Hi friends, I hope you’re doing well and staying healthy.  I wanted to write a post on how things are here in Stuttgart, Germany in regards to the coronavirus or COVID-19.  A lot has transpired over the past few days, as I’m sure it has for you as well.  I have been tracking the virus loosely as it spread exponentially through China, and of course much closer as it took hold in Italy and has basically grinded the country to a stop.

Background and How Close we are to Italy

First, some background.  Stuttgart is the capital of Baden-Württemburg, one of Germany’s two southern-most states.  Baden-Württemburg and Bavaria share Germany’s southern border.  We are just one beautiful car-ride-through-the-alps away from northern Italy and have driven it many times.  Some of Germany’s COVID-19 cases have been linked to ski trips in South Tirol (northern Italy).  I have friends and colleagues who live in Naples in southern Italy and in the past have been to their houses for dinner parties and rooftop wine evenings.  I feel that I know the city of Naples pretty well.  The Italian lockdown, while I believe very necessary at this point, aches my heart for my friends and what they’re going through.

If you haven’t heard, the entire Italian country has been on a lockdown since Monday.  They are only allowed out of the house for work (if their business is still open), to get food, medicine or medical help.  If getting food, only one designated person per family is allowed.  Restaurants are allowed to serve take-away only.  If they are outside of their house, they need to have a form filled out stating the reason for the trip.  They are not allowed to leave their house even to go for a walk and all the parks are closed.  Basically, they are confined to their homes at all times.

These steps were taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, and in turn prevent the medical system from crashing.  Hospitals have been inundated with too many people they simply cannot support.  This is one of many reasons why the virus’ death rate in Italy has been relatively high.

What Has Happened in Stuttgart

So, what’s been happening in Germany?  Things quickly evolved this week.  My husband had been in the US since the beginning of March and was supposed to stay for most of the month.  He said life in the US was pretty much normal – people stocking up on food and TP but still going out to events and social gatherings.  Meanwhile I have been ‘holding down the fort’ here in Stuttgart: going to work, the grocery store, and staying home.

Practicing my social distancing.

While hearing updates from friends living in Italy through the week, I woke up on Thursday to a stop movement order for us, beginning on Friday the 13th for 60 days.  I immediately called David at 07:30 my time – which was 02:30 his time, thankfully he answered – and we discussed changing his return flights back to Germany.  If he wasn’t able to get a flight out the same day, we would potentially be physically separated on two different continents for at least two months.  Thankfully we avoided that!  He was able to secure flights and arrived home Friday morning.  I was thinking the airports could be a ‘mob mentality’ with everyone trying to rush home to families, but he said in the US it all seemed pretty normal.  He did witness people at the airport coughing and sneezing into their hands, touching their faces, and not taking the virus threat seriously.  The overnight plane into Germany was basically empty.

Closures in Stuttgart This Week

We have been told the number of cases in Germany (and specifically Baden-Württemburg)  have been tracking 10 days behind Italy.  Recently Angela Merkel stated she expects 60-70 percent of the German population to contract the virus.  If you do contract it, hopefully you won’t need hospitalization, but it’s not ruled out (young people have been hospitalized in Italy as well as the elderly).  Measures have been taken to try to flatten the infection curve and not overwhelm the medical facilities.  If too many people are taken to the hospitals and not enough beds or staff exist, then patient care is at risk.

Earlier this week, events were mostly getting cancelled for gatherings of 1000 people or more.  Stuttgart’s Long Night of the Museum got cancelled, a really great cultural event the city puts on with access to all of Stuttgart’s museums and art galleries, with a ton of popup cultural events.

Next came the announcement that the Stuttgarter Frühlingsfest is cancelled.  I knew this was coming but this is a huge blow to the economy.  It is Europe’s largest spring festival, similar to Oktoberfest but in the spring and local for us.  It is an event that the entire state of B-W attends throughout the four weeks it runs, operating every single day.

A lot more restrictions came down through B-W yesterday.  Thankfully Germany is taking this seriously.

Schools and daycares are closing.

In Stuttgart specifically, effective immediately until further notice, bars, clubs, museums, cinemas, libraries, and bath houses are all prohibited.  Sporting events are cancelled.  Basically anything of culture is closed.  The city also now prohibits prostitution of any kind. Good to know.  

We aren’t yet locked down in quarantine like our Italian friends, and hopefully we won’t get to that point although I hope I’m wrong, I’m not so sure.

I talked about it some in this post, but my husband and I have been trying to slow down our spending since last September and have been staying in a LOT more than we used to, so ironically this social distancing thing hasn’t been too hard for us. 😅  We are mostly staying home, making dinners in every night but getting out of the house to walk through the beautiful Karlshöhe nearby or to the grocery store.  I have been going in to work but now everything is getting even more locked down to try to slow down the spread of the virus.

We are doing our part to practice social distancing and flatten the curve.  Are you?

Thankfully, the view from our flat and balcony is just about the best in the city so staying home isn’t so awful.

I can’t wait until all of this is over and we (the world!) are all on the other side of this!!!  We will get there guys, it’s just going to be an interesting few months until then.  I hope you all stay safe!