COVID IN PARADISE
There are certainly worse places to be. Definitely not 'stranded'. Dominica is the place to be. To date, we have had 0 active cases for four weeks. Public education has been excellent, not frightening, but clear and intelligent and based on science. I continue to be impressed with the level of health professionals and professionalism. A word about education as well. Schools were immediately closed and The Ministry of Education organized its teachers and administrators to deliver the curriculum online and offline with support to parents.
Dominica closed its borders swiftly after the first 2 cases came in from England with Covid. The Caribbean was Covid free for the very early weeks; all cases through the Islands were imports. Quick and complete closing was not an easy decision with so many from diaspora wanting to come home, with this island being a prominent cruise ship destination, with Guadeloupe and Martinique as very near neighbours and with a large number of sailboats and yachts looking for a safe harbour or already here. Other Islands were beginning to close so alternative ports were now limited. Tourism is a mainstay, closing would mean real social and economic hard times. As tourism came to a sudden, jarring halt so did most everyone's livelihood.
For us, Marian and McDowell, it has not been as bad as it has for others. Liquor licences were suspended and all bars and restaurants were quickly shut, and still are, so we now have no income. Lots of time, but no money to buy materials and lumber, or to finish the plumbing in the old house. McDowell was able to reorganize his kitchen, move the Bar to the outside, expand the Bar area all with found posts and boards which had been stacked under the house. It looks really good and will be an asset. He has used the many hours under curfew and lockdown to practice his guitar and to plan. He is forever the Sagittarian optimist. I painted, crafted, read, cleaned, cooked, wrote, took a webinar in Caribbean bird watching and practised social media whatever the opposite of distancing is! Boring but not difficult. It is getting harder though. We drank and ate everything that was in the bar when we had to close.
My biggest fear is not getting sick, but that Dominica, and the Caribbean, will rush into reopening the tourist trade, thinking we can just pick up from where we left off. This is the time to rethink it, to understand the trade-offs, not make the same mistakes. I hope we listen to Mia Motley, the Prime Minister of Barbados and Chair of CARICOM on this one. Since the Caribbean is the largest tourist destination in the world we could be a leader.
I used to benignly roll my eyes when Dominicans would proudly proclaim how resilient they are, how they can overcome anything, how much they have endured, how determined to rise above bad times they are. Well, not any more. It is all true and that is what Dominica is. The population understood and accepted what is at stake and, except for the always present rotten apples, have complied with the regulations without too much whining and complaining and too many unrealistic expectations. Lockdown, curfew, loss of jobs, income, livelihood, places of business, the line-ups, and social distancing has its own horrors.
I do believe Dominica can rise again, hopefully, improved.
See you at the beach!
