At the time of writing Spain has a total of 5,700 cases of people that have tested positive for the coronavirus and 180 confirmed deaths. These numbers are rapidly changing and the prognostics are to be at 10,000 infected in no time. The President is set to speak and announce the exact measures that the country is going to take within the next couple of weeks to combat the virus.
I have placed a few shorter posts on some of my social media accounts like Facebook and Google so far about how the COVID-19 is going to affect Patrick Guide Barcelona, but I also wanted to put a bit more down here for anyone that may have questions about what is happening in Barcelona and Spain as a whole. Currently we are awaiting the official announcement from the government but many things are being shut down completely. With the levels of confirmed cases continuing to rise, the government announced yesterday a State of Alarm (un Estado de Alarma), placing limits on operations of many businesses and activities. As with most places, activities of over 1,000 people have been canceled and people have been asked to stay inside the majority of the time and limit interactions with others.
Basically everyone os calling for Social Responsibility. Watching the news yesterday, an expert who had been studying the coronavirus for 35 years stated that “everyone needs to move their grain of sand”. I really liked that expression and think that it speaks to what each person can do. Maybe it doesn’t feel like much but with the current state of things, the best we can do is think globally and not help to spread this virus. As a result, I will not be giving tours for the upcoming future. In doing my small part, I think it would be irresponsible to ask for people, especially travelers, to come together in groups to visit the city. Museums, restaurants, bars, etc. have been closed, and while those are indoor activities, it is expected that all movement will come to a halt tomorrow morning.
Under these less than ideal circumstances, I will be taking advantage of my extra free time to further my learnings and better my understanding of Barcelona so that when the time comes, I will be more than ready to share all that I know about this incredible city with those travelers here. I will also have the time to create new experiences and organize my exciting new project for basketball teams and sports teams visiting Spain. An idea can already be found in the main menu!
The biggest message being passed around is “Quédate en casa” STAY HOME. While I am here that will give me time to update everyone with the latest movements here.