We woke up this Wednesday morning in Paramaribo to a full lockdown: no businesses open and no one allowed to go beyond their private property.
Regardless, I decided to still do a #WednesdayWalk post, albeit with a little bit of humor. You gotta move to stay healthy, right?
💯 Full Lockdown 🔒
We heard on Tuesday we would be waking up to a full lockdown on Wednesday morning, but were unable to purchase anything prior to lockdown because the shops closed before noon yesterday. Thanks Suriname!
Word on the streets is that there was a COVID-19 case within 6 blocks of our apartment. I reluctantly admit we are done living in fear of COVID-19, the restrictions now make it impossible for working-class folks without transport to survive.
We already came to this conclusion 4 days when the curfew was reduced from 8pm to 6pm. Another day went by and we heard that two people can't go to the market together on foot, but that two people can share a car. This adversely affects poor people, good one again Suriname.
Just two days ago there was word you are only allowed outside the house according to the first letter of your last name. After this I stopped caring, and went to get veggies for the family regardless of whether or not it was my corresponding day.
So we start Wednesday with no point of going outside, because everything is closed and locked up anyways. I did take time, however, to break the law with my tippy toes.
🚶♂️ Walk In Circles 🔁
Well, with nowhere else to walk other than circles around the landlord's house, I shall do just that. I walked out the front door and turned right to loop around the house one time.
Past Janet (a dog named after Janet Jackson), the water tank and the birambi tree, and this walk is 50% done. I do admit we are thankful to rent a small corner of a big house, which gives us access to a piece of property, and freedom to breathe a bit.
We're used to living in prison cell-sized studio rooms with nothing other than a motorbike path and a fence outside the front door. Although we struggle, we are thankful the girls have a place to play and get exercise.
Three sides of the property only have a narrow space between the house and the wall, but it gives a quite large common space that is just outside our front door. It is actually the most luxurious place we've ever lived, but it costs $250 a month, something we would never pay for in Cambodia.
We would happily forego this rent cost for a $50 per month Cambodian-style prison cell room if such places existed in Suriname. "Love grows fast in tiny houses" is the old saying, I believe.
⚽ The Common Space 🦶
This really is the best feature of the small space we rent. The landlord gives us access to the whole outside space. The gardening space belongs to her, but we are able to forage a lot of things Surinamers don't eatch, such as cassava leaves and pumpkin flowers.
Survival is the name of the game now. Political problems seem like they will exist for months to come, and COVID-19 will always be an easy excuse to prevent assemblies which could turn into protests. We just need to focus on foraging, conversation, studying, and our Hive blogs, because there is literally nothing else to do now.
Eat your pumpkin flowers, relax and teach the youths so they don't got astray, and live to #wednesdaywalk another day.
🙏 THANKS FOR READING 🙏
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