In the Red Zone: Day 3

Today's morning update on the state of locked-down-Milan came from my girlfriend who cycled to a doctor’s appointment. On her way back she stopped at a pharmacy where the line to the cashier was marked with stripes every 2 metres so people can respect the recommended distance from each other to minimise contagion. She then tried to go to our regular supermarket and found the two-story mammoth with a queue in front of its double doors. I never imagined it was possible for it to be too full of people, and I’ve seen my share of busy weekend there when it becomes an obstacle course of shopping carts. It wasn’t even full when we, and I assume most of the neighbourhood, went to stock up just before the red zone came into effect. So, my girlfriend went to another supermarket and found the same stripes, from the pharmacy, spaced 2 metres apart there. Honestly, after our prepper shopping, I didn’t think we’ll need another round of shopping anytime soon, but I guess it makes sense to get some fresh vegetables while we can.

When she returned, we decided it’d be a waste of a beautifully sunny day if we spent indoors so we decided to season our salad intensive brunch with a dose of vitamin D on the balcony. There was something liberating about sitting out in the blazing springtime looking down at the street we live on. The Tobacconist/Cafè across the street from us was still open and people occupied the chairs outside chatting. These are institutions of Italian culture and that isn’t hyperbole. The Café or Bar as they’re known here are at the heart of the coffee culture in Italy and in some way the rest of the world if you consider how Starbucks set off to recreate this coffee culture in the US (and then went on to become a coffeeshop giant in the rest of the world, eventually coming right back to Milan to open their beautiful Roastery in Piazza Cordusio). The Tobacconist, on the other hand, is called so almost as misleadingly as ‘Bar’. Locals go there to buy tobacco (because cigarettes are more heavily taxed), scratch cards, stationery, mobile recharge coupons, bus tickets and a lot more. These shops are the nodes of this society. Out in this quiet neighbourhood, where people are still out, it is easy to forget what the rest of the city or country is going through.

After brunch there wasn’t much to do but to dive into the digital world till the evening when the news would update us on the situation in Italy. It almost feels like the alarming news and the new drastic restrictions are becoming the norm. Today’s big news alert was the WHO declaring the COVID19 outbreak a Pandemic. Italy moved to close all stores except those that sold food and medicines from tomorrow. Looks like the Tobacconist will stay closed tomorrow.