The new normal

It’s 7 am on a Monday morning and my son’s Covid self-test kit is on the breakfast table next to the cereal bowls and the mugs of tea. This is one of the latest developments in the constantly changing new normal. Since mid-April, school children in Germany as young as six need to self-test twice a week. These rapid tests have been especially designed for children and involve a shallow nasal swab. They're a bit uncomfortable but at least they're not painful! This is supposedly our last home test; next time will be at school. We are the lucky ones, since schools in Berlin are still open, though things are far from normal (surgical masks are now compulsory on school premises and classrooms, while classes are still halved and school ends earlier than usual). In other parts of Germany, however, schools have closed once again following the introduction of new measures to control the spread of Coronavirus infections. 

U-turn

While several European countries with similar or even higher Covid incidence rates have started relaxing restrictions, in Germany the emergency brake or Notbremse came into effect last Saturday. This is the latest attempt by the government to try to bring down the number of Covid infections during the third wave. They tried to shut down the country completely for five days over Easter but failed. The highly controversial move would have meant the closure even of supermarkets and grocery shops. A few days after the announcement of this plan, I received a WhatsApp message from a friend: “Have you heard the latest? They’ve scrapped the Easter lockdown! Was it all a joke?” I quickly got on to the Tagesspiegel website. In a video Angela Merkel was apologising for the mistake. I’m not sure what was most shocking: the sudden U-turn or seeing a politician admit they had made a mistake and were taking full responsibility.

Emergency Brake

As Germany is made up of 16 federal states, and each one can choose its own restrictions, Angela Merkel has been struggling to get every state to play by the same rules, hence the nationwide “emergency brake" law voted by the German parliament last week. This is applied when the seven-day incidence rate rises above 100 cases per 100,000 residents for three days in a row. For the first time the measures include an overnight curfew from 10 pm to 5 am (you can still go for a jog until midnight). Non-essential shops are still open, but if you want to go shopping you need to make an appointment and show a negative Covid test. If the incidence rate is above 150, shops are only open for “click-and-collect”.  You can still go to the hairdresser, but again you need a negative Covid test. Children under 14 can still play sports outdoors but only in small groups and their trainers need - you guessed it - a negative Covid test! If the incidence rate reaches 165, schools have to close and switch to home schooling. At the moment, the incidence rate in Berlin is around 135. So fingers crossed!

Test, test, test

While many businesses are struggling to survive or are having to close permanently, Covid test centres are in high demand, judging by the queues outside. These days you need a negative Covid test for most things, except going to the doctor’s or the supermarket. 

Pandemic fatigue 

After over a year of Covid restrictions and changing rules, more and more people are feeling fed up. This time last year the German government was being praised for its prompt and competent response to the pandemic. Now confidence is wavering and more people are bending the rules, as it gets increasingly challenging to keep up with the changes. The other day as I was reading the latest news over breakfast my son asked: “Does the information change every day?” “No, darling. It changes every hour”. Whether it’s about which mask to wear (FFP2 is compulsory almost everywhere these days, but in some places and situations you can still wear a surgical mask), vaccines (initially AstraZeneca was administered only to the under 65s, but now it’s only for people aged over 60 due to concerns over blood clots), schools (open or closed?), tests (self-test or test centres? PCR or rapid test?), social contacts (one household or more?) - the list is endless – we’re being confronted with constantly changing rules and information but no long-term plan in sight.

Fake news, protests and satire

Fake news and conspiracy theories about coronavirus and vaccines are rife. What coronavirus? It’s all an invention. Did you know that the Astrazeneca jab can turn you into a monkey? Meanwhile, protests by Querdenker, or Covid deniers, are getting louder and more radical. Police have been investigating a “death list”, which has been circulating on the internet, with the names of German politicians who voted in favour of the emergency break. Last week a group of German actors who posted satirical videos making fun of the coronavirus restrictions came under heavy criticism and were accused of being Querdenker. Many of these actors have withdrawn their videos from the campaign’s website called Alles dicht machen (close everything down) after the videos were praised by the far-right party AFD. Despite the growing disgruntlement, there is still strong support for a hard lockdown in Germany, according to the polls.

The coldest April in 40 years

These days whenever someone asks the question “How are you?” it is generally followed by a pause, as the person stops to think. It’s difficult to know how we feel after 13 months of disruption to our lives. The weather is not helping either. Although it looks like spring, with pink and white cherry blossoms brightening up the streets and the days getting longer - it doesn’t feel like spring. This has in fact been the coldest April since 1980. We can only hope that things will improve in May. At least the vaccination campaign is picking up momentum, as doctors (GPs and specialists) have started vaccinating in their surgeries; until recently Covid jabs were only given in designated vaccination centres. I’m still hoping the summer can be saved and we’ll be free to travel and visit our families, but it will take a miracle!

Humour in coronavirus time

This week I watched a documentary on Arte called Viral Humour - Telling Jokes in Corona Times. It shows how humour can help us through hard times and how it evolved through the pandemic. Some of the jokes are very funny. I recommend watching it if you feel like a laugh. 

From lockdown through flockdown to touchdown

The worst months of the year are over as far as I’m concerned. 

January was a very dreary month; it felt as if it would never end. Lockdown fatigue was at its highest and it wasn’t easy to find reasons to feel cheerful. February, on the contrary, provided some well-needed distraction from the coronavirus pandemic, courtesy of the unpredictable Berlin weather. This was in spite of the lockdown and in spite of the absence of the Berlin Film Festival (if all goes well, we will have the chance to watch the films in cinemas in June!). Carnival is never a big deal in Berlin, so we didn’t really miss it and we could still eat Pfannkuchen. This year there was a new variation: the Impfung (or vaccination) Pfannkuchen, with a complementary syringe.

First, we had an extremely cold spell in early February, with snow showers and temperatures plummeting to as low as -18ºC, turning Berlin into a winter wonderland and a playground for winter sports. A new word was born: Flockdown (a combination of Schneeflocke – or snowflake - and lockdown). All the snowy slopes were taken over by kids and adults sledging downhill. Some people were even seen skiing on the white city streets. Smiles returned to Berliner’s faces and the sound of laughter could be heard again. Sledges and other sliding devices were completely sold out (online and in shops where you could click and collect; the retail sector remained closed). 

After several days of freezing temperatures, all the lakes, rivers and canals in Berlin froze over, including the lake in Weissensee, which turned into a temporary ice rink, with skaters performing pirouettes and ice hockey players competing in serious matches. We even saw a family, presumably hungry after all the ice-skating action, grilling sausages on the frozen lake! The police, however, were not convinced that it was safe to tread on the frozen surfaces and their helicopters flew low over the lakes at the weekend to send people away. 

One week later, climate change alarm bells were ringing. Temperatures soared to +18ºC and the sun was shining. Berliners could hardly believe it. They ditched their woolly hats and scarves for their picnic blankets and flocked to the park (over 5,000 people congregated in Mauerpark on a Sunday afternoon). The police this time were busy trying to keep order and making sure the coronavirus regulations were being observed. For instance, it is still verboten to drink alcohol in parks in Berlin. Meanwhile, the birds were very confused by the sudden swing in temperatures and cranes (in German Kraniche) were heard emitting their distinctive calls while migrating north.

The end of February saw the first relaxation of the strict lockdown measures. Primary schools reopened, to parents’ delight, but only for pupils in years one, two and three, and classes were divided into two groups. In some schools children go every day for three hours, while in others they attend for two or three mornings a week. My son now spends half the week at school and half the week being home-schooled; this is known as Wechselunterricht. The situation is similar to when schools restarted after the first lockdown last spring, but there are some differences.  For instance, it is now compulsory to wear a face mask everywhere on school grounds, including in classrooms and in the playground. Meanwhile, nurseries are reopening on 9 March and more pupils will also go back to school next week. 

Hairdressers and barbers reopened on 1 March and queues quickly built up outside their shops, as people were desperate for a haircut. The lockdown has been extended until 28 March so everything else is still closed, but there will be some relaxation from next week. For example, from 8 March, up to five people from two households will be allowed meet, with children under 14 not counted.

By the way, Flockdown was not the only word to be invented during the pandemic. The Leibniz Institute for the German Language has compiled a list  of over 1,000 new words coined over the past year. These include AHA-Regel, which I have already written about, Coronaangst (anxiety about the coronavirus), Coronaeltern (parents challenged by the Covid regulations) CoronaFußgruß (foot greeting to replace the handshake), Coronaparty, Fashionmaske (fashion face mask), Homeclubbing, Klopapierhamster (toilet paper panic buyer), Querdenker (Covid denier who doesn’t follow the restriction measures) and overzoomed (stressed out by too many Zoom calls). I’m surprised there isn’t a word to describe a parent exhausted by the challenges of home schooling. Are you feeling homeschooledout? 

Finally, one of the highlights of the winter lockdown for me was watching the Mars landing. We were glued to the NASA YouTube channel on the evening of 18 February, as we followed the Perseverance rover approach Mars and then successfully touch down on the red planet. It was more exciting than any show I've seen on Netflix lately!

Life in lockdown: look on the bright side!

With all the doom and gloom out there, it may seem difficult to see any positives right now, especially for those of us living in lockdown. In Berlin, we have been in full lockdown for a month and a half and have at least two more weeks to go, if not longer. For anyone having to deal with home schooling (mostly mothers, but some fathers as well), the winter lockdown feels like an eternity. Nevertheless, there are some encouraging signs; we just have to look for them.

January is over

The worst month of the year, especially if you live in Northern Europe, is finally coming to an end. February is arguably not much better, but then it’s only one month to go until spring. We all deserve a t-shirt “I survived the January lockdown”! 

The days are getting longer

Just over a month ago it would be dark by 4pm, but now it’s still light at 5pm. That’s definitely an improvement. Time to celebrate!

The lockdown measures are working

Although it’s been and continues to be an absolute nightmare, the strict lockdown is already having an effect. In Berlin, the number of active Covid cases has fallen to November levels. Two of the lights of the Corona Ampel, i.e., traffic-light coronavirus-warning system, are still red (number of new infections and number of beds in intensive care), but the one corresponding to the reproduction number (or R value) is green. We’re starting to see the light!

We have several vaccines

The vaccination programme is painfully slow (only 2% of the German population has been vaccinated so far) and we are facing delays in vaccine deliveries. The EU is currently in a dispute with AstraZeneca and Pfizer over supplies and is introducing export controls on coronavirus vaccines made within the EU. Let’s not forget that 95% of all vaccinations so far have taken place in just 10 countries, meaning that people in low-income countries don’t have access to vaccines. Still, just the fact that several vaccines are available is an amazing achievement. Until a few months ago it wasn’t even clear whether it would be possible to develop an effective vaccine against Covid. One day in the not-too-distant future we will hopefully achieve herd immunity. 

If you need a further boost to your morale try any of the following

Exercise – go for a walk, join an online workout, follow a keep fit video, anything to get you moving. My son and I bought a skipping rope this week to exercise indoors because it was so cold outside! If you are allowed to leave the house, try to make the most of natural light and go for a walk whenever then sun comes out. 

Meditation – there’s lot of mindfulness apps to get you started and most of them have free sessions. Headspace is even on Netflix; it might sound like a contradiction (meditating while watching telly), but I found it quite relaxing and I enjoyed the graphics. If you have trouble getting to sleep, it might be more helpful than watching a thriller.

Escapism – there’s nothing like a good book or a good film to help you forget about your worries. I’m a fan of period dramas, but I realise they’re not everyone’s cup of tea. There’s one series that has attracted a lot of attention recently. I’m talking about Bridgerton. If you haven’t watched it yet, it’s quite entertaining. 

I enjoyed watching Far from the Madding Crowd, Thomas Vinterburg’s adaptation of the Hardy classic, also on Netflix. 

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo is one of the books that helped me get through the spring lockdown and is a really good read. It follows the lives of 12 characters, most of them black British women, all very different but in some way linked to one another.

Friends – even if you might not be able to see them in person, you can still text, email, call or video call your friends. They will be just as happy to hear from you as you are to hear their voice.  

Creativity – try doing something creative… cooking, drawing, colouring, writing a diary, writing a blog, writing a story, playing an instrument… whatever you choose to do, you will feel the positive benefits. 

Finally, a word of warning, don’t spend too much time on social media!