It’s scary here. They say there are more than 400 infected and Arrecife is now hit worse than Madrid in context of population.
What’s odd though is that life somewhat goes on. The majority of people are “getting on with it” and bars and hotels remain open, although they close earlier than before.
Many of us fear that the numbers could have been drastically reduced if the ‘test at origin’ promise came to be. But it’s too late and nobody knows for sure how the virus has spread. What we do know is that family meetings and nights on the town have played a big part. So now, we wait and we continue to walk and work and do what we do.
The island has not locked down again although some public facilities are closed. Flights back to the UK and many other sources of our tourism require quarantine after a holiday here and we wonder again how fair it was not to limit that exposure coming the other way. We see now how critical tourism was in the maths.
Sinking
We know though, blame has no part in the cure for Covid. It’s time to act as an individual, to create our own bubble, to face this ourselves.
It impacts everyone of course even if the majority are still without symptoms. My partner has not been able to start his new job. The company couldn’t realistically launch. And we, as a couple have closed our bubble around just a few people we know care for the rules.
Reading comments online, it’s obvious that an anger grows in the soul of the island. After all, the population was promised a new normal and surely this cannot be it. Freedom was waived as a carrot and the young were especially keen to enjoy their summer after months stuck at home. Frequent too are the deniers, the conspiracy-trolls, the many who claim it’s either ‘too late’ or ‘too hard’ to do something additional now.
Lanzarote is sinking. Perhaps only in terms of emotional burn. Maybe it’s true that with so few actually hospitalised, this may not be as bad as it seems. But we ARE sinking in so many ways. Economically, as a brand, as a tourism hub, as a united people, as a place that ‘wasn’t the same’ and ‘did it the right way’, we’re in those waves now and we’re feeling the cold.
Looking to the Future
This winter will be different to any other in history here.
For sure, better news will come. We will find a solution. The curve will turn.
Until then, we sleep a little less surely, fully aware that we rest on top of volcanoes.
