Monday 16 March 2020. I got up to start work at 7am. The children were up at about 7:45. Mr H got them dressed, gave them breakfast and started their ‘school’ day at 9:30ish. They sounded the gong to start the day, stood in line & went into the ‘classroom’. They even pretended that some of their classmates were there.
It sounds a bit silly, but actually having a routine like this made the day feel quite normal and will hopefully make it easier to get through the next however many days we have to live in lockdown.
What did they do during their school day? Some worksheets appropriate for their learning stage, some gimnasio, and another worksheet after lunch. They also, of course, had plenty of time for free play and we had fun creating rainbows later in the afternoon.
To brighten up the experience of lockdown, children all over Spain are painting rainbows to stick on their balconies saying ‘Everything will be ok. Stay at home.’ Who doesn’t love a rainbow? And the children certainly had fun painting them.
The number of covid-19 cases continues to rise at an alarming rate. In Spain we passed the 9000 confirmed cases today, with a rise in over 1000 cases today alone.
What did today feel like? There were still a few cars on the roads. Although there are stories of people being stopped and fined if they can’t prove a legitimate reason for being out. There was even an incident where a group of cabin crew were sharing a ride home after working on a flight, and were fined 3000 Euros because you’re not meant to travel with people who you don’t live with. But today felt more or less like a normal day, without the commute.
I needed to go out and buy a few items from the grocery store. I had to don gloves before entering the store. It was quite busy in the store, but not crazy. Some people were wearing masks, but not everyone. Even some of the people working in the store weren’t wearing masks. I have huge respect for people who keep working on the front lines.
Again at 8pm, there was applause from everyone in the neighbourhood (and all over the country as far as I can tell) to show our gratitude for the healthcare staff around the country.
