My Cortonese friends have been asking me this question. They are seeing the news reports from the U.S. and seeing the shelves emptied and the crowds and the lines. Here’s the shelf for TP in our local small (very small) supermarket. There is, of course, plenty of toilet paper. This is actually the entire shelf of toilet paper here in Cortona: I’ve never seen it empty. (continues below the photo)
Carta Igienica (Toilet Paper) – on the shelves in Cortona’s small supermarket. Yes… this is the only shelf of TP
There is actually plenty of everything in this little store. The big Italian cities might be different, but there certainly hasn’t been hoarding of anything here in small-town Tuscany. There’s concern, but not widespread panic.
I suppose one could explain away the lack of TP mania here on the ubiquity of the bidet in the Italian bathroom – even many public bathrooms have them.
But it also could be that, in our experience anyway, Italians don’t buy more than what they need for a day or two. And needing to go to the store more often means more chances to see their friends and neighbors.
Unable to go out into the piazzas, the people of Italy have started to sing from their balconies. These voices are from Siena, not far north from Cortona.
Today, March 12, the President of Italy announced that from today until the 25th of March, all businesses are to be closed, nationwide. The exceptions are grocery stores, pharmacies, newstands, tabbachi, gas stations, banks, insurance, and the postal system.
All restaurants, bars and shops are closed for this two-week period.
This changes life for everyone pretty dramatically. This is especially true in this culture where interpersonal relationships are of the utmost importance. To tell Italians that they cannot go out except for essential services is like telling them to reverse hundreds – really thousands – of years of cultural imprinting.
And yet, they are doing it. Talking about (and posting on social media) that they resto a casa – stay at home. They have, of course, created a hashtag for it: #restoacasa. They understand that this painful experience of staying in, not socializing, working from home instead of going out… it’s for the good of all.
In a country of intense national pride, this is the ultimate display of solidarity for the good of the country.
At the moment, being here in Cortona is a combination of strange, sad and confusing. Because restaurants and bars can’t remain open after 6pm, there’s no place to go to dinner and some people aren’t opening for lunch because there aren’t enough pranzo (lunch)-goers to make it worthwhile. The streets are nearly empty much of the time.
But… we were out in Piazza della Repubblica this evening, sitting on a bench in front of Molesini’s grocery and noted that as 5:30 or so approached, here came the Cortonese. Not many of them, perhaps 1/8 of the normal number, but they were there. You can tell ‘em they’ve gotta stay inside, but you can’t make ‘em miss the passeggiata. They were, by and large, staying the proscribed “un metro” (one meter) apart from one another, however. This is a good thing because they were under the watchful eye of the Carabinieri – the state police – who are monitoring the situation to make sure the rules are being followed.
On a positive note, we saw that Snoopy’s – one of several gelato shops in town – opened so we had our first Cortona gelato of the season. Local businesses are posting things with this hashtag: #andràtuttobene – it will all be fine. Hope.
A sparse crowd at the Passeaggata.
There are signs in every shop window that give the the number of people who can enter at one time and shopkeepers are enforcing those rules politely but firmly. The grocery has taped lines on the floor to help people keep their distance from one another.
But, we are managing – it’s made easier by virtue of the weather starting to truly warm and spring buds starting to appear. And… (though perhaps this is just our personal construct) we think that we’re getting a little “street cred” from the local folks by sticking it out here rather than hightailing it back to the states.
A note this morning from the UGA Associate Director gave us this information:
I just wanted to make you aware that Italy’s prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, held a news conference a few hours ago and declared a lockdown throughout all of Italy, in a dramatic attempt to contain the growing contagion rate here.
Here’s what “lockdown” means for us:
beginning tomorrow, no one in Italy is allowed to travel outside their homes, unless they have a document self-declaring an urgent need to move for reasons of family, work, or to obtain medical care.
all schools are closed
all public sporting events are cancelled (even the Serie A soccer championship, that gives you an idea of how serious this is!!)
all bars and restaurants must close at 6:00 pm (shoot, there goes our Voucher Night)
people may not assemble – even weddings and funerals are prohibited
And just in case you missed it, over the weekend there were put into place some rules, which explain the signs you may be seeing on shop doors stating that only one person at a time may enter:
individuals must keep 1 meter of distance between them
people are prohibited from forming lines in shops
no kissing or hand-shaking in greeting
public events such as movies, concerts, lectures, etc. are prohibited
sports facilities are closed
Workers gather on the steps of Cortona’s Palazzo Communale for lunch, but keep their “one meter” distance.
Lockdowns and quarantines – frankly, I think this is what is going to have to happen worldwide in order to slow the progress of this thing. It’s “coming soon to an area near you.”
Italy’s nationalized healthcare system means that getting tested for the virus is fairly simple and there are apparently plenty of tests to go around. Because of that – and because the Italian government has been transparent in reporting their data – it appears as though Italy has a much higher concentration of coronavirus than other countries. As of March 2, Italy had tested 23,345 people, the U.S. had tested 472 people. If you test more, you’ll report more cases.
Meanwhile, back in the U.S., things aren’t looking very good. In 2018, the Trump administration fired the U.S. pandemic response team and systematically worked to to remove Bush and Obama-era safeguards against pandemics worldwide. Plus, Trump’s reluctance to report the real statistics and the lack of testing in the U.S. means that it’s likely all over the U.S. – just not being widely diagnosed or reported yet.
We still think that this is the place to be for now – the Cortona mayor puts out twice-daily posts about the virus in the area (it’s here, but not yet widespread – they are really hoping that the lockdowns in the north, school closings, etc, will help slow the spread here) and Giuseppe Conte (Italy’s Prime Minister) has been super-transparent about what’s happening and what they are doing to combat it. Tourism is Italy’s primary economic engine and they are trying to contain it – short term loss for what they hope is long-term gain.
(an abridged version of an email I sent to my family in the US)
Ciao, Family! Apologies for the mass mailing, but I’ve gotten several inquiries from family members about our situation here in Italy, so I thought I’d send out a note to everyone to let you all know that we’re fine and healthy here in Italy.
As most of you know, Mary Pat and I are in Cortona, Tuscany, where I was to be spending February, March and April teaching for the University of Georgia’s Studies Abroad program here. Last weekend, however, the University made the decision to send the students home because of the coronavirus. It was probably the right decision for the students, who are now back in the US at their homes.
On the way to Cortona – Mary Pat in Orvieto, Umbria – 2020
It was very sad to have our students head home after just one month of their scheduled 3-month study abroad experience. They were just getting solidly comfortable here in this little Italian hill town and were really starting to get engaged in their coursework. We are now making plans to transition some or all of their courses to an online environment – fairly easy for me with digital photography, and my colleagues teaching art history and women’s studies – a little harder for the ceramics, painting, drawing and printmaking profs to figure out.
Although we had the option to leave with them, Mary Pat and I have decided to stay put here in Tuscany until our planned departure date in late April. We have come to love Cortona in the 6 years we’ve been involved with the UGA program here, and we feel safe here in this small Tuscan town, set on a very steep hill with an Etruscan wall dating from 700BC surrounding it.
The media reports that you may have seen about the coronavirus in Italy would have you believing that people are falling down sick in the streets – that is NOT the case. Italy was out in front of the virus and because of their excellent nationalized healthcare system it’s easy, fast and free to get tested for the virus here. Because of that – and because they are transparent in reporting their data – it appears as though Italy has a much higher concentration of coronavirus than other countries. As of March 2, Italy had tested 23,345 people, the U.S. had tested 472 people. If you test more, you’ll report more cases.
As of this morning when I went to the local bar for a coffee, this town looks, acts and feels as it always has – no change to the daily routine other than exchanging the traditional “kiss-kiss” or handshake greeting for an elbow bump. There has been no hoarding of supplies, so far as we can tell – the little supermarket nearby still has everything we need..
So, the bottom line from us here is that life is good. We’re washing our hands, still spending time Cortona’s main piazza about 50 feet from our front door, still going out for coffee and aperitivo with friends, etc. We’re looking forward to the Good Friday procession, where effigies of saints from all 10 of Cortona’s churches are paraded around town in a candlelight vigil.
We’ll be back in the U.S. sometime toward the end of April – perhaps a little earlier than our planned 4/26 date.
Cortona is a small town. Fewer than 1000 people live within the ancient walls of the city. As with many old Italian towns, it is dependent on tourism for its livelihood. Typically, this winter-into-spring season is fairly quiet here, but as February spills into March – a day late in this leap year – the Cortonese are all quaking in their boots.
Cancellations in all the local hotels and apartments are way up and folks are worried that the whole season is a bust. Massimo at Caffè Tuscher was saying that he may have to close – others are in the same boat; with no tourists and few locals, just turning the lights on has them operating at a loss.
I saw that Paolo at Trattoria Dardano is doing a big renovation (and I think expansion?) of the restaurant’s interior; I hope things even out enough that he doesn’t regret making that investment.
Yesterday, I spoke with my friend Giuliano from Florence, where he and his brother Danille run a driving company, squiring tourists around in vans and sedans. We often use their services for my photography workshops each year. The bottom has dropped out of their bookings and even in this week, they are having unannounced no-shows.
There is a palpable fear among those connected to the tourism industry – fear that the whole season will be a bust.
Meanwhile, we woke up this morning in Cortona and will continue to do so. We have books, I have cameras, and we are formulating plans for what our next 2 months can be.
The UGA Cortona program builds community. Yes, it teaches disciplines like art history, photography, painting, ceramics, printmaking, drawing, metals and book arts, but that’s only part of the story. A student studying in the program is given the opportunity to see great art in situ in a wide variety of Italian places and also to make art of their own. It’s the where of making that art that makes all the difference.
While in Cortona, the students live all together in a residential center near the top of the town’s steep hill. The facilities for all the disciplines mentioned above are either in that same building or in one right next door, so they are together much of the time – living, making art, reading, learning, discussing and socializing.
Some of that engagement continues down the hill in Cortona’s “downtown” where shops, restaurants, bars (Italian bars ), wine shops, some small grocery stores and other services are concentrated. Students frequently traverse “the hill,” walking up and down Via Santa Margherita’s steep slope between town and campus.
With all of that in mind, the shock and sadness that hung in the air as the students packed up and left Cortona was not only real, but understandable. The 19 students had spent a month living, exploring, making and learning together and now it was to end after only 1/3 of the semester’s appointed time.
Tears were shed, and not just by the students. Those of us who came here to teach them felt their departure in a visceral way. The students in my photography class had just reached what I like to call “escape velocity” – they were ready to really fly and begin to translate their feelings about being here into photographs.
And just like that, they were gone.
At 4:00AM, students walk toward the departure bus through an empty Cortona (photo by Kris Schramer)Headline in the national Italian newspaper: “Virus: American Students Leave Cortona”
One minute, the UGA program associate director was reading us a letter from the Mayor of Florence (sent to all study abroad leaders) saying that Florence was fine and that students and faculty should feel free to travel there. This was exciting because we had a 4-day excursion to Florence planned for 2 weeks from now.
But, not more than 5 hours later, we learned that UGA was canceling the program and sending students home – tomorrow (Sunday, March 1)!
Even though it seems to all of us (and all the Cortonese) that everything is fine and it’s “Tuscany as Usual” here, when the U.S. State Department raised the level of caution to a “3” for all of Italy, the risk management folks in Athens, Georgia (where UGA is located) decided that it was enough to warrant bringing the kids home.
Since our apartment is paid up and we have nothing of note to return for, Mary Pat and I are staying put here in Cortona until our planned departure date at the end of April.
Frankly, we feel safer here than at home at this point.
