April 1, 2020 – Do foreigners in Croatia feel more or less safe sitting out COVID-19 here than in their home country, and what are their experiences? A new series on TCN, with Barbara Glauning from Munich our fifth contributor.
Oxford University recently published some research on government responses to coronavirus which showed that Croatia currently has the strictest measures in the world. While inconvenient, this is a good thing in terms of reducing the spread of the virus, and I am certainly not alone in my admiration of the official Croatian handling of this crisis in recent weeks, both in terms of action and communication.
But what do other expats here think? And how does it compare with the response in their home country? Would they rather sit this one out here or there? In the first of a new series on TCN, we will be featuring expats from all over the world to see what their views are on life in corona Croatia rather than back home. Having started with an excellent contribution from Romanian Mirela Rus, American/Irishman Jason Berry in Split and Gabriela Lopez Zubiria from Mexico, Steve Gaunt in an English pub in a field in the middle of nowhere near Vinkovci, how are things with Barbara Grauning from Munich in Istria? And is it better to be here or Germany right now?
If you would like to contribute to this series, full details are below. Now, over to Barbara.
Yes, I feel much safer in my Istrian village Višnjan than in my home town Munich. Although the regulations in Bavaria are stronger than in the rest of Germany the feeling in a village is much safer than in a big town like Munich.
Firstly, how are you? Are you alone/with someone? Tell us a little about your situation and sanity levels.
Thank you, I am very well. I came here on March 14th, the first day of closed borders. The border police were surprised to see me. But as I have had a house here for 20 years and could present all papers of my ownership, they let me pass. Of course I followed regulations of the home isolation orders for 14 days. I brought some food so it was easy for my to stay in my house. As I have a small garden, I can be as well outside, as far as the weather is fine. I am alone with my cat, she likes it the most of course! My wonderful neighbor is taking care of me, already for 20 years, so she gets me food from the shop, because she goes there every day to buy for her meals for her family.
My problem was that my Internet didn’t work after the long winter. Luckily I had installed last autumn online banking, but I never did online payments. But with the help of the bank clerk by phone I managed to make my first online payment. It is never too late to learn something new!
As I am dividing my life for many years between Munich and Višnjan anyway – winter in Munich, summer in Istria- March 15th is my normal time to move. I have a job – actually two – that allow me to work from home. Here and there I have an equipped office, therefore it is no big deal to be here until September. How long the lockdown will take, I can accept it, as long as it is not time to go swimming. I hope that by June we will be able to drive at least to the seaside again.
When did you realise that corona was going to be a big issue?
When I heard about the first cases in China and how fast the virus spread in Asia, I watched things carefully. Then the first infected people appeared not far away from Munich, in fact next door. We all, my friends and colleagues started to be very carefully towards each other. No meetings anymore, no hugs and already taking care of physical distancing. The moment when the news spoke for the first time about countries were closing the borders, I packed my stuff into my car, actually 5 days earlier as planned, and left Munich. It was a strange drive down to Croatia through Austria and Slovenia. No controls nowhere, all toll stations on CC payments. The first people I saw after 5 hours were the policemen at the Croatian border.
What is your impression of the way Croatia is dealing with the crisis? How safe do you feel?
In my eyes Croatia is dealing very well with the crisis. I can follow the daily report of the Health Ministry. My village is locked down. I even cannot drive to Porec -9 km away- for supermarket shopping without official permission by the village authorities. But so far there is no need to leave the village, the 2 shops offer all I need. The security system is very well organized and it is amazing, how people accept and follow the regulations. And the results of the numbers show that the officials do a great job with their restrictions.
Now compare that to your home country and how they are handling it. What is Croatia doing better/worse?
Of course I follow as well the German situation and how they handle it. I think that for German understanding they do a good job. The government still allows discussions about the measures and the federal system of the individual countries allow different customary actions concerning the isolation or lockdowns.
Better in Germany of course is the fast taken decision about the financial support for smaller entrepreneurs, freelancers, artists, cultural people etc. How much it will influence the German economy will be shown in the future. Concerning Croatia I think that as well the European Union should pay and support the country.
What about official communications from the authorities, compared to your home country?
As I don’t have TV here in my house, I read online news in Croatian and English on different sites. I read as well Austrian newspapers online, because they are very well covering Slovenia, Croatia and other Balkan countries. I am well informed and my Croatian vocabulary increased a lot!
A pity that countries of the EU and their media always look to Asia, US or UK, but pay less or no attention to the smaller member countries like Slovenia or Croatia. It would be important for Europe to read and see, how e.g. Croatia is dealing with the virus.
What’s the one thing you wish you had taken with you into self-isolation?
A whole box of oranges by Crowd Farming from Spain. I have to find out if they can as well deliver to Croatia.
One thing you have learned about yourself, and one thing you have learned about others during this crisis.
I am very well organized, even under the ‘pressure’ of isolation. I can be on my own very well. Of course I miss meeting with friends here, or going out for a coffee with them, but in times of social media there are possibilities to exchange ideas, meanings, feelings. I am in contact with other house owners around Višnjan to keep them updated. Normally they all had planned to spend Easter here. I write more, I speak more on the phone and all my friends as well are much more communicating. My advantage is that I am used to be a ‘one-woman-show’ even in Munich, therefore I am the wrong person to ask about difficulties others may have in times of the isolation and lockdown.
Thanks Barbara, stay safe and see you on the other side.
You can find more foreigner corona stories in our dedicated section here.
TCN is starting a new feature series on foreign experiences of sitting out covid-19 here in croatia compared to their home country. If you would like to contribute, the questions are below. Please also include a para about yourself and where you are from, and a link to your website if you would like. Please also send 3-4 photos minimum to [email protected] Subject Corona Foreigner
If you would be interested to record a video version for our partners www.rplus.video please let us know in the email. Thanks and stay safe.
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer Than in Your Home Country?
Firstly, how are you? Are you alone/with someone? Tell us a little about your situation and sanity levels.
What do you think about the economic measures the government is taking, are they helping your business? (PLEASE IGNORE IF THIS DOES NOT AFFECT YOU)
When did you realise that corona was going to be a big issue?
What is your impression of the way Croatia is dealing with the crisis? How safe do you feel?
Now compare that to your home country and how they are handling it. What is Croatia doing better/worse?
What about official communications from the authorities, compared to your home country?
What’s the one thing you wish you had taken with you into self-isolation.
One thing you have learned about yourself, and one thing you have learned about others during this crisis.
TCN has recently become a partner in Robert Tomic Zuber’s new R+ video channel, initially telling stories about corona experiences. You can see the first TCN contribution from this morning, my video from Jelsa talking about the realities of running a news portal in the corona era below. If you would like to also submit a video interview, please find Robert’s guidelines below
VIDEO RECORDING GUIDE
The video footage should be recorded so that the cell phone is turned horizontally (landscape mode).
There are several rules for television and video news:- length is not a virtue- a picture speaks more than a thousand words
In short, this would mean that your story should not last more than 90 seconds and that everything you say in the report should be shown by video (for example, if you talk about empty streets, we should see those empty streets, etc.).
How to do it with your cell phone? First, use a selfie camera to record yourself telling your story for about a minute and a half. Ideally, it would be taken in the exterior, except in situations where you are reporting on things in the interior (quarantine, hospital, self-isolation, etc.). Also, when shooting, move freely, make sure everything is not static.
After you have recorded your report, you should capture footage that will tell your story with a picture, such as an earlier example with empty streets.
One of the basic rules of TV journalism is that the story is told in the same way as a journalist with his text. Therefore, we ask you for additional effort. Because we work in a very specific situation, sometimes you may not be able to capture footage for each sentence of the report. In this case, record the details on the streets: people walking, the main features of the city where you live, inscriptions on the windows related to the virus, etc.
The same rules apply if you are shooting a story from your apartment, self-isolation, quarantine. We also need you to capture footage that describes your story.
When shooting frames to cover your reports, it is important that you change the angle of the shot (in other words, shoot that empty street from several angles). Also, when shooting a detail, count at least five seconds before removing the camera to another detail.
The material should be about 5 minutes long (90 seconds of your report + frames to cover your story).
After recording everything, send us to Zagreb, preferably via WeTransfer to [email protected]
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Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? Mirela from Romania
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? Jason from Ireland/USA
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? Steve from UK in Vinkovci
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? Gaby from Mexico
