Thursday 27 February 2020

We've Got it Too!

The first, official, case of the coronavirus in Greece was reported yesterday way up north and today there are three more hospitalised in Athens.  

It's spreading.

Downtown today the ships' chandler shop had a big case of antiseptic handwash on sale and they are selling builders masks at a terrific rate.  You know, those masks that people sanding floors use, stiff white industrial masks.  I presume the chemists have sold out of the others.

Round at the supermarket they were doing a shelf check to stockpile essentials for when the virus hits us here.

I can see the island being cut off,  Supplies dumped on the jetty across on the mainland to be picked up by overalled workers from Poros who will spray the boxes with antiseptic before loading them on the car ferry.  All done without any contact with the contaminated mainlanders.  That's of course if supply lorries are allowed on the roads and warehouses are still sending supplies.  Who knows

This is a long weekend, the last three days of carnival with parades, concerts and frenzied revelry all over the country.  It has all been cancelled, even here.   In the city of Patras and elsewhere they have been making floats and costumes for the big parade for over 6 months.  The people say they will still come out and dance in the streets.  No virus is keeping their spirit down.

The eternal flame for this years Olympic games is due to be lit with great ceremony on March 12 at ancient Olympia.  But there are hushed whispers that the Olympic games may be cancelled as well.
The Olympic flame should be carried by teams of runners for 8 days throughout Greece before being sent on to Tokyo where it is/should be relayed through Japan before ending up at the opening ceremnoy in Tokyo on July 24.  We shall see.

There is no panic here.  No shelf emptying.  Everyone is talking about it in the cafes though.  Joking about it.  

The places where it might spread  are the refugee camps.  Greece is finally building closed refugee 'towns' with container housing, wifi, aircon, schools, hospitals,  meals provided.  They are supposed to be a more humane way of housing 20,000 refugees, with barbed wire fences, and no entry or exit without proper papers.  There has been fierce fighting with police on the islands where the refugees are centred.  Islanders want the refugees to be housed elsewhere in Greece..  The refugees don't want to be there.  Greece is only supposed to be a brief stop for them before continuing on to Germany and France and the rest of Europe.  Who doesn't want them.  

I thought I heard the PM saying that greece would not accept anymore refugees.  That's impossible.  Turkish leader Erdogan is sending them over the sea in leaking boats as fast as he can.  

K is watching football, Arsenal playing Olympiakos, the Piraeus team.  The greeks have already lost one match against Arsenal and that was played in their home stadium.  K is very quiet.  

We saw the Greek team getting off the plane in England, all wearing face masks.  The government was going to cancel all football matches from today onwards but they seem to have gone back on that.  This weekend's football is going to take place as normal.  There would be rioting and throwing of molotov cocktails if all entertainment was suddenly taken away from the greeks.

Updates to come, no doubt.

21 comments:

  1. Your house will be noisy. Olympiakos have just scored! All square.

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    1. Yes, there was shouting!!!
      Olympiakos played well

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    2. They did and Arsenal failed up front.

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  2. I think all this panic about the virus is getting overboard. More people die of the flu each year. Just normal hand washing and sneezing into your elbow will do loads to help stop the spread. I’m heading to London in August. I hope all the hoopla is done and dusted by then.

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    1. That's what they're saying here about the flu. 80 people have died this winter from ordinary flu.
      Hope it's all over well before August!

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  3. With the Syria/Turkey problems increasing, there will soon be MILLIONS of unwanted refugees passing through Turkey, en route for Greece. Maybe they should give each refugee a gun, and send them back to fight Assad.

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    1. They should certainly send back the Pakistanis, Iranians, Afghans, and north Africans. The Syrians at least have a reason to leave....but yeh, there are millions yet to come.

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  4. It was announced today that New Zealand also has a confirmed case of the virus. We will wait and see what sort of impact it will have upon us.

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    1. I saw NZ has the first case. You just don't know what will happen. A case of wait and see and caution but not panic!

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  5. Fires, floods, pestilence. And anyway, who are those four dark horsemen riding around everywhere?

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  6. It makes you wonder if all sporting events, music feestivals and travel will be cancelled. Worrying times.

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    1. I bet they will cancel events like that and probably sports events. Anywhere there are crowds but people go to work on buses and trains. You can't close down the country and make people stay put.....well, in China you can .
      Hope it's not to hard on our economy. A lot of money is being lost by cancelling these carnival events.
      We wait and listen

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  7. The Rugby Union Six Nations match in Dublin between Ireland and Itaĺy was cancelled yesterday. I know somebody who had booked an hotel with his friends and got tickets for the match. Hope they refund them?

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    1. It's beginning Dave. Sorry to hear about the rugby. Italy is persona non Grata but as the lurgy spreads events all over the world are going to be cancelled. The only one who doesn't seem to be worrying is Trump.

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  8. Actually, our President Trump is being even handed, and has no desire to spread panic.

    Thing is, all news media hate him, so all news sources ARE trying to spread panic.

    And when did world wide panic, solve anything....???????????????

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  9. I agree that areas of high concentration would be more likely to succumb to this virus. I'm not sure yet how I feel about it. It's certainly having an effect on economics! -Jenn

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    1. Very bad for tourism. Chinese tourists used to come here in droves especially to certain islands so there have been thousands of cancellations. Then, no more carnival celebrations. Big losses there. And that's just the most obvious

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  10. There was a single case in my native Surrey, and they can't discover who the person could have been in contact with. Very worrying.

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    1. Yes. At least these cases in Greece were brought by recent visitors to Italy so they know the origin and the people involved were aware that they could have the virus

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  11. Yes, N.Z. has its first case and the supermarket shelves in Auckland are emptying fast with panic buying.

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