Last Saturday, I woke up late, and the first thing I did was to check-in Barbara and me for our upcoming journey to Norway. I tried not to think of the Coronavirus outbreak, the so-called CoVid-19. We have been planning this journey for months, and the idea was to spend a good part of March in northern Norway. Moreover, we have booked all the flights and prepaid our accommodation in five different places. We were ready for traveling -and yet, we didn’t travel.
*I’m writing daily about my thoughts and observations during the Coronavirus outbreak. You can read my Coronavirus Chronicles from Berlin here.*
Coronavirus is turning slowly to mass hysteria
We kept monitoring the situation with the Coronavirus. None of us was scared about the virus, and we didn’t worry at all about getting sick. Earlier this month, I wrote to my mailing list that Berlin keeps its carefree spirit. Unfortunately, this is not valid anymore. Berliners freaked out actually. Within a week, toilet paper disappeared in the supermarkets; the same happened with sanitizers, pasta, beans, and handkerchiefs. In just one week, Berlin started feeling sick. When I wrote to my mailing list, there was only one incident in Berlin. Today (12th March), there are 118 cases in Berlin and more than 2,000 all over Germany.
On Saturday night, after having a very long walk on my own, we decided to talk. As I already said, none of us was scared about the virus itself. But our talk was centered around two arguments: the first was responsibility and the second was isolation. Norway had more than 100 cases on Saturday (and 700 by the time I’m writing these lines), and we both started thinking if we should really go to Norway or if we should show some responsibility as travelers. Traveling in such times is not about ourselves anymore; it’s also about protecting others. Our escape from daily life could also mean “prison” for others in case we got the Coronavirus and spread it. The obvious reply would be, of course, not to travel and stay in Berlin.
Coronavirus and traveling
Then, we saw the whole thing under a different perspective: the events in Italy. A big part of the population is trapped in cities because of measures not taken in time but also due to sick travelers visiting Italy. Most of the travelers didn’t even know that they had a Coronavirus infection. But the virus spread rapidly. It was part of our responsibility as travelers not to travel: the last thing I want is to see somebody getting sick because of me.
And this brought us to the second element: let’s say that we traveled to Norway for 2-3 weeks. We assumed that the Coronavirus would keep spreading (I hope that it won’t) in its current rhythm. The trend says that every two-three days, the cases seem to double. We saw the measures taken in Russia or Israel, where the borders are practically shut for certain nationalities. What if Norway decided to close its borders -or what if Germany decided to shut its airports. I know that it’s a worst-case scenario, but with societies under such extreme pressure, nothing seems unexpected anymore. Could we, therefore, manage to stay an extra of 2-4 weeks in Norway and adjust to the cost of living there, even if we didn’t have the virus?
The obvious reply was, “No.” Apart from having an unpleasant feeling at all times, an extra 15-30 days in a foreign country (let alone Norway that is expensive beyond words) would definitely cause various problems. First of all, we would run out of money. Second, Barbara has a daily job, and she cannot be absent for an infinite amount of time -and a quarantine like this might request it. Going on a journey should be fun; if you have to cope with financial and personal insecurities that might affect you for the months (or even years) to come, it is not fun anymore.
And that was the good scenario. The worst-case scenario was, of course, to get sick in a foreign country and to pay for medical expenses. Even if it translated to a home-quarantine (in our case, hotel-quarantine), this would still mean a significant amount of money. It would have been unaffordable.
And just like that, an hour before midnight, we decided to cancel the journey. We were both sad, and I have to admit that I was staring at the screen of my laptop for fifteen minutes before pushing the button. Then, I hit “Cancel,” and I canceled everything within five minutes. It hurt -and it hurt a lot.
The next morning I read on the news that Italy has forbidden people to leave or enter certain regions, and they have also canceled most of the flights. Practically, the worst-case scenario was here. All Sunday long, I was feeling empty. It was as if someone sucked all my blood. I had a terrible mood, sadness, and no lust for anything. It took me several hours to recover, and even today, I feel devastated. It’s not just because I lost a journey I’ve been looking forward to. It’s also that this translated to a) a significant loss of money and b) problems to run the travel blog smoothly. And, of course, because once again the world was going to hell.
What’s next with Covid-19
The Coronavirus has all the characteristics of a terrorist attack, even though it’s (probably) not one. Exactly like after the 9/11 events, you feel that you can’t be safe anywhere. I mean, we could skip our journey to Norway and then go to a cinema in Berlin and end up getting the Coronavirus. You can’t be safe anywhere, and that’s the worst thing about it. I’m pretty sure that some of the measures taken against Covid-19 won’t be temporary and are here to stay. And yet, that’s probably the only way we can live right now.
But we shall overcome. Exactly like after 9/11 or after the terrorist attack in the Christmas market in Berlin (which took place a few hundred meters away from my flat), I refuse to live my life in fear. Yes, there’s a chance to get the Coronavirus even if you take all precautions, but I won’t obey to fear. While I’ll keep going to the supermarket or meet with friends, I know that some of my habits should change for a while. Everything in Berlin will probably shut down exactly like in Italy. This will be a period of walking a lot and spending (unfortunately) less time in cinemas, cafes, etc. I will probably reread my favorite travel books to feed my wanderlust.
On the other hand, I think that it’s my duty as a citizen to keep living the way I always do. For sure, I will use common sense and I’ll avoid crowded places when I don’t have to be there. I don’t feel that we owe anything to any State (in fact, the State always owes to us) but I owe part of my wellbeing to the wellbeing of others. We don’t have to skip everything but we must be careful and, once again, creative. An economy in a standstill will bring far more problems in the long term than any Coronavirus. That said, we should not allow a new financial crisis because of the Coronavirus disease.
I’m not safe anywhere, and I can get sick everywhere. I also know that I have to postpone traveling for a while. But no, daily life cannot wait. Maintaining a normal daily life keeps us sane and -hopefully- rational. I’ll keep writing and reading. Yes, I have a responsibility as a traveler, but I also have a responsibility as a -in the words of Aristotle- “political animal.” The only antidote to the Coronavirus so far seems to be hand hygiene, common sense, and some social distancing for a while. And, above all, responsibility.
I’m still thinking, even though I’m sad, that canceling the journey was the right decision. It still hurts me, it might affect the blog, but still, I do not (or better: cannot) regret it. If we want to mitigate the Coronavirus disease we should avoid nonessential travel. Good hand hygiene or using hand sanitizer won’t take us that far if we don’t adapt to the current situation. Places like China or Iran have loads of deaths. Europe seems to walk on the same path. We’ll now see if our political leaders are adequate and we will also see if we citizens are adequate too. So far, the European countries showed no political will. I hope they change their approach -but it’s already late.
Every single life matters. Older people will face critical issues with the virus, and people with chronic medical conditions as well. But this doesn’t mean that their lives matter less. They are somebody’s mother or father, somebody’s grandpa or grandma. I don’t see any reason or argument to take this lighthearted, especially when the pandemic is here. I won’t live in fear but mainly I don’t plan to be irresponsible.
*A week earlier I sent this article as an e-mail to my mailing list. Many things have changed since then and, therefore, I thought of adding some extra lines in order to make it more up-to-date, rational, and clear. I always follow The Atlantic and I encourage you to read the article “Cancel everything,” which explains why social distancing matters these days. As for the blog, I have enough material for some weeks/months. Therefore, if you want to feed your wanderlust for better days (they’ll come), make sure to visit it for updates. Stay safe.
More articles: Xennials & Traveling, The Prague of Kafka & Greece in a week , Corona-Summer 2020, Flying after the lockdown, 2020: From A to Z
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Last Updated on September 5, 2020 by George Pavlopoulos
This time of calamity, traveling is being banned. I hope this crisis will end soon. Thanks for sharing this post. I enjoyed reading.
It’s tough right now for all of us. Let’s hope for the best. Thanks for reading & take care.