When you can’t believe that there are people who don’t believe in vaccines

General

How is the situation in your city/ country? Is there a 2nd wave yet?
The situation in my country is complex. The second wave is ending but cases have not yet dropped enough to return to normality.

How did the atmosphere in your country change within the last months?
At the beginning of the pandemic there was a lot of fear and uncertainty because little was known about the virus. It was very hard for people not to see their families on strict curettage. In my case, I had to work since my activity was considered essential. The atmosphere was tense, nobody wanted to be infected. On a social level, people little by little lost their fear and are aware of respecting the minimum care in order to return to pseudo-normality.

How are you and your family?
Me and my family are fine. Luckily none of us is sick. My sister got pregnant a few weeks before the start of the pandemic, and it was the hardest. We had to take extreme care, and being able to follow the pregnancy with the doctors was complicated by the collapse of the hospitals.

What was the biggest challenge for you within the last months?
The biggest challenge for me was not being able to travel, go out and see my friends, do those recreational activities that cleared my mind. I couldn’t find a ground wire after work. It was difficult to keep working hours when doing home office.

People little by little lost their fear and are aware of respecting the minimum care in order to return to pseudo-normality.

Measures

When did you realize how serious the situation is?
The day they declared a mandatory quarantine in my country and closed the borders as the cases increased uncontrollably.

How did your government react to the crisis? Which measures/restrictions were taken first?
At first they declared a strict forty to contain the virus. They closed the borders, all businesses and factories except those related to health, food and security. This quarantine lasted for several months, thus generating the bankruptcy of many businesses.

Are you satisfied with the measures of your government? What was good/bad?
I do not agree with the measurements. The quarantine lasted too long, but the cases continued to grow. To face the economic problems they made the decision to provide financial aid to small businesses and people without work. But, to solve this in a country with high inflation, they raised taxes a lot, closed exports, and prohibited the purchase of foreign currency for savings. These measures are bankrupting many companies and increasing poverty.

What would you like to say to your government?
That when taking such extreme measures they should think about the people who are affected.

Which sentence of a virologist/politician did you memorize the most?
An economy that falls always rises. A life that ends does not rise anymore.

The measures of the government are bankrupting many companies and increasing poverty.

The Virus

Do you know anybody who was infected with COVID-19 or even died?
I knew people who were infected. Luckily none of them died.

Have you already done a Coronavirus test or have you been in quarantine?
I did not perform any tests, nor did I need quarantine.

Are you afraid of getting infected with the Coronavirus?
Yes I have fear.

I knew people who were infected. Luckily none of them died.

The lockdown

How long is/was your lockdown and what was allowed/what wasn´t?
Argentina was in a hard quarantine for almost seven months. When it started, I was about to quit my job to go on a study trip to Europe. Until today, I couldn’t get it back.

Did you spend the lockdown time with somebody and what did you do during this time?
I spent all this stage in the company of my family and my boyfriend. I continued working with home office, but I also tried to use the time to study, practicing courses and starting a travel profile on instagram.

What did you miss the most during the lockdown? What helped you?
I couldn’t travel anymore, and I was very sorry that I couldn’t hug my family. I missed outings with my friends.

I was very sorry that I couldn´t hug my family.

Changes

How did your work situation change within the last months (shorter hours, working from home, etc.)
I started working with home office, but on occasions my job required me to attend an industry in person for maintenance tasks, complying with very strict protocols.

How did your social life (relationship/friendships/dating) change due to the Corona crisis?
I was unable to see my family and friends at the peak of the pandemic. Try to have visual meetings with them, but they are not the same.

What impact has the Corona crisis on your financial situation?
At first well, because I kept my job and not being able to get out, many expenses were cut. But the measures taken by the government generated a crisis. We have a lot of inflation and devaluation, I feel that what I have saved is being lost.

Social distancing: How does your daily life look like at the moment?
I’ve learned a lot from myself being locked up. I developed old habits and started new projects. I participate in international contests that were previously face-to-face.

We have a lot of inflation and devaluation, I feel that what I saved is being lost.

Perception

Who are to your opinion the heroes of this crisis?
Medical Staff.

What did the crisis show you?
The little organization there is worldwide for these situations despite the warnings.

What will you appreciate more after the crisis?
Today I value much more spending time with my family, and having the freedom to move.

Which images will you never forget?
I will never forget the images of a totally empty city of millions of inhabitants. Deserted streets, no cars, no people.

Which stories/incidents/experiences touched/shattered you the most?
Spending my sister’s pregnancy in quarantine, with a complication that almost caused her to lose her baby because there were no beds to admit her.

My sister almost lost her baby because there were no hospital beds left.

Perspective

What are you afraid of right now?
I think that a third wave of a variant prolongs this situation and that this happens when I am traveling, without being able to return to normal life.

What gives you hope?
The progress of the vaccination gives me hope.

Are you planning to travel within the next months?
Yes, I plan to travel to Ireland and then Germany for professional reasons. It is a trip that has already been postponed several times due to the pandemic.

Would you get yourself vaccinated against COVID-19?
Yes, I already have the first dose of the vaccine and I am waiting for the second. I can’t believe there are people who don’t believe in vaccines.

What can we all learn from this crisis?
We must all work together, all countries without distinguishing political groups or ethnic groups. For the virus we are all the same.

If you could give 2020 a headline, what would it be?
The End of the World 2020: Pandemic and Crisis.

I can´t believe there are people who don´t believe in vaccines.