It’s day 4640 of quarantine here in the beautiful city of Basel. And, I do mean beautiful. We have had amazing weather and while, technically, we don’t have a stay at home order, I live smack in the middle of the city, so going out means running into other people.
We’re two blocks from the Rhein, and you know it’s spring when the naked people start appearing. Ahh, Europe.
Fun fact: In the summer you can swim in the Rhein. You can get these wet bags that you put your clothes and wallet in, and then seal them closed with a bunch of air and use it to float down the river. It’s fun!
In a way that still makes this American blush, if you go to the starting point for the Rhein swim, you’ll find people stripping off all their clothes, carefully folding them and placing the clothes inside their bags. Then, and only then, do they put their swimsuits on. I, being a prudish American, wear my swimsuit under my clothes. Trust me, this is best for all concerned.
I digress. I was talking about quarantine.
While people are going a bit stir crazy, things are going well. Our curve is flattening and the government will start to ease restrictions on April 27. If all goes well, schools will start to re-open on May 11–kindergarten through grade 6. The older schools will open in June. Hairdressers, hardware stores and tattoo artists can begin opening on April 27. The latter amuses me and I wonder about the tattoos on the federal council.
Our neighborhood has been wonderful. We live next door to a tiny music museum and every day at 6:00 pm our neighbor gives a concert and everyone claps. Here’s a video
You can also see one of my kitties. Mostly, the cats have adjusted to us all being here all the time, but every once in a while they let us know that they would prefer we left.
We’re looking forward to restrictions loosening up a bit. While there is some panic, I have nothing but praise for the Swiss government in this. There has been no political grandstanding. Politics just aren’t like that here. It’s a welcome relief from the news I see from back home in the USA.
I hope you all are well in your lockdown and your cats aren’t tired of you.
Hi… Day 46 or day 40?…adding swimming in the Rhein to my list of “exciting things I plan to do some day”.
So many days no one has any idea. 🙂
I really haven’t counted. It started mid March, so we’re probably only on day 30ish or something. I honestly don’t know,
The Rhein Swim is super fun. You do need to be a competent swimmer though, because the current is pretty swift and there are no life guards.
I’m guessing your kitties aren’t interested in a Rhein swim. But more importantly, do you grow basil in Basel?
I don’t! I seem to be incapable of keeping basil plants alive. I try and try and try and it always dies.
We just made day 30 of quarantine here in New York at least as far as those of us “old folks “. The rest were mandated a week later. I happened to have marked it in the calendar because I had to stop going to my weekly hair appointment and my roots are now showing. My cat like your cats has his moments of tolerance, when he requires attention. Glad to know Sweden is starting to get back to a “normal “ state level of operations but the state does have strict standards for foreigners unlike here where it depends on how rich one is to freedom of movement. That’s why we are still in lockdown because of the double standard, because there’s a majority of population is untested for various reasons, who both needed to work and have limited if any healthcare. You also have the benefits of a non-partisan attitude in government towards taking care of their population. You at least don’t have a “Marie Antoinette “ wannabe ignoring the needs of small businesses and employees to achieve their goals just to undermine current President, merely because he’s not their selected person. I am hoping that we will survive this crisis and there will be better opportunities for all not just the rich.
Glad to see you are well. You have not posted in a while so I was concerned. I am not on Twitter so you may have been tweeting or on other social media and I didn’t see it.