A NEW EXPERIENCE DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS

Because of the world wide confinement due to the Coronavirus, everthing is closed, schools included except food shops.

In the majority part of Europe it is a problem that all schools are closed because they don't have an appropriate equipment to give lessons via internet in video conferences.

I was very surprised when I heard from my son that in Amsterdam, Toby my 9 year old grandson uses Dad's old laptop to practicise and learned very quickly how to use it to attend virtual classes of his school.

Three times a week the class and the teacher are united on the screen and she gives lessons. The children are then given homework to do.

The parents put them in the School's mailbox and the teacher picks them up from there. I think this is a very good method, but probably impossible to practicise on the countryside or in little villages.

I think once the Coronavirus crisis is over, we all will have learned a lot and will see many things in another way. We will realize what is really important in our lives and what not. The world will turn completely different. How, nobody knows, as it is the first time in history that we are all sitting in the same boat, not only one or two countries or two parts of the world, this time the whole world is concerned and the whole population lives under the general lockdown.


Toby in his virtual class



Dad also works from home ! So they are both in his office and work together !

Linking to Linda G. Hills SOCS - practice

FRIDAY's FAVE FIVE

As I had forgotten that it was Easter I hadn't sent a little gift to grandson Toby ! So I spent Easter Monday looking for the book he asked for a ...... guess what ? Harry Potter !! I ordered  two and had them sent to Amsterdam where he got them two days later. They were very thick, he showed me them on Whatsapp and then we had a little chat and he showed me all the Easter eggs he had collected in the living room, as outside it was too cold the temperature had dropped again. I told him to also watch the movie, but he wanted first to read the book.

His father at the same age hated reading and for us two bookworms it was quite a disappointment, we tried with all kind of books, but he preferred to play outside and sport. Now we have our bookworm, one generation later !

Each morning I have to look on the calender to see what day we are if I would go out or not. It was real cool although the sun was shining and we met at Nicole's



These beautiful Japanese cherry trees are in her street and were in full bloom



Little Isis to entertain us made excerises on her cat tree, while we had our Yoga laughing class,  we laughed a lot and it was good for us. The hairdressers are still closed, so Nicole cut my hair in the neck, which was already funny.

For the first time as long as I live in Belgium I am interested in politics, not really politics but more the politicians. We were without government again since beginning February because as usual the Flemish and the Waloons couldn't agree on a party or whatever it was they are like roosters in competition. Comes a young unknown women  48 years old, mother of 4 children and married to an Australian and what happened, she succeeded where all men failed she formed a government and she is now our Prime Minister. With her we are in good hands to handle the Coronacrisis.




She handles the problems with feeling and intelligence and released a bit the rules now, the elderly living alone are allowed to have a visitor, and the garden centers and DIY shops will open in two days. That will keep men busy who have to stay home and ran out of material, to buy stuff for their garden or for the house.

Mr. G. of doing nothing but wandering from Computer to TV, suddenly suffered from dizziness and could hardly walk. I led him to his bed where he fell asleep woke up for supper and went to bed again and slept for 30 hours !! He even broke cat Rosie's record of 23 h a day. It must be the confinement and the fact that he doesn't move enough, now I force him to do some gymnastic and chase him around the table ! Fortunately it's finished now !



Selfies of future bank robbers, two are missing


Nicole cheated !

My friends are busy with sewing masks, as there are not enough, Mr. G of course found them in "his" pharmacy and got 10, five for me and five for him. My friends sew  for their children who although in a certain age can't sew (like me), one even sew for the whole family and friends of the families and friends of friends, and made at least 20 if not more, but she likes to do it and it keeps her busy.

Another almost 3 weeks of lockdown, I can't even sort out clothes or things I don't want anymore, because then they would sit here in bags and cartons because I can't throw them away. So I leave everything like it is and wait until the moving and cleaning companies open again.

more participants at Susanne at Living to tell the Story.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

more participants here,
and Image-in-ing

PARK DE HUIZINGEN-BRUSSELS

Still being locked in my home, I have to dig in my archives to find something for our world. 

This time I show you the Huizingen Castle, next to Brussels, the capital of Belgium. The first castle of Huizingen was erected in the 15th century. Starting in the mid 19th centuray, the surrounding area has been enlarged and has become one of the most beautiful parks of Belgium. The Province of Brabant bought the castle and park in the early 20th century from its owner. Unfortunately I couldn't find out who it was, probably one from the Belgian aristocrates, as Belgium is still a Kingdom.



The castle which today is a restaurant



Original decoration on the balcony the birds are in metal



It is very nice to have a drink here and looking over the lake



The guardians house




The lake where you can rent a boat





Playgrounds





and beautiful flowers



an abstract statue, only the artists knows what it should represent



for children





Walking through the park is a pleasure, which unfortunately belongs to the past or the future but not to the present !

more participants here

AWWW MONDAY

Huizingen park, one of the various parks in Brussels


Linking to AWWW MONDAYS

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WEEKEND APRIL 11

Now the lockdown completed the first month and we are still very much alive although a bit bored ! We still meet 3 times a week, and as it was such a summer time, we always went to Myriam, because there it is quiet and we can chat in peace and disturb nobody.



In not even a week the trees have changed and are now in full bloom



Myriam is quite angry because on Radio and TV they say we should use the time to do things we have no time to do in normal times, like painting or repairing or cleaning, but they forgot to say where we should buy the missing products like here for the swimming pool which looks like a pond now, only frogs are missing. Of course people order on Internet and even shops who so far didn't sell via Internet created a brochure where you can choose and buy. Little shops can certainly close their doors after such a long time of earning nothing.

We still have nearly 30.000 people infected and 3.600 have died, mostly old people.  My neighbor a nurse is home since 2 weeks and has another week to stay home, because she had the Coronavirus. There is still no medication, what they say is to rest and take medicin against pulmonary aches, and the usual stuff for fiever.  What we can't understand is that the nurses and doctors are only starting to be tested since a week ! Before there was no tests or only a few available. Now they increase daily at least to know amongst the hospital staff who is infected and who not ! Fortunately there are now more people coming out healed then being hospitalized.

Strange things happen. The son of an acquaintances went together with his wife to his mother's incineration. Only the two were allowed to attend. The father was disabled and couldn't come. After the more then short ceremony they went to the father to tell him that his wife wouldn't come back. They had taken a picture of the coffin and showed it to him and told him that mum is gone forever. The father pushed a loud screem and fell from his wheelchair dead ! Heart attack. That's sad but on the other hand good for him as he was 89 and unable to live alone.

On Sunday was Mr. G.'s birthday. He was born on a Easter Sunday ! The birthday was a bit strange, because we were only the two of us and cat Rosie, our friends called us per Whatsapp and sent cards. It's the very first time that on a birthday we do not celebrate with our son and family but all alone ! But thanks to Internet  we didn't feel alone. Fortunately this disaster happens now and not 15 years ago, where nobody had Whatsapp and Skype was first released in 2003 but not available to everybody, at least we can now keep visual contact with our families !



Our birthday cat



and the menu, Sushi and a Tiramisu with fruits.



Rosie was not interested at all in our birthday celebrations and continued to sleep.

The weather started to change today after almost 3 weeks of sunshine which made it very hard for the people to stay inside, today some clouds appeared and apparently we will go back to winter again ! Since a few years the weather is a rollercoaster !