Australia easing their restrictions

Easing, Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash

Well, little Coco Covid’s been giving us a hard time. Especially you guys back in Europe. Here in Australia, the restrictions were a little lighter.

AT THE ONSET OF LOCKDOWN

So at the beginning, we were in phase 0. Impossible to walk around with more than 2 people, almost all the shops were closed (except supermarkets and DIY stores etc), sports halls, swimming pool, everything was globally closed.

In the streets of Perth, we would only come across junkies and Uber Eat delivery men (Hehe including me!). The beaches looked like a teenager’s skin with small groups of two scattered all over the place.

On the bus, the number of passengers was counted, and everyone was looking at each other a little sideways. You’d better not cough…

Anyway, it wasn’t fun. The jobs were gone, the new unemployed were forced and coerced to wander around the inn.

The hostel restricted its travellers to half of its capacity, more than 4 instead of 8 per room (we weren’t going to complain about that).

It was a time of panic for backpackers like me, come home or stay. Everyone was making their choice, if I decided to stay, many left the land of Oz to go back to Europe. The cars were sold at bargain prices, but it was impossible to travel…

Indeed, the borders between the major regions of Australia were closed and even the borders between the states of WA were closed. Stuck in Perth…

SUMMARY OF THE COVID IN AUSTRALIA:

Overall, Australia has been rather spared by Covid 19. Obviously it’s easier to react properly, when necessary, when we have the examples of European countries that have broken their teeth on the virus.

Having said that, it’s a fact that Australia reacted quickly, from the very first cases, a little drastically of course… …but they managed to stop the virus almost completely. It is the opening of the borders which is likely to be more delicate here. But we’re not there yet.

Of course, Australians are extremely cautious, you need a permit for everything, to serve alcohol (not a bar license, just as a waiter), to work in construction, to take care of children, and so many others. In fact, they have invented another “COVID Safety Plan Certificate”. Yes, yes the Australian is farsighted. No wonder the measures were so radical from the beginning.

Today, the total number of cases in Australia is 445. In total, there have been 7276 cases, 102 of which were fatal, and 6744 people have been cured. We can say that Australia is almost out of the woods.

TO BETTER UNDERSTAND

Australia’s advantage is its tiny population density. It has a population of just over 25 million people for a territory equivalent to the EU. The number of inhabitants per square metre is only 3.27 inhabitants per square kilometre.

The majority of the population is located on the East Coast and in major cities such as Sydney (5.1 million inhabitants), Melbourne (4.85 million inhabitants), Brisbane (2.4) or Perth (2). The East Coast in fact has more Covid cases as well.

In short, this sparse density is an asset in case of an epidemic. Contacts between people are less important, and the culture of the whole “car” has the positive side that the spread is limited.

THE CASE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA (WA)

Here each region is independent and has taken its own containment and decontainment measures.

The WA had a total of 601 cases, including 9 deaths, and 28 active cases today.

Easing Phases

Since April 27, we have been gradually losing confidence, regrouping 10 people, then 20, and now 100.

Since May 18th, the restaurants have finally reopened! Yoo-hoo! Finally youhou, yes and no. Because the first outing was a small fiasco.

Properly planned, we hadn’t made a reservation. And then leaving at 7:45 from the hostel, we had hope… Well, it ended well in the end… After 1h30, asking around, 1 hour of walking, and a certain discouragement, we were finally able to settle down in an Italian restaurant !!! Hallelujah !!!

The pizzas were delicious and after all this trip, they were even tastier… The only thing wrong with the frame… Yes, we got along well, but a three-quarters empty restaurant, it’s strange, it’s a bit cold.

Since then, we’ve been going out again, the streets are repopulating, restaurants are opening more tables. Phew, it’s back to normal.

WHERE ARE WE TODAY?

Well, everything’s almost back to normal. Everything reopened. I can finally go to the gym, over-butt my buttocks to make up for the lost months!

Finally, you can have a drink without consuming any food! Well yes, eating is cheating!

Yes, we can do anything, within the limits of legality of course…

Ah, and still, we continue to massacre our hands with hydroalcoholic gel, when entering a shop, going out, in restaurants, at the gym… We know who’s made a fortune in the last few months!

And we can… Get a job! The ads are raining again on websites and social networks. The hostel is changing, people are going back to work, and new people are now arriving in the rooms… End of immobility…

LET’S SUMMARIZE THE PHASES OF THE HOSTEL:

1. Boredom, questioning, and alcoholism: containment begins, everything closes. Some leave us, preferring the safety of a return home. Others take roommates out of the hostel. Those who stay, wander, read, watch TV, drink. Yeah, the beginning of the lockdown, we drink to make the boredom more bearable.
2. Alternatives, family life and depression: This is the time when everyone tries to find something to do. Some people take online courses. Others, like me, start Uber eat. Some are lucky enough to go to the mines and leave us for 2-3 weeks and come back for 1 week. It’s the time to get by. Some continue their job, but there are not many of them, and others continue to wander around, with an empty eye… for them it’s depressing. The positive point is the atmosphere. You become one big family. Events bring us closer together. Of course, there are small groups, but we all know each other, we’re not embarrassed anymore. There’s a lot of gossip and gossip, but kindness and love triumph!
3. It’s getting cold feet, panic to find a job: the bank accounts are hungry. Spirits are warming up to find a job. Opportunities are multiplying, but competition is tough. Some get discouraged, others change their strategy. Everyone is looking for each other and moving to put an end to the lethargy. Newcomers arrive, the end of the family atmosphere in sight. You can sense that departures will not be long in coming.

ME IN ALL THIS?

My morale followed the morale of the inn, and I shared the flood of anxieties, troubles and joys with most. However, today I am a bit lost, as if stuck in my Covid life, I think I have found some comfort there. Maybe an excuse?

I’ve like found my balance, between Freelance, Uber Eat, filling boxing bags, and writing my blog and my novel. I was living well, I was happy, I had found a comfort zone.

Here goes the Covid. He’s questioning my choices. Should I go back to looking for a job as a waitress or a salesgirl or whatever? The failure of my search of the first weeks comes back to me every time I open Gumtree, Seek or job offers on Facebook. And I get paralyzed, my fingers refuse to type cover letters and my CV has been waiting to be updated for weeks.

So I push back, I can live like this… Uber eat, Freelance… But if I want to put more aside for travel, I’ll have to find something else. I’ve lost faith that I’ll make it, there are too many doubts. So for the moment, I put my head in the sand, I disdain the announcements, I keep saying that it’s enough for me…