May Theme Day: Shopping

For four of the last seven weeks all shops, except supermarkets and drugstores have been closed due to the pandemia. Nearly three weeks ago the smaller shops reopened but I haven't been to any of them, I preferred to do some online shopping. Amongst other things I bought several face masks as they are now part of the new rules for our life with the Corona virus. During one of my last walks I discovered these masks in a shop window. 
Click here to view the photos of all participants in the theme day.

Deserted #3

After nearly seven weeks exit restrictions will end on April 30 at midnight and on May 2 all shops, hairdressers and beauticians will be open again (May 1 is a national holiday), on May 4 the graduating classes will be the first back to school. So slowly but surely we are back to what our politicians call "the new normality" as there are still a lot of rules to be observed. I guess there will soon be cars and people in this street...

Social Distancing #3

When the weather is fine, the benches in the inner courtyard of MuseumsQuartier Wien usually are crowded. This was not the case some weeks ago... It's really strange to see places that are usually frequented by a lot of people so empty... The day before yesterday the government announced that at the end of April new exit restrictions will be announced... Let's see...

#Wellbeback

As a matter of course currently all cultural venues are closed and one summer festival after the other is cancelled. It is not yet clear which requirements the theatres will have to fulfill when they will get the permission to reopen.

On Sunday I passed by the theatre Schauspielhaus Wien in the 9th district. The venue started as a cabaret theatre at the beginning of the 20th century, later it was converted into one of Vienna's first cinemas, and in May 1978 it was opened as a theatre. One of its directors (1987-1990) was the Hungarian writer George Tabori. The focus of the theatre is on contemporary writing with a great variety of diverse accesses to authorship and a politically involved programming.

Museums Will be Reopened

Museums are allowed to open their door to visitors again from mid-May. The Austrian Federal Museums (Albertina, Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna, Belvedere, MAK, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig, Museum of Natural History Vienna, Museum of Technology, Austrian National Library) have already communicated that for economic reasons they will reopen only at the end of June. Let's see when the Clock Museum (in this photo) will be open again...

Not so Deserted Anymore

Yesterday I had to get something done in the city center. There were more people than the last time I was there, but in most of the reopened shops I saw only the employees and the atmosphere on Graben, a normally busy street, was still very quiet.

New Rules

Yesterday Austria started to reopen public life: small shops and garden centres opened again, in Vienna the Federal gardens reopened and the resctricitons for the use of public  transport were lifted. But there are new rules: only a limited number of clients are allowed to enter the shops, they have to use a trolley and most importantly nose and mouth have to be covered by a mask or a scarf, even in the public means of transport. If everything goes well further reopenings will be possible at the beginning of May.

Still Getting Used to the new Accessory...

The anti-corona virus restrictions have been prolonged until the end of April. Since Monday, April 6, wearing a "nose mouth protection" in supermarkets and drugstores is compulsory. It doesn't have to be a face mask, we can also use a scarf, but the nose and the mouth have to be covered. I used my face mask yesterday for the first time and I have to say that I found it rather uncomfortable, especially as I'm currently having a pollen allergy... As of April 13 this protection will also be compulsory in public transport. Restaurants, bars, cafés etc. are still closed until further notice, but food pick-ups are now permitted. Earlier this week a step-by-step reopening of economic life was announced: As a first step individual shops (max. 400 m² shop area and garden centres) will be reopened (of course masks will be compulsory) on April 14. If there is a steep rise in COV-19 cases, the reopening of public life will be stopped or even reversed immediately. Let's hope for the best...

Social Distancing #2

Here's another example of social distancing...

Social Distancing #1

That's what a chat in the street looks like in spring 2020: keeping a distance of at least 1m to each other... 

Not Without my Mobile Phone

Usually I'm rather displeased and surprised how important the mobile phone has become for all of us, admittedly even for me. But now that we have to practice social distancing and most of us can't meet our family, friends and colleagues, the device is a good way to stay in contact. 

Evening Walk

Currently I'm especially happy to live next to the Danube because this means that I can take a walk by the water whenever I want to. Even if public transport is still working, we should use it only for unavoidable rides (i.e. going to work or the aid of other people in urgent need). On Wednesday evening I took a short walk on the Danube Island and enjoyed the sunset. The building in the background is the Millennium Tower, which to me still seems new although it has been completed in 1999.

Deserted #2

Well, there's not much to say... It's just another photo of the deserted city center...

Deserted #1

I know, a lot of countries currently have a curfew or at least exit restrictions, but when I took a short walk in the city center yesterday, the deserted streets (in this photo: Kohlmarkt where you can find a lot of luxury shops) really made an impact on me. I'm usually working in the very city center and used to seeing it crowded with people...

Spring - in Spite of the Current Situation

Spring has sprung in Vienna - in spite of the "current situation" and even if we are back to rather winterly temperatures at the moment. There are still people in the streets as you can see, but they have to observe a distance of 1m at least.

A New Museum for Modern Art

The opening of the ALBERTINA modern was planned for last week, but had to be postponed until further notice due to the coronavirus crisis. The collection of this new museum for modern art encompasses over 60.000 works by 5.000 important Austrian and international artists. ALBERTINA modern is located in the freshly renovated Künstlerhaus (built between 1865 and 1868 by the Austrian Artists' Society, the oldest surviving artists' society in Austria).

Getting Some Fresh Air

In Austria we currently don't have a curfew, but exit restrictions. We can still take a walk, but only alone or with our housemate(s) and keeping a distance of at least 1m to all other individuals - our politicians think this is good for our mental health. We'll see if this will change with the increasing number of infections. I love to move so I'm glad to be able to get some fresh air... This photo was taken the day before yesterday during my walk along the Old Danube.

Closed Until Further Notice II

As I have already told you the playgrounds are currently closed due to the current coronavirus crisis. The day before yesterday I saw a mother trying to explain to her little daughter that she can't enter the playground. The girl was too young to understand... It must really be a hard time for children... and their parents.

No Restrictions for Them

Lucky seagulls! They still can gather and continue their normal life. We are allowed to go for a walk, but only in urgent cases (what does this mean?) and alone or with our housemate(s) and with a distance of at least 1m to other individuals... The modern building you see in this photo is the Millenniumtower and the small mountain in the background is Leopoldsberg, normally a popular destination for walks.

Don't be Afraid...

I saw this during my walk to the office (where I had forgotten something) last Sunday in the window of a restaurant in the city center. Well, I guess there are a lot of people who are frightened by the current situation. For me it is still surreal...