New Normal?

So, it has been nearly 2,5 weeks since France lifted the lockdown. I have gone to shops that were closed during the lockdown, and it is reassuring that they have procedures in place, such as wearing a mask is a must, hand sanitizers are provided at the door, there are lines on the floor to show where people should stand and wait at the checkout and outside the shop, and they limit the number of people inside the shop.

Whilst it is quite nice to see people out and about doing errands and whatnot, it is still slightly worrying to see some people wearing their masks incorrectly, gather without distance, or embracing each other when they meet. I feel like not wearing a mask would be better than having the mask around your neck, or just hanging by the ear, I feel like some people are treating the mask just as a rule, rather than something that can actually protect them.

I have been having quite bad hay fever for a week or two, and the mask actually protect me from the pollen while outside as well. I have bought hay fever tablets and eye drop from the pharmacy, and I have a nasal spray that I bought before the lockdown. I'm not really sure why but the pharmacies in France is quite strict, I have to ask the pharmacist to buy hay fever tablets and eye drops, whereas in the UK it is provided on the shelf where I can just choose myself. It's the same with Strepsils and paracetamols also. But anyway, I have had runny nose and itchy eyes in the morning as well as when I go outside, so from today I might try taking the tablets at night and see if it makes a difference in the morning.

I almost forgot, on Sunday we had Eid al-Fitr and of course we can only celebrate it by ourselves. My husband and I did the Eid prayer at home, had a couple of video calls with the family and extended family, then we cooked traditional Indonesian Eid dishes. My extended family from my dad's side, which includes my dad's uncles and aunties and their kids usually do a gathering every two years, and I usually can't attend it because I'm not usually able to go back to Indonesia during Eid. Now that everyone is at home and can't see each other, I can actually join the 'gathering' via a video call. It's quite interesting seeing many people having had to be by themselves during Eid for the first time, is it bad for me to say that I didn't feel so alone in having to do Eid by video calls? Don't get me wrong, I hope for the next Eid we can all meet others face to face again, because that's what Eid is about, celebrating it with loved ones.