April 2020, day 50 of the lockdown. Many of you asked what life was like in Brindisi, in the south of Italy, during COVID-19. These are my thoughts from our garden, plus drone footage of my city completely empty.
The south vs the north
The south of Italy wasn't hit the way Lombardy and the north were. They were still recovering, with very high numbers. Here in Apulia, at the time, there were around five to ten new cases a day in our area, and luckily nobody in intensive care. But I hadn't seen my parents or my in-laws in two months, since the first days of March. Every time we went shopping we had to wear masks and gloves, which were really hard to find.
From fear to coping
The first weeks were really hard. I think I was close to a nervous breakdown. I was scared for my kids, for my parents and for my wife's parents. We'd heard about SARS and Ebola, but they never felt like a threat. For the first time, a pandemic was touching us from close by. Scientists and politicians argued about whether to shut everything down, until it became clear how dangerous COVID-19 was. Italy was one of the first countries to lock down.
Then I started coping. I started enjoying time with the kids, and even working from home. I had all the equipment I needed to be 100% operational. We felt really lucky to have a garden. I can't imagine being locked in an apartment for two months. Paola was doing an amazing job looking after the house and the kids while I worked, and I tried to help, though a husband's help is never enough. Like everyone, we cooked and baked a lot: pasta, bread, sweets. I think I put on 4 or 5 kilos in 50 days.
My city, empty
I'd seen videos of empty megacities and webcams showing Fifth Avenue and Times Square with no one around. That was scary, but not as scary as seeing my own city from a drone with nobody in it. A special thank-you to Alessandro Colavito, who shared his incredible drone footage of Brindisi. Those are roads I know, where people I know live. It's a feeling that's hard to describe.
What really matters
There was light at the end of the tunnel, with some activities expected to reopen around the 4th of May, with masks and distancing. The twins weren't even four yet. For them, washing hands and wearing masks was a game, and I doubt they'll remember it. One day I'd like to tell them a happy ending: that this pandemic taught us what's important in life, like hugging your parents, and letting grandparents hug their grandkids. Thank God for FaceTime and WhatsApp video. We were calling each other every day, more than before.