Training partner - December 2020

I HAVE finally managed to return to the mountains of Southern Spain and am planning to stay for a few months, as despite being in the middle of nowhere, the internet and telecoms are far better than in my UK home and the weather is of course much nicer.  

My wife is asthmatic so the journey down was well planned to minimise risk. We took the ferry from Portsmouth to Santander and then completed a 10 hour drive through Spain, stopping occasionally for petrol and coffee. All in all a very efficient and stress free journey with everybody we came across wearing masks and there was general evidence of good Covid security. We were slightly intrigued why some were wearing masks in their cars, but have since established that if people are from different households they must wear a mask if they are sharing a car.

On the face of it the Covid situation is similar in Spain and the UK with cases increasing and ongoing discussions about lockdown but there does seem to be a very big difference in the approach to public health, and having been here for 4 weeks now, I will admit to feeling far more Covid secure here than in the UK.

The most striking example is visits to supermarkets. In the UK some supermarkets were very well organised with good social distancing protocols and masks worn by all. Others I visited far less so with one notable excursion witnessing around 40% of people not wearing masks in the store, plus many not seeming to care about social distancing. Those wearing masks only put the mask on at the very last minute, only pulling them on as they enter the shop and removing them as they were walking out the door. Stories circulate of aggression towards retail staff who try to remind people to wear masks and our politicians even seem to be semi condoning non compliance, proudly noting the British exceptionalism and reluctance to follow rules. Not sure I am happy with politicians excusing rule breaking, but that is for another day.

Spain seems very different - everybody wears a mask. There seems to be no exceptions. If you are too ill to wear a mask you should not be out. Arriving at the local Spanish supermarket the first thing you notice, other than everybody wearing a mask from the moment they leave their car, is the sanitisation stations provided to clean your hands and to put on disposable gloves. This is not compulsory but most seem to comply before entering the store. Entering the store there is a lot of space, they have got rid of all the promotional stands that clog up the isles and replaced them with trolley stations where you park your trolley and go to select your veg etc. Social distancing is well maintained and there are one way systems for the fish counter protecting both customers and staff. I must admit the plastic gloves are a bit tricky, especially when trying to open the plastic bags for your vegetables and the constant fear of bottles slipping through your fingers, but you do have confidence that the produce you pick up would not be contaminated.

The checkout is again well organised, you have to turn your trolley around to unload to provide additional social distancing to those behind you. Leaving the store there are sanitisation stations and bins to dispose of your gloves. The whole experience makes you feel safe, not something I felt on several occasions in the UK.

It is very unusual to see people without masks in Spain even when walking on the beach or in the countryside. Smoking is no longer allowed in the outside areas of bars and restaurants. You are required to walk away from the bar and also be 2 metres away from another smoking person, which stops the smokers’ huddles we see in the UK.

Why do the Spanish behave so differently is probably a complex question, but from what I can see there is a real sense of community responsibility backed up by punitive fines for those caught not following the rules. I am also in an area which has seen little impact from Covid and you get the feeling they want to keep it that way.

Spain has had, and still has, a significant problem with Covid, but this seems to be primarily in the high population centres with Madrid causing the most concern. Locally the main concern seems to be when families visit from these centres or the occasional Brit shows up. We did self quarantine on arrival, something appreciated in the local village.

Again there is dissatisfaction with the politicians but this does not lead to the rule breaking we see in the UK. Self preservation for the individual, their family and neighbours appears to override any desire not to comply. Also refreshingly politicians in Spain lead by example, whether making public addresses or when in parliament they are wearing masks, they obviously disagree on many things but they seem very united in leading by example.

This is a small part of Spain with low density of population so perhaps I am drawing too many conclusions as to Spain as a whole but my wife and I feel very safe here and life is without the stress of unmasked strangers pushing past you when you venture out.

Theoretically these precautions should reduce the risk of catching and consequent unrestricted spread of any disease and as I am here for a bit longer I can continue to observe whether my assumptions are correct.

Gary Fallaize is managing director at RRC. For more information, visit, www.rrc.co.uk