Update from The House of Plague, Day 6 (Faroe Islands Edition)

[elisi]

Obligatory, 'We are here for you, you stay home for us' photo of Faroese nurses. (x)

Literally nothing new to report here. We went for a walk yesterday, which was nice. So - since I talked to my parents last night - figured I could do a Special Edition. My parents (my mother has just turned 70 and my father is 72) are self-isolating, although my mother is working from home (and rather liking it - she is going to retire in 6 months anyway).

As you may (or may not) know they live in the Faroe Islands, which is also where I grew up. The Faroes (like everywhere) is also hit by the Coronavirus, but have the advantage over pretty much everywhere else that they're naturally isolated, have a population of 50k and have excellent health care & a well-functioning society in general; free childcare, social care etc etc - Nordic country, you can fill in the blanks. Plus everyone is - quite literally - related, so there's always an aunt or a cousin who can help out.

They have a webpage in English, if you are curious:

https://corona.fo/?_l=en

They are tracking every person suspected of being ill, and have the most tests per million people In The World (scroll down, the chart is labelled in English - you can enlarge it by clicking on it). :)

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Since all schools are closed (they are taking everything v. seriously - my mother said they've even put markers on the floor in the supermarkets to make sure people stand suitably far away from each other when queuing), two young sisters have set up their own youtube channel:

The Corona Corner

I guarantee you will NOT see anything more adorable today. It's a mixture of educational ('Here is how to wash your hands properly!'/'Remember to keep DISTANCE from others') and what they get up to ('If you are bored, you could try to make what I made: Look, a flute! I made it with paper and tape.').

(Incidentally, then in this video, from 2:50 onwards, they literally go to my childhood. I climbed that cannon, I ran along those paths, and threw sticks in that brook. ♥)

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Also, because it's such a small place and they literally test everyone who is unwell, I'm sure it'll be v useful to study - to see not just the major cases, but all the small ones too. This woman, now well again, talks about being ill, and it sounds almost exactly Darcy: A temperature, all over aches, headache. Unwell for about a day and a half, then better. Of course, we will probably never know *if* he had it, but to have Confirmed Case with the same trajectory is... reassuring?

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Now, in the Faroes there is THE radio station. (There are a few extra ones, but there is THE radio station, which everyone listens to.) And they decided that a big nation-wide singalong (a la the Italians) would be nice. So they organised one (as in, asked everyone to join in) and here is a video from a random street in a random village, with all the neighbours going out to sing together (you can hear the music from the radio), observing Distancing of course. Feeling VERY homesick now, btw. The song is 'Fagra Blóma' (= 'Fair Flower', it's a love poem):

Singalong

(If you are curious about the song, then here it is performed at a festival. <3)

The Faroese are a very musical people (a very artistic people, generally), and no social gathering is complete without singing. On the National Day (28th - 29th of July) there is a huge midnight singalong in the middle of the capital (sort of sprung up accidentally by a few people singing, then more joined, and now it's a tradition, with printed song booklets and a leader). If you have ever wondered what it sounds like when 10,000 people sing, here is a short video. 10k being approximately 1/5 of the population. :)

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In slightly wider-ranging news, then The Faroes are a part of Denmark. (The Faroes have their own language, culture etc etc, think of them as a colony, which is basically what they were/are). Anyway the Danish Queen went on TV to address the nation (the Danes), asking them to come together and also basically to tell them off, like a disappointed parent. ('It is unbecoming to be selfish and to not follow the rules.') I love her.

Speech by the Queen of Denmark: Not everyone is taking the situation seriously

(Speech in Danish obvs. Linking mostly so I can find the link myself.)

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Finally, then one man disliked being stuck in the house so went for walks in the mountains (they are just THERE. Like. Jump over a fence and you're in the mountains) and took his grandson and camera. If you want casually stunning landscapes:

In These Corona Times:

Walk 15th of March, á Lambaregni

Walk 18th of March, á Hálgafell

That's all for now, but feel free to ask questions. Might do a whole post just with music tbh. There is a LOT of Faroese music, and it's very good.