38 Days at Home - A Spanish Coronavirus Lockdown Story

Cristina, also known as CrazyCris, decided to be true to her name and had the crazy idea of creating a digital story about her quarantine time in Alicante, Spain. Please be kind, it's a first attempt at this kind of thing! 
(text below the break is the video transcript in case of poor internet connection, or for ease of translation to another language. Includes links to posts that illustrate certain parts of the story)

If you want to know more about the lockdown in Alicante, Spain, CrazyCris is blogging daily (or almost) during this Covid-19 health crisis in her "Coronadiaries" posts on her main blog (she has 3!) Here and There and Everywhere. Visitors are welcome!

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Today is day thirty-something of the Covid-19 lockdown in Spain. I’ve pretty much lost track of time. Days and weeks just blend in together. The hours of the day no longer have much meaning. Hungry? Eat. Tired. Rest? The trash bag is full? Head outside and take it to the trash bin up the street!!! Woohoo!!!

I think that need to trace the passage of time is the main reason I started blogging about it. To have some way of marking the days, distinguishing one from the other. Well that, and wanting to leave some trace of my thoughts, comment on things that caught my attention during this insane moment in our history, to maybe look back on them some day.

Today is day 38 of the lockdown (I looked it up). I’m home in Alicante, enjoying the warm Mediterranean sun and blue skies, grateful the weather forecast was utterly wrong and it’s not raining today. I’m one of the lucky people. I have a decent sized balcony where I can enjoy the sun and fresh air, and hang out with my neighbours during the 8pm daily clapping sessions to cheer on the doctors and nurses and grocers and drivers… We might even continue with balcony parties and crazy dancing when someone pumps up the volume.


I also still have my job, and have been able to transition pretty well to working from home. I’m enjoying working in comfy sweatpants and a sweatshirt, shifting between my dining room table desk or the balcony desk, listening to my music, enjoying my tea, having a rest after lunch… I miss my colleagues, but I don’t miss my noisy office! We do have regular meetings on Skype, and sometimes get together on Google Meet to goof off and have a drink, and we are constantly sharing jokes and showing off our culinary talents on WhatsApp. The only thing I’m really missing from my job is the traveling. I was supposed to be in Vietnam last month with some fabulous colleagues. We postponed the meeting to May, then to July… Who knows when that aspect of my job will start up again?

I’m not too worried about my health. I’m healthy and young enough that when I catch this virus – if I haven’t already – I can reasonably hope to not be one of the serious cases. Fingers crossed. I’m more worried about unknowingly passing it on to someone more vulnerable, like my mom. At 70 and with damaged lungs she is definitely in the at-risk population. She hasn’t left her home in over 5 weeks since the lockdown started, other than a trip to the pharmacy and a medical appointment I took her to in the first week of quarantine. She’s desperate for this to be over and all of us to be let out, at least to go for a walk!

Because the quarantine here in Spain is one of the strictest around. You can only go to work if you physically can’t work from home. Other than that, you’re only allowed outside if absolutely necessary: to buy food or medicine, to take out the trash, to go help an elderly relative, to walk the dog… Kids haven’t been allowed outside to play since this started, nor the adults to exercise. We’ve all been trying to keep active within our own homes, looking to the internet and social media for inspiration and online live classes.

Almost five and a half weeks now. At least two and a half more to go. My daily routine involves waking up sometime between 8 and 9, depending on work, having a quick or long breakfast, then trying to do something productive. After a nice lunch, I’ll rest for a bit, and back to being productive. That would be either work-related, housework, baking, shopping, blogging or once in a blue moon an online dance or Zumba session! In the evenings I read or watch a movie. 7 books so far, and 17 movies!

Once a week I’ll head out for groceries. I have my route all planned out. I walk down the street to the supermarket, wait outside for my turn to go in, and get whatever I need while following the social distancing guidelines. From there I walk 4 blocks to a small shopping centre where I stop by the greengrocer’s, the butcher’s and the baker’s. Only 1 or 2 people allowed in at a time. I also stop by a take-out place and pick up a couple of home-cooked meals. I then walk the two blocks to my mom’s, drop off her part of the loot, see if she needs help with anything, and then walk home.

Is it any surprise if the usual 15-minute walk takes 20 or 25 minutes instead? It's so nice having an official reason to be out, to not be at risk of a 600€ fine if stopped by the police.

I miss my sisters (one’s in Sweden, the other in the UK), they were going to come after Easter. And my friends. Video calls are fun but it isn’t the same. I miss going to the movies – am really bummed about having to wait months more to see Mulan, Black Widow or Bond. I miss going for walks by the sea. I desperately miss hugs.

I do enjoy being safe at home though. The quiet streets. The birds chirping. We rarely heard them before! A duck stopped by for a visit today. He had the pool all to himself. Hopefully by the time the water is warm we’ll all be allowed to go down and enjoy it ourselves.