The last two weeks have been crazy!
Here in Austria we’re slowly easing out of restrictions, and with that life returns to a semblance of normal.
Our first Hofer shop after two months took up the entire belt (not previously achieved). Even though we were getting irregular grocery deliveries during lockdown, we had purchased mainly necessities, so it was necessary to stock up.
I have been to the doctor (very stringent mask/sanitising requirements, and for good reason), and I’m wondering how long to wait before I make an appointment with the dentist, which is also due.
This week I put make up on three times (almost unheard of in a normal week). But we went out for dinner twice, and then I had to get a new passport photo – just because I look like a wreck going through any border control after 10+ hours on a plane, it doesn’t mean my photo has to.
It’s a little weird going out for dinner – the fact that I was exposed to so many people, when I was in such a hardcore lockdown, felt a little odd in the beginning. But I got used to it. There are restrictions on how many people per table and so on, and the waiters wear plastic masks, but it’s fairly relaxed.
On Saturday, the thing I have been waiting for finally happened – our local swimming pool opened. Its open was delayed by two weeks, and they couldn’t hold their usual open day grill and drinks – but finally I was able to stretch my body out. It was like coming home. I have been having issues with my back and hip in the last months and have had to stop running – so I’ve really been hanging for the pool.
I know everyone in Austria was dreaming of a gorgeous long weekend of sunny weather, but when it started raining on Saturday I secretly smiled. Because it meant pool visitors would be drastically reduced. And with restrictions on how many people can enter the grounds, and how many can be in the water at one time, I was nervous that I wouldn’t get my swim in. Nervous… like before a job interview nervous… cause I’m that kind of weird.
My first swim was amazing. I stood at the end of the pool, one of three in a 50 metre pool, in the rain, in 14 degrees, grinning like an idiot cause I was so happy. I’m always like this on the first day back in the pool for the year, but somehow COVID made it feel ever more special. I’m hoping that by the time the weather warms up and it’s really a problem of numbers in the pool, the restrictions have eased enough to make it possible to keep swimming as usual.
There’s talk of letting us back out to supermarkets and restaurants without wearing masks in the middle of June. School is back next week for all ages now, though they are still in ‘shifts’.
So let’s all cross our fingers and hope that everything just continues to get better. How are you doing where you live? I’d love to hear about it!
an aussie in austria 