CV Report #3 - My Diary (of sorts)

I was hoping to not have to write many editions of CV Reports since it is SUPPOSED to magically disappear (from 15 cases to near 0) according to the Pres of US of A.  But, alas, here I am writing #3.

Here's some random stuff about what's going on in my world, the Balearic Islands, as it relates to the CoronaVirus.

Tues April 14

Went to Carrefour (like a Walmart).  They were still queuing a line out the door....one in/one out.  40 people waiting in line when I arrived, but it took less than 10 mins for me to get in.  Thin plastic gloves were being handed out (they make me perspire and that ain't a good look nowadays!) and a security guard ensured you apply disinfectant on your hands.  Masks worn by 50%.

Weds April 15 - Todays tally:

• Spain = 172,655 cases since the beginning.
• Balearic Islands (BI) = 1571

Thurs April 23 (a week later) - Todays tally:

• Spain = 208,389
• an increase of 35,734 since last week
• BI = 1836
• an increase of 265 since last week

Thurs April 30 (a week later) - Todays tally:

• Spain = 236,899
• an increase of 28,510 since last week
• BI = 1879
• an increase of 43 since last week

Sat May 2

First day of 'freedom' called Phase 0.  We're 'allowed' outside, but there's a lot of restriction by hours, distance, how long, age group, etc.  For example, I'm allowed out between 6am - 10am and then again from 8pm to 11pm.  I can't stray further than 1 km from my home and for no longer than an hour.  It was 79 degrees today but we're not allowed to enjoy the beach, no sitting, no swimming.  This is frustrating when the rules are being made by Madrid which has seen 200,000+ cases vs all of the Balearic Islands with less than 2,000.

Sun May 3

Since the relaxation of some of the rules that went into affect yesterday, I rode my moto down to wharf around 5pm (outside of my alloted hours) to see what things looked like.  From noon to 7pm, only children under 14 can be out but they must be with an adult.  The few people I spotted out were with young children and/or pushing a baby carriage.  On average I saw 1 person per block, even though it was sunny and about 75.  Hardly any traffic on the streets.

Mon May 4th

Starting today, they are allowing haircut salons and small stores to open with, of course, restrictions.  To go, you have to make an appointment, not just walk in.  

Weds May 6th

I finally got my hair cut today, after 3 months!  My stylist wore a face mask and gloves and he draped a disposable plastic apron over me (like they normally do but with re-usable aprons).

Four of my planned Home Exchanges have cancelled thus far.  

After reading about dates for flights to resume, border restrictions, etc etc my Montreal host and I decided we should cancel our 2 week planned trip for end of June/beginning of July!  WAAAGGHHH!!   She was coming here so her son could attend the Rafal Nadal (he's famous here) tennis academy.  I'm sure he's (the son) bummed!  That's 5 Home Exchanges cancelled.  With each one I had already booked the flights, so now I have a bunch of flight vouchers I have to use within a year before they expire.

Sun May 10th (10 days since last report) - Todays tally:

• Spain = 262,783 since the beginning
• 63,148 cases still active
• an increase of 25,884 new cases since April 30th
• BI = 1944 since the beginning
• 363 cases still active
• an increase of 65 new cases since April 30th

Sun May 10th

Effective tomorrow, the Balearic Islands will proceed into Phase 1, but the mainland of Spain will not.  In a nutshell, restaurants with an outdoor terrace can re-open their terrace (but not interiors) but they must restrict their capacity to 50% and tables must be 6ft apart (good luck with THAT!!).  Small stores no longer need an appointments to enter.  And, SUPPOSEDLY, we will be free to roam about the island (but not leave it) without time or distance restrictions.  Oddly enough, for walking or sports/exercise they still have the 1km, 1 hour, timeslot restrictions.  Go figure...they didn't ask me for my opinion.   So, I guess I can moto someplace any time I want and for as long as I want as long as I don't walk.   (!!!???)

Mon May 11th

My first day of freedom to ride my moto anywhere I want!!!  My destination, the village of Puigpunyent, about 10 miles from Palma in the foothills of the Tramuntana mountains.  It was a beautiful, sunny 75 degree day.  Traffic in the city seemed back to normal.  Some restaurant terraces opened and there were a lot of people out and about.  I went to the moto store to purchase a part for my bike.  Wow...how we miss those things when we don't have them!!

I was also able to go to the nursery for the first time in months.  Loaded up on plants!!  They took my name and # for tracing purposes in case.  Only place that's done that so far.

Mon May 18th (8 days since last report) - Todays tally:

• Spain = 277,719 since the beginning
• 54,124 cases still active
• an increase of 14,936 new cases in the past 8 days
• BI = 1991 since the beginning
• 252 cases still active
• an increase of 47 new cases in the past 8 days

I went to the Post Office once again.  The line stretched 2 blocks...some people had 10-15ft separation!  Took an hour to get in.

Tues May 19th

Got an email saying Leroy Merlin (like Home Depot) was open.  Dashed over there, 50 people in line stretched across the parking lot.  I left.

Thurs May 21st

Now requiring masks to be worn at all times in any place inside/outside where 6ft cannot be maintained.  The newspaper reported this and said it was a requirement in all public spaces including roads.  I wrote a response along the lines of....'you mean I have to wear a mask while I'm zipping along on my motorcycle while wearing a helmet?  Or, when walking on a long lonely road where there's nothing but sheep and goats?'   Good grief!!!  Sighhhh.

It was clarified the next day.  

Spain new cases per day is dropping and active cases dropping by 1,000 - 2,000 per day but still more than 50,000 cases active.

With regards to total number of cases, USA was ranked with the most, followed by Spain.  But now, both Russia and Brazil have surpassed Spain.  In contrast, Spain had 721 new cases since yesterday...Brazil added 21,472!!!

Fri May 22nd

Went to Leroy Merlin (like Home Depot) today.  I wore a face mask for the 1st time - required.  Hot breathing inside the mask made me sweat.  The store was sectioned off to keep within the 4,000 sq meters restriction.  You had to know what you wanted and ask an employee to go find it and bring it to you.  There was no browsing.

With all these numbers, it can be confusing and difficult to tell where we stand in comparison to others similar to us.  With that in mind, I did a little analyzing (right up my alley)...

Texas is the state closest in physical size to Spain....Spain being 75% the size of Texas.  However, Spain has almost double the population (48 million) than Texas has (25 million).  With that in mind....

As of this date, Texas identified 53,508 cases of CV since the beginning.  Of those, 1,486 have died.

However, Spain identified 280,117 cases...5 times more than Texas but only 2 times more in population.  Of those, 28,628 have died...19 times more than Tx.

The USA identified 1,611,297 cases.  Of those, 308,625 have recovered....only 19%.  Compared to...

• In Spain, 150,375 (54%) have recovered.
• In Germany, 159,000 (88%) have recovered of 179,381.
• In Canada, 41,718 (50%) have recovered of 82,728.
• In Switzerland, 27,900 (91%) have recovered of 30,707.
• In China, 78,255 (94%) have recovered of 82,971.
• In Italy, 136,720 (60%) have recovered of 228,658.

Sooooo.....why is the USA at only 19%???

Sat May 23rd

Word is out!!  Our beaches are re-opening on Monday, May 25th!!  How do I lose 40 pounds in 3 days?   I need to fit into my thong!!!  Can't wait!!  We've hovered around 80 degrees (a little higher than normal) all this week and people are getting antsy to jump in the water.  I wanna snorkel!!

Mon May 25th (one week since last report) - Todays tally:

• Spain = 282,852 since the beginning
• 57,142 cases still active
• an increase of 4,133 new cases in the past week
• BI = 2041 since the beginning
• 229 cases still active
• an increase of 50 new cases in the past week

Today, big stores opened without restrictions on capacity but maintain social distancing.  We were able to browse freely.  Restaurants and bars can now serve inside (vs outside terraces only) but only up to 40% capacity and maintain 6ft separation.  The city has allowed those that normally have terraces to extend that area into the parking strip.

I noticed when wearing a mask, I can check my breath.  The results were not good.  

There is talk of re-opening the borders for tourist traffic into Spain starting July 1st.  They had initially said it would also require a 14 day self-quarantine (good luck enforcing THAT!!).  But, I think they've dropped that.  Will just have to wait and see how it flushes out over the next 30+ days.

Meanwhile, we seem to be making progress here, but I'm not so sure about other places.  The US has over 1,700,000 cases identified and adding an average of 15,000 - 20,000 every single day and the death toll is about to tip over 100,000.  As a comparison, 700,000 people died of AIDS in the USA over a span of about 34 years (in theory, about 20,000 per year).  But, 100,000 have died of CV in just 4 (or so) months.

And now, both Brazil and Russia are out of control.  Brazil is racking up more than 10,000 new cases daily while Russia is adding just under 10,000.

On that cheery note...keep safe, don't let your guards down, and maybe share some of these numbing statistics with the idiots who are out partying, protesting their rights (they need haircuts for cripes sake!!), and...oh, I'll just stop there!!!

Next up...more beautiful Mallorca day trips!!

Stay Tuned!!

Dano

By the way, if you're interested in viewing any of my past entries about travelling around Europe and where I live in Mallorca, simply scroll down past my signature to the end.  There, you'll see 'Blog History'.  You can click on any Month/Year to see the titles I published at that time.  Simply click on the title you're interested in and it will take you to that page.