The coronavirus is back for a second round, unfortunately causing all restaurants in the Netherlands to be shut again for a period of four weeks. Life seems back to March times. Only go out for some fresh air. Do you want food from a restaurant? It’s got to be takeaway. Lastly… don’t take the bus, train, metro or tram.
‘Coronamoe’
Perhaps you’ve seen this word somewhere in Dutch media: ‘coronamoe’, meaning tired of the coronavirus. We would all like to go back to life before March 2020! That will take some time at least. After endless encouragement, people are slowly starting to wear masks when visiting stores. Unfortunately, there are still people who take this 1.5-meter rule not all too seriously. Not even considering the large group of people partying in the Hague, right next to where Prime Minister Rutte was holding his press conference announcing stricter social distancing measures.
Staying at home
The virus won’t leave us for a while. Solving it in the same way China does (by testing a city of millions of people in five days, because there have been several recorded cases), is not really possible in the Netherlands. Not enough test locations? Laboratories without high capacity? The GGD is busy, so when you have symptoms, just stay at home.
Campaign on the shelves
In Chinatown, we were already preparing for a campaign to kick off right before fall break. We were aiming to get more people to visit Chinatown again, but of course, due to stricter rules, actually starting the campaign would be irresponsible. Our plans will remain on paper, perhaps we can execute them in 2021!
Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree…
We will however try to make your Christmas in Chinatown The Hague as merry as possible! We want to once again distribute many, many colorful Christmas trees all over Chinatown again. Last year, it cheered up the cold winter months. That’s exactly what we need, a bit of happiness in these ‘dark times’. For 2021, we are also not sure if we can organize any on-site events (like Chinese Newyear). Hopefully, we will be able to find online alternatives!
An idea is that we create a puzzle for Chinatown, that you can play and solve with the people from your household, or a small group. This way, there is no need for you to be in large crowds, yet you are enjoying some free time outside! Currently, we’re working on a new newsletter and we are trying to post one article to the website every two weeks.
We wish all of you: be careful and stay healthy!