The Corona Chronicles in Germany Part 2 Posted by Larissa on Apr 7, 2020 in Uncategorized
Here is an update to what is happening in Germany and what the new Maßnahmen (measures) are. You can find part 1 of this article here, to compare how things have changed in the space of just a few weeks.
Seit 23. März gibt es eine Ausgangsbeschränkung in Deutschland
From the 23rd of March there is a restriction to going out in Germany
This is currently in force until the 19th of April. You can only leave your house for the following reasons:
– um Lebensmittel einzukaufen – to go grocery shopping
– um in die Arbeit zu gehen – to go to work
– für Arzttermine – for doctor appointments
– um draussen spazieren zu gehen/Sport zu treiben – to go for a walk/do sports outside
You will find these signs everywhere in Munich, can you understand it? Own photo
The only shops that are open are supermarkets, banks, pharmacies, and post offices. You are only allowed to go for a walk and do sports either alone or with members of your household (maximum two people).
Gastronomiebetriebe sind geschlossen, dürfen aber Speisen zum Mitnehmen anbieten
Restaurants are closed, but they are allowed to offer food as a takeaway
In order to support businesses, restaurants are allowed to offer takeaways to be either picked up or delivered. The customers still have to maintain a minimum of 1.5-meter distance between each other if they are picking up their orders.
Es wird diskutiert, ob die Schule bis zu den Sommerferien geschlossen bleiben
It is being discussed whether schools should stay closed until the summer holidays
Currently all schools, kindergartens and universities are closed until the 19th of April (end of the Easter holidays). Nothing is confirmed as of yet, but it is being discussed whether schools will remain closed until the summer holidays. The universities do want to start their summer semester and will be offering online lectures and classes if this goes ahead.
Vocabulary List:
die Maßnahmen the measures
die Ausgangsbeschränkung the exit restriction
die Lebensmittel the food (plural)
die Gastronomiebetriebe the restaurants
die Schule the school
die Sommerferien the summer holidays
There are currently over 100,000 people infected in Germany, 1600 deaths and 29,000 people have recovered. If you would like to share your situation where you live, you can leave a comment below.
Thank you for reading.
Bleibt Gesund,
Stay healthy,
Larissa
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About the Author: Larissa
Hello I'm Larissa. I live in Germany and I am half German and half English. I love sharing my passion for Germany with you through my posts! Apart from writing posts I teach fitness classes in Munich.
Comments:
Margaret:
Conditions in Germany sound the same as they are here in Australia. Borders have been closed into Western Australia and the state has been divided into areas and people from one area are not allowed to travel to a neighbouring area.
Larissa:
@Margaret Hello Margaret,
Isn’t it mad how we are so far apart and yet both of our countries are on lockdown for the same reason! Closing the borders will hopefully help stop the spread of the virus. I hope you are staying safe and healthy.
Thank you for reading my post and commenting,
Larissa
Kelly Smith-Moore:
Such surreal times! We live about 30 miles outside of Washington D.C. in the beautiful Virginia suburbs. We have similar restrictions here, and yesterday I noticed many more people wearing face masks, scarves, bandanas, etc. at the grocery store. There are numerous reminders at the stores about keeping a “shopping cart” distance between customers, and I must say almost everyone is taking this very seriously. Sometimes it’s a bit of a game; one lady and myself were approaching the same product and we devised a strategy for taking different paths.
One good thing about this is all the people who are taking exercise outside now! “Rush hour” has moved from the highways to the walking paths. I am blessed to have my horse boarded at a barn out in the country, not far (18 miles away) and I can ride and still take lessons.
My husband and I think Germany’s assessment of how long to keep schools closed is perhaps more reasonable than here in Virginia, where schools are closed for the rest of the school year. We don’t have kids at home, but the families that do have had their worlds turned upside down, with both parents working (working from home now, unless you’re in the medical field like I am, or at businesses still allowed to operate). We think that schools could have be closed until the middle of May preliminarily, and then decided upon whether to close or not. Some schools, especially it seems the parochial schools, were preparing early for this and established on-line learning and lesson plans for uninterrupted learning.
Another interesting aspect is how people are connecting on-line, and unfortunately with so many people using Zoom, my husband (the IT guy) says it is a “hacker’s paradise”.
I am keeping in touch with my friends in the Black Forest, and they are all well (thank heavens for WhatsApp). I hope you are keeping well also, and hope that we can all ride the wave out of this and be better for it in many ways.
Bleibt gesund, gruss Gott (sorry I don’t have the special characters for the u and ss),
Kelly
Larissa:
@Kelly Smith-Moore Hello Kelly,
Thank you for commenting!! It is indeed very surreal to do your normal day to day activities (food shopping, going for a walk), and seeing everyone in masks or bundled up in scarves. I also don’t have any children and can only imagine how hard it must be for the parents who have to work and teach/look after their children, especially if this is to go on for months.
Next Tuesday (just after Easter) the German government are reviewing the situation and it will be determined if our restrictions will be extended (I assume they will).
I hope you also keep safe and enjoy the time with your husband and horse!
Larissa
Charles W. Pfeiffer:
Heisst das nicht ‘an die Arbeit gehen’ anstatt ‘um’?
‘um’ would rather be used to get busy with my work instead of going to work?
Just curious.
Larissa:
@Charles W. Pfeiffer Hi Charles,
Thanks for your comment! “um … zu” means “in order to”.
So as I wrote that you can leave the house for the following reasons: “um in die Arbeit zu gehen” it means “in order to go to work”.
I hope this makes sense!
Larissa