, and some restrictions are lifted for general circulation around town and within the province. All of course with the required “social distancing” measures, and all kinds of disinfecting, cleaning, etc going on. Ah, and masks have been mandatory since last weekend. If all goes well, Phase 3 is meant to start on June 8th.
What could go wrong? Well, plenty. I still see (from my balcony) too many people not wearing masks, walking too close to others, basically not giving a shit. So I am personally still in Phase 0, only going out for essential shopping and taking out the rubbish, otherwise I am staying home and staying safe. And walking on my roof (view from rooftop in photo above).
20 Wednesday May 2020
Posted in coronavirus, lockdown, lockdown sevilla, sevilla, sevilla shutdown
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Remember yesterday’s mini-rant about seeing so many people in the streets still not wearing masks? Well, as of tomorrow it will be obligatory to wear a mask in all public indoor spaces, as well as outdoor spaces where it isn’t possible to keep two metres apart. That last bit spells trouble though… srsly, you’d think the government would know better by now than to give us options.
What I noticed yesterday was that, even in wider streets and in squares, people still weren’t being careful enough with “social distancing”. Meanwhile, most of the streets in the old centre of town are barely two metres wide, making it impossible to keep a safe distance apart. Add to that the fact that wearing a mask is uncomfortable as fuck, especially in The Heat, I am predicting mask mayhem. Entitled selfish assholes will start bleating about their Freedom and Rights, there will be protests, more pot banging bullshit.
Me? I almost suffocated yesterday wearing my mask. But I learned that I shouldn’t go out there when it’s 33º without a cloud in the sky. Duh. Not that difficult. The main problem is that people want things to go back to the way it was before and they have yet to accept that it just ain’t gonna happen. Nothing is ever going to be the same again. They also have yet to cotton on to the reality that you don’t just get freedom and rights handed to you for nothing, they come with obligations and responsibilities attached, and one would hope with some respect for those who came before us, and including today’s frontline heroes, who have made and continue to make much greater sacrifices than simply wearing a fucking mask. Honestly, I get so tired of people sometimes. Not you guys though. 🙂
Blog buddy Jodi Ettenburg @legalnomads has written an excellent, informative (and less sweary) post on the subject of mask wearing…
casa azahar 