When I was thinking about writing this week’s blog I was conscious that the likelihood was by the time I came to write it lockdown would be a reality for the UK too. Comparing the numbers of Corona Virus cases from Italy two weeks before the UK, it seemed a similar story was emerging. I am sorry it had to come to this, but I think it’s in everyone’s interests. Hopefully they are finding, so far, it’s ok. A great many kind people, organisations and businesses are offering services for free or on reduced rates for us to do/use while we are at home. However, as I said last week, we shouldn’t try to do too much. We are in strange days and there is a mental aspect to this as much as a physical restriction. No doubt your thoughts and feelings about being in lockdown have changed and will change. Make sure you look for and hold onto the positives of which there are many.
A change in the weather
Last week we had balmy 20 degree days. You might remember my photo of the garden, glass of wine in hand. I want to make as much use of the garden as possible at this time and I was worried for my pale blue Celtic skin so I put in an Amazon order for sun cream. The supermarket we can walk too does not have a lot of choice available as it’s not a big store. I thought getting an order would be better than travelling out to a bigger store and potentially encountering more people even if social distancing is practiced here. This week has rewarded us with a wind warning and days barely reaching the 10s so it hasn’t been garden weather, although it has been sunny. However, this morning we were greeted by snow!!! Snow and it was settling, which we were not expecting at all. A quick check of the weather forecast confirms the 20 degree days will return by Sunday, which is good because my sun cream has not arrived yet.
Winter had a last laugh
Learning new skills and being bored
This week I learned to use a new online teaching platform as well as how to set up and use groups on Skype. My lessons are spread out over the week a couple of hours, usually not more than 3, at a time. A lot of the day feels like waiting for lessons and other activities are fitted around lessons and prep. I think I pulled a muscle in my stomach doing Yoga, so I’ve been laying off that and I caution those who are planning a vigorous exercise regime during this time not to over do it. Al has been bored because he doesn’t have any work to give structure, however I will mention that tonight I will be eating a chicken pie with handmade puff pastry. The chicken filling was also several processes and days in the making. We’ve also had homemade pasta and bread this week.
Last thoughts for this post
We are a couple of weeks ahead of the UK in this weird netherworld of lockdown. There is a stoicism that says just keep going which is good and helpful but, its ok to admit this is frightening. We have never seen the like of this in our lifetimes. We have no reference data to tell us how to feel and what to do. We are in an event we have only read about in post-apocalyptic books and seen in disaster movies. By staying in and minimising our contact with others less people will die, but that’s still pretty stark. There’s a part of you that feels like this is a holiday, a part that feels like this is an inconvenience and a part of you that is terrified and it’s all correct and OK to feel. We don’t know what is going to happen, which is always true, but is scarier now because we didn’t really think this would happen. One day this week I said to Al that I had a lot of work to do but I just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. I’m not always sleeping and I’m imagining symptoms (luckily a fever can’t be psychosomatically generated) on a consistent basis because, hey, that’s the kind of girl I am. Turns out, it’s perfectly natural. Everyone is doing it, because it’s part of a natural human reaction. Allow yourself to have these moments. It will be ok and we will get through this, but if we have the occasional tremble, or just need to pull the duvet over our heads today, so be it. Be kind to everyone, but especially yourself. We can choose what elements of this experience we hold onto and take forward and which elements of our old life we want to let go of and leave behind.
As we begin this second week in Lock down we feel that we
are getting the hang of it. Al has been making enough bread to ensure we have
some every day and has also made batches of pasta, mayonnaise and sauces to
keep us eating in style. This week Al has decided we need a lasagne as there
are another 2 weeks of lock down to go (it was announced today that this will
be extended). I continue to teach over Skype and to spend the rest of my time
reading and trying to write. We are going out every couple of days to get top
up fruit and veg or occasional meat. This is as much an exercise in getting
some exercise as it is a necessity. However, we think we will try and see if we
can get more deliveries online to limit going out further.
Here people patiently wait outside shops, a respectful metre apart, until the next customer comes out so they’re able to take their place inside. It’s hard to imagine this happening in the UK without security guards or other monitors. It seems particularly unusual when Italians are otherwise famous for their inability to queue. However, everyone understands the seriousness of the situation and there is a sense of togetherness in a crisis which maintains a calm acceptance of the present situation and the need to get through it together. This too shall pass.
Rediscovering our love of film
One of the unexpected outcomes of all this was rediscovering our love of film. Back in the early days of our relationship we spent a lot of time watching films, being early adopters of Love Film and clocking up a fair number of films per week. Love Film ate blockbusters and was eaten by Netflix in turn. While we have maintained Netflix and Amazon Prime accounts these have largely been to keep up with TV series. Al’s anti-social hours meant that the Cinema was out of the question and starting a movie at home at 11pm is not that appealing. Even on his days off he rarely had the headspace to sit through a film. Now that we are forced to be in the apartment all the time, we realise that we haven’t really watched films for about 10 years. We are enjoying reading reviews and building up a watch list as well as watching the films. While there are a couple of films that are still daunting us with their length (the Irishman is 3 hours and 40 minutes!) there will never be a better time to watch them than now.
Piazza Maggiore
Via Farini
Ring road
Quadrilatero
Jennie’s top tips
Someone asked me for some tips in case you guys all get
locked down too. I must say that I think it’s important that you do. I
genuinely believe this is the only way to minimise this virus. Here are the
tips I gave this morning plus one or two more:
Watch films, paint pictures, cook and read books. Do anything you usually don’t have time for.
Try to stick with a schedule but not your old work schedule or an unrealistic home improvement schedule
Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to achieve. This enforced free time can be used for relaxing too.
If there are local businesses you can support by buying direct from them, do it.
If you’ve had gigs or events cancelled try to wait for the reschedule instead of getting a refund. See if the band or venue has merch you can buy or a Patreon or something to keep them afloat.
Don’t be a dick, only buy what you need.
Reach out to your friends. You can’t be in each other’s company but you can still interact. If someone reaches out to you, respond.
Think creatively about how you can continue to do things you enjoy – what about logging on to a streamed gig or comedy performance? Or what about a Skype dinner party – everyone does their own cooking in their own home but with Skype on so you can talk to each other?
Stay positive. This will pass.
Don’t you wish your supermarket was stacked like mine?
The future’s so bright
The world will be different after this experience. Undoubtedly there will be another global economic downturn and many businesses will not survive. However, this has given us an opportunity to see the world, as one of my students put it “through another lens”. We see how quickly those who have jobs that facilitate, can work from home. To see how much we need and depend on the jobs that have recently been referred to by the UK Government as “low skilled”. To see how we can be our best in a crisis, turn misfortune into opportunity, working together to help each other and finding other ways to continue to operate. We can take what we learn from this period into the future and make sure we change it for the better. It is tough right now so those crowdfunding a contingency fund, offering online shopping for goods and services, turning restaurants and pubs into takeaways and any other ways you have thought of to reinvent yourself to adapt and survive I raise a glass to you. If there is anything you can do to support them, you need to get on it.
Keeping positive
Sometimes the human spirit really can surprise you in very positive and uplifting ways. Here in our uniquely Italian experience we have the 6pm music from balconies, which have been shared widely on social media; the hashtag “#iorestoacasa” (I stay at home) being used by Italians to share experiences and homemade posters in windows saying Andrà tutto bene” (Everything will be fine).
If I had written this piece last week it would be completely different. I was into the start of the second week of Skype only lessons with the school closed. Al had just been advised that the place where his restaurant is located would be closing for evenings. This was a move as related to falling demand as to public safely as people had stopped going out as much. Corona Virus was largely to the north of us in the mountains and ski resort areas. We had taken advantage of more free time by visiting a few sites we hadn’t got round to like the walk to San Luca (to be told in a future posting), finding groups of school kids excited at the unexpected holidays pretty much everywhere we went. Museums and galleries were closed so there was nothing but views to admire.
The tourist numbers had been quick to drop and the arteries of the quadrilatero (medieval centre) were no longer so clogged as to make them impassable. In fact, one of the busiest streets, Via Pescherie Vecchie was so empty of customers I thought about stopping for lunch just because it might be the only time I could get into a restaurant here. Usually the voices around the centre of town are Italian with the occasional English, American or Chinese accent being quite striking and evidently tourist, so I hadn’t appreciated how many of those voices were Italian tourists and not locals. This became apparent by the reduction of people around. We knew the fall in visitors would have a financial impact so we decided to spend our money in shops that were likely to suffer the most.
Christmas shopping in the Quadrilatero
Early morning in the Quadrilatero in better times
Late night shopping in Via D’Azeglio
A rainy weekday in November
Usually something going on – May 19
Staying informed
We are using a mixture of media to keep abreast of what is going on from the BBC, The Local.it, La Repubblica and The Commune di Bologna (local council) as well as staying up to date with current travel advice on Gov.uk. We have been surprised by the differences in the tone of reporting that we were accessing with a lot of UK news articles on social media having overtones of panic and fear. I was amazed to see an article from Sky News and other British tabloids reporting everyone returning from Italy had to put themselves in self-quarantine. A quick check of gov.uk at the time confirmed what I thought, this advice was only if you were returning from one of the hot spots or if you had any symptoms. While we knew of the international reputation (infamy) of the British Press these events have really highlighted the stark difference between keeping people informed and acting in public interests and trying to sell copy, distract and manipulate the public agenda. Unfortunately, almost without exception the British reporting has fallen into the latter rather than the former.
Even the stories from the region published in the British
press seem to be the more hysterical ones. They do not chime with my experience
at all. Is this because people like me don’t contact the UK press to provide
comment, or because our stories are not exciting enough? I have seen quiet calm and dignity. I have
heard stories of panic buying, but I haven’t seen any for myself and the shops
here have plenty of toilet roll.
I will admit that, with hindsight, we might not have thought this as serious as we perhaps should. We continued to go to our favourite bars and restaurants, although they were quieter. We continued to meet with friends and discuss the situation. We were not feeling ill and not overly concerned as although we knew the Corona Virus would eventually come here, it was not really here yet. We were even still encouraging people to come here and have a relatively crowd free experience.
Aperitivo
What a difference a week makes
Last Thursday we were advised that the schools nationwide would be closed for 10 days, so we knew our schools would not be opening here. We knew people who had been forced to take holidays as local, small businesses began taking efforts to restrict the financial impacts. After that things moved quickly. On Saturday the Red sites or hot spots were extended to include Modena 23 miles to our North and Rimini 70 miles to our south. Although we were not in lock down, we were surrounded by areas that were. On Sunday Al went to work to be told his workplace would be closing until 3rd April. As he had the night off and it was the anniversary of our arrival in Bologna we decided to go out for dinner. We went to a restaurant on Via Pescherie Vecchie. The centre was not as lively as a typical Sunday night, but it was a little livelier than we were expecting so we felt more hopeful that this time would pass soon enough. On Monday we went to the vegetable shop and bought more food than normal because Al usually eats at work but now, we would both be having our meals at home. We focused on fruit and vegetables to ensure we ate healthily and as a boost to our immune systems. Late on Monday night we got the news that all of Italy would be put into lockdown, there were no such things as red sites anymore.
Via Pescherie Vecchie into the Quadrilatero
Via Pescherie Vecchie towards Piazza Maggiore
Empty steps at the Cathedral
Empty Piazza Maggiore
Quiet in Via D’Azeglio
The Corona Virus
I have heard many things about the Corona Virus ranging from
its no worse than Flu to it’s the end of the world. I just wanted to unpack some
of the things from either end and the middle. The flu is not like a cold. If
you think it is, then be thankful you have never had the flu. I cannot count
the colds of varying severity I’ve had but I know I have had flu twice. It is a
horrible illness and I would be happy never to have it again. Flu does kill
every year and while the happy majority manage to rest it out at home, I wouldn’t
wish it on anyone. I don’t want Corona virus anymore than I want another dose
of flu thanks very much.
The odds might well be that like 80% of people (source WHO) I would not have
a bad case and that I would be able to recover at home. It’s not really me I’m
concerned about. It’s who I might come into contact with, who I might
unwittingly infect. It’s the old lady in the street who I might have exchanged pleasantries
with, it’s the shop worker who has to work so people can eat. I am more aware
than ever before of the people whose lives I touch, even if it is just in
passing. You can have this virus for up to two weeks before you develop any
symptoms. Can you remember everywhere you have been in the last fortnight?
Everyone you spoke to, everything you touched? It’s people who are coming into
contact with friends and family with asthma, with diabetes, with compromised
immune systems and any other number of health issues who would not be able to
manage an infection so nonchalantly that concern me and so we all need to take
responsibility.
We owe it to our friends, families and the wider communities
in which we live to take this seriously and make sure that we are taking the
precautions that we can. We are not able to stop the transmission of the flu
(although actually the same measures would help) but there is still time to contain
this virus and we should all make every effort to do that so that those in our
communities who are vulnerable are not put at risk by our cavalier attitudes
because we think we would be able to handle the sickness.
In Europe and the US the weather is starting to get warmer
and we can hope the increase in temperatures will help to kill off this virus
in the same way the flu is reduced in the summer months. However, we can’t know
if that’s the case and the other half of the world is in the opposite situation,
getting colder and with their flu season about to start.
Let’s all try not to panic and inflict pain and misery on others; hoarding goods we don’t need; reducing the supplies of gloves, masks, hand sanitizer, medical support and medicines from those that really need them. Let’s stop thinking only of ourselves and what the impact is, or could be, on us. Let’s demonstrate the best of humanity by washing our hands especially after we have been in public places; minimising unnecessary contact with others; minimising travel; checking in on our family, friends and neighbours and only buying what we actually need to get through this period.
Blossom in Via Degli Orefice
It’s not all doom and gloom
So here we are, in day 2 of the Italian lockdown. Food shops
are still open and people are still free to move in their towns and streets,
going to work etc. They are advised to minimise contact with other people and
of course the ubiquitous hand washing advice. We weren’t planning on going anywhere
else and we’re in the city so we don’t feel too restricted. Yesterday we went
to the butchers and I waited outside while Al ordered because they had a two
customers at a time restriction. We went to a large supermarket, where shelves
were stacked and no one appeared to be panicking. Shop staff wear masks and
gloves.
The school I work for is making plans to extend online lessons. Al is making bread and pasta. It was 19 degrees and sunny today so we had lunch in our garden while reading. I don’t know what will happen next, no one does, but I look forward to giving you an update next week.
As part of our ongoing mission to see more of the area surrounding Bologna whenever we can, we found ourselves on a Monday heading out in our ancient Polo to what the Bolognese call “the hills”. Probably because in my mind the hills mean softly undulating landscape, I was not prepared for the majestic sweeps, deep valleys and dramatic shapes of the Bolognese hills. It would be like calling the Peak district, the hills of Sheffield, which is an error with my understanding of the Italian word rather than undue modesty on their part. This area is part of the Apennines which separates Bologna and the north from Pisa and Florence.
Al advises me that it was interesting driving, along the twisty roads, with hairpin bends, steep inclines and unexpected drops with no power steering and it certainly looked it from the passenger seat. My ears popped on one high stretch and we knew that down was the only remaining direction available. There were many beautiful small towns in valleys and on hillsides as we snaked our way through. I don’t have photos of the drive as I was too busy taking it in. You will just have to take my word for it or visit for yourself.
Porretta Terme
One of the main streets
We had set our sights on a town called Porretta Terme . As the name suggests Terme is Italian for Thermal spa and these springs have been in use since Roman times. The town is also famous for Winter sports as it is close to a couple of resorts as well as being home to an International Soul Music festival which has been running since 1987. It was a beautiful sunny day with temperatures promising to reach 15 despite it still being February.
Walking around Porretta Terme
We enjoyed ourselves wandering around the streets looking at the architecture. However, it is us, so we had timed our visit with lunch and needed to find something to eat. Monday lunchtime is not an ideal time to visit a town as many shops and businesses close for lunch and many restaurants and cafes don’t open on Mondays. However, there is always somewhere to be found and we were more than happy to stumble on Cipensoio which is the restaurant of the Helvetia Thermal Spa hotel. It looked formal and we thought twice about going in, but we read the menu outside and decided we would go for it. It rated highly on the review sites, but we had really been looking for a sandwich. We often find ourselves in restaurants having sworn we would have a light lunch on the run.
Baccala’ mantecato “Brandacujun”
Crostini al Lardo stagionato di Pata Negra
Maltagliati con scorfano, pomodorini confit e asparagi
Maccheroni al torchio con salsiccia di cinta e porcini
Our dishes from Cipensoio
Ci Penso Io is literally translated into English as “I’ll think about it”, but it widely accepted to mean “I’ll handle that” or “I’ll deal with it”, so bear this in mind if you hear it said or say it. Certainly, in this case they could handle our lunch. The food was delicious.
We had only been able to pay for two hours parking (parking requires change which, except for small brassy denominations, seems to elude us), so we had to get back on the road. It’s still early in the year so you start to lose the light at 5pm and we had another stop planned before heading for home. There is a station, Porrettana, which runs to and from Bologna, so a train trip would probably take you through some beautiful countryside on the way. Next time I’m planning on booking in for a spa treatment.
La Scola
We drove back in the direction of Bologna but turned off onto a road that climbed the side of a large hill. This road was in part single lane and we were a little disturbed to see bus stops dotted along, as there was no room for a bus to pass. The tarmac surface did not extend by more than a cars width and to the sides were rain gullys. I didn’t notice any passing places, but I would not have wanted to reverse back to one anyway, the road was steep and twisty. La Scola is listed as a historical monument, but it is a tiny village where all the buildings are from 14th and 15th Centuries and were built by master stonemasons. Its location, perched on the side of a hill, means that the beautiful buildings are set in an incredible context against the sky and surrounding hills. As it is tiny there is no parking to speak of, no facilities and I imagine that it could get pretty busy in peak tourist season. You can also get there by train and then bus from Bologna and I recommend it as somewhere to go on the way to or from somewhere else.
As Bologna is a city with a lot of galleries and art events I was pleasantly surprised to find there was a
dedicated Bologna Art Week too. It was from 17th to the 26th
January and was a collaboration between a number of organisations including the
Municipality of Bologna, MamBO (Modern Art Museum Bologna) and Arte Fiera. This
year was the 8th Art week and saw more than 57,000 pieces exhibited[1].
There were hundreds of events across a wide variety of galleries,
non-profit, artist run and unconventional spaces and included a “White night”
on January 26th. Usually, in Italian, a white night means a night
where you are not able to sleep. However, happily this “White night” is where
galleries and museums were open until midnight. This was to allow people who struggle
to get to galleries and museums during traditional opening hours a chance to go.
I think this is a great idea and I don’t know how many galleries or museums do
this, in other places, but I will definitely be keeping my eye out.
Bologna Welcome
To find out what was happening in Art Week, we turned to our
trusty friend the Bologna Welcome
site. As we had limited time when we were both free we wanted to maximise the
bang for our buck. So, rather then go to several different events in separate
locations we decided to go to one big event at Bologna Fiera, which is a massive
conference centre on the outskirts of Bologna.
At the end of last year we decided to get Bologna Welcome
cards. This is a card provided by the Bologna Welcome centre and with it you
can access many galleries, exhibitions and attractions either for free or at a
discount. We bought annual cards but they also do short term cards for tourists
and visitors. Check out their site for full details (link above). We were
expecting to get a discount at Bologna Fiera, but on the day we were ushered
through for free just by flashing the cards.
Arte Fiera
We drove to the exhibition because we knew it was on the other side of town, but when we arrived we discovered there was a free shuttle bus from the centre, which we should have researched better. However, we arrived at the venue in time for a spot of lunch at the Eataly pop up and then went into the exhibition. There were two enormous halls hosting this exhibition so to begin with we were a little overwhelmed and unsure where to start. Both halls had exhibition spaces organised by Gallery with a sign to indicate the gallery name and location. There was a mixture of Italian and International galleries. I will shush now and let the art do the talking. As usual terrible photos by me, good ones “borrowed” from Al.
Gallery spaces and labels
Can you spot the egg
Some highlights from our visit
To get more info and photos check out their site Arte Fiera
Art Week Bologna 2021
It looks like its all systems go for the 9th
Bologna Art week in 2021 and I would recommend checking it out if your visit coincides
with Art Week or if you are lucky enough to plan your trips around art events.
[1] ‘ART CITY Bologna 2020 –
Bologna Agenda Cultura’ (Agenda.comune.bologna.it, 2020) <http://agenda.comune.bologna.it/cultura/artcity>
accessed 21 February 2020
