Streets are invariably empty every Sunday. Everybody is at the beach—where else would you go on your day off?
I’m sure Brazilians worry about the pandemic as much as the rest of the world but for a few hours, life feels completely normal. I mean, what’s more normal than drinking beer and eating churros, cotton candy, fish, tapioca and other Nordeste delicacies on the beach?
Motorbikes helmets are strapped to umbrellas, bikinis and swim trunks are the new dress code and everybody is singing, shouting, playing, laughing, running and swimming. This is where you snap a picture and add the caption “stupid people not complying with social distancing.” But honestly, it’s not that bad. There’s enough room for all of us and families or groups tend to stick together.
The constant disconnect between news and real life is exhausting. Everything feels fine but in fact it’s not fine, today is okay but everything may change tomorrow.
My days are fine.
And as soon as I leave the beach and reconnect with the world, I feel stressed out and hopeless again.
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