Spanish Lockdown: I go out!

Unimaginably bizarre. That’s how I’d describe the grocery store experience I had today. I was prepared for madness. I was prepared for crowds. I was prepared for empty shelves. What I got instead was silence, wariness, and everyone in gloves.

Spanish people are huggers, and kissers, and generally very touchy people. They don’t do personal space very well. They’re also extremely loud. Go into any cafe at lunchtime, and you have to scream to be heard. So when I entered the Lidl here and was met with silence, it was freaky. I saw someone I knew, and instead of the customary greeting of kisses and hugs, we just smiled a tired smile across the bin of oranges.

The store was silent, and at one point a Taylor Swift song came on through the speakers, and I started singing along. Because it was so quiet, everyone heard me, and I got some weird looks. They had plenty of everything except flour and processed bread. I even got a pack of toilet paper (#grocerystoregoals).

I was reminded of social distancing the few times when I passed someone and we both turned our heads to avoid breathing on each other. Or when I offered to let someone with very few items go ahead of me in line, and she refused because it would have meant passing by me, and not having that six feet of distance.

I checked out, paid with a card, and loaded my groceries back into my cart. I don’t bag them because at home we disinfect all of the plastic surfaces. I put the groceries into the car, returned the cart, and got in the car, taking my gloves off, and rubbing hand sanitizer all over my hands.

Then I drove back home through deserted streets, straining my neck to find glimpses of life on the streets, without success. It was like one of those movies where you wake up, and you’re the only person left alive. I passed a few cars, with just one person in them, of course, as per the law. Everyone was wearing gloves. I felt so very alone.

What a relief it was to get back to my cocoon of safety out in the countryside with my family.

I’m officially not a fan of the Spanish Lockdown.