“Forget Society”

A series of photographs that explore the lockdown in downtown Bogotá

As we will remember
the ones behind the masks
and the ones in hiding,
the ones we know are there
but cannot see.
— Lynn White

From March 20th when Bogotá started its simulacro vital and which later transformed into a national quarantine many of us have been locked indoors. This series of photographs shows a few photos from two weeks before the quarantine until now (June 10th). Most of these are at the latter end of the quarantine.

Covid-19 had been officially introduced to us three months before these photos start. We watched in a kind of slow motion as it got closer. Wuhan, China, was then 15, 980 kilometers away from Bogotá but now, the virus over there is the virus among us here. So about two weeks before I start this series…

Before lockdown:

 
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A man among emerald dealers

It is hard to believe that this photo was taken a short two weeks before the lockdown in Bogotá. A man sits with his bags surrounding him. The juxtaposition of the emerald dealers just feet away really struck me. He appeared ignored all the while dealers were opening their packets of gems to show to one another or to perspective clients. Even a day before lockdown, the Plazoleta de Rosario was bustling.

Golden

When I snapped this as I traversed the Sexta, I remember knowing that the Coronavirus was coming and I wondered to myself, “what will happen to guys like this when the virus hits?”. The golden color in this photo comes from paint and a nearby street light as well.

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Premonition

Like a premonition of what was to come, this young girl has her hand out of a barred window. Now after months inside, don’t we feel the same?

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We knew it was coming

By the 18th of March we knew a lockdown was coming and people began preparing for the virus. This shot on the Séptima shows the coming confusion on what preparations really are.

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Vendors sign up for help

On March 19th, 2020, I ran into this huge line on the corner of Jimenez with Séptima. You could feel a sense of anxiousness in the crowd of people. When I later spoke with some of the vendors, they told me that they never received help.

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Little lockdown love

A lone skateboarder and father walks through a plaza with a baby in arms. It can be unusual to see a skateboarder walking alone and even more rare to see one with a baby in arms. The usually packed plaza was nearly empty one day before the lockdown when I shot this. You can tell it was a nice warm day. A clam day. When I first sat down to look at this photo, all I could wonder is what is to become of this little one. Recently, I heard a review with one woman who described her baby born during Covid as a “Ghost baby”, unseen by the outside world; locked away inside. Now, with the end of lockdown, I can only wonder what happened and how this baby will be affected by the virus and lockdown.

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Under his chin

Statistically, the virus does not affect the very young for the most part. What about the elder population? We know that elders are at risk. This man, with a mask below his chin is surely at greater risk than many. As of the middle of June, 2020, it is estimated that on about. 5% of the world population has been infected thus far. The experts say that we need about 70% infection before “herd” immunity is reached and the spread can be stopped.

Lockdown starts:

 

…March 20th, 2020

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No traffic

Calle 19 with Séptima could be seen to nearly empty at times. Carrera 4,5 and 6 could be seen as desolate at the beginning of the lockdown. Air quality noticeable improved. Bike lanes were extended to help provide safer forms of transport during the virus. Carrera Séptima starting from Calle 32 had a bike lane added.

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Essential service in sight

There were days when the only people that could be seen on the street were people working in essential services, like the street cleaners seen here, or homeless people. Evictions during the lockdown added to the problem of homelessness.

April 9th and the usually bustling Séptima is nearly empty. This happened virtually overnight but the return of people came before long despite a heavy presence of police.

by May…

People filter back:

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Lone vendor

One by one vendors began to return to the Séptima. Police would periodically push them off.

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Geriatric distancing

I was more than a little surprised when, by the 5th of May, these elders could be found sitting so closely together.

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A mask with a beard and a poet - “cuidando sus huesos”.

He was on the corner of Séptima with 19 selling his writing:

Acelerados

Para ser de este mundo, quiero decir, para no estar soñando y hacer cualquier cosa, sin intenciones ajenas lo logramos, quiero decir, mi vida es útil pero que no exageren, no tengo porque entregarles carne y sangre; ¿a quién me refiero?, ya lo saben, si se hacen los locos se los están comiendo por pedazos, si llegan al último, a pelar papas para el acompañamiento. ¿Saben qué?, no me como eso que disque hay en mí un tesoro para otros, no es que sea egoísta, es que cuido mis huesos, no me porto mal y eso basta; qué tal uno, que disque por bueno darle la mano y cara al primero que pase, tal vez no darle pata pero sí un no.

Night Chicken

Traversing the Séptima at night during the lockdown has been a lonely and surreal affair. Few were out and even the vendors who filtered out during the day are pushed off or mostly disappear after 6pm or so. What is left is long shadows and the color of stop lights or a lone store such as this.

“Can I offer you some candy, help me out…”, I was concentrating on finding a shot. The woman vendor who was selling gum and cigarettes became really pushy and aggressive. “No thanks, not right now. I don’t have suelto.”, This was true. I had been in the house so long that I really did not need to carry money. Purchases of food had been mainly with my Sodexo card. Not going out for coffee or to buy a snack for so long negated any need to have small change in my pockets. Running into this person was incredibly uncomfortable. She was so pushy but at the same time I felt for her because I could imagine that she had been deprived of income for weeks. She distracted me as I scanned around and she annoyed me. I backed away and continued my search. I lost her. Then, when I least expected it, I went down and my camera hit the ground. I had unwittingly backed into an uncovered man hole full of water. One leg went all the way down to a slimy bottom and the rest of me was on the pavement. Damn! I crawled out, thankfully unhurt but with a significant dent to my ego. “I can’t let myself be distracted”, I said to myself, “I need to be aware of my surroundings.” I stomped off the water from my leg and shoe as best I could. I didn’t find anymore shots there and so moved on. The first person I ran into was that same vendor. She bitched and nagged to anyone who would listen, “Taking pictures isn’t everything”, she said.

 

May 16th roles around:

“Taking pictures isn’t everything.”

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Shoeshine guys but not with a smile

By May 16th when this photo was shot, there were many more vendors on the street than even just ten days before. Interaction with them could be terse and there was a tension in the air.

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A little more warmth

Perceptions were a big deal during lockdown.   In Bogotá, one feeling that hit me was the lack warmth and not enough sun, too few sunny days. Sales of vitamin D rose but I think it was the absence of feeling the sun on skin that was the killer. One of my doctors told me that her patient load was non-stop. She had to force herself from seeing patients for fear of going nuts herself. Domestic abuse has risen across the world. It is little surprise then, to find people out in the sun when it made its appearances. Just looking at this photo reminds me of … a little more warmth.

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The color of roses

There were many vendors out selling what they could. This guy graciously put his mask back on for the photo but the empanada in his hand tells the true story. The best part of this remembrance is the splash of color on the once busy street. With so much concrete and dirty brick exposed by empty streets, this island of flower was a welcome sight.

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Covid songs.

Nothing retains its form; viruses from old
Nature, the great inventor, ceaselessly
Contrive. In all creation, be assured,
There is no sickness - no death, but only change
And mutation; what we people call pandemic
Is but a different new beginning; life
Is but to cease to be the same. Perhaps
This may have moved to that and that to this,
Yet still the sum of things remains the same.
Nothing can last, I do believe, for long
In the same image.

A tough corner

This corner, this store, is open now, but for many weeks, this was what I’d call a tough corner. This apparent family or group could really be seen to be struggling. It is indicative of what could be seen in many parts of the downtown.

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Brain soup

Exercising your mind during lockdown is probably a good idea. I got this guy selling “Sopa Megamente” outside of Dunkin’ Donuts selling brain teasers and looking for any food he could get.

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Man against a post

Watching business

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Three thousand seventy-six Pesocity

As of today, it would be more accurate to call this $3,776.50 Peso-city.

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Selling PPE

Its all the rage: Protective gear for sale.

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Working from the garage

The garage door to this house was never open. I have lived in front of it for a couple of years and never saw inside. Not anymore. Shortly after lockdown, this door opened and the owner could be seen daily selling his stuff.

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La Cruces

There had been some violence on this corner early on and I saw the police blocking off this road completely at times. I never made it down this street during the height of lockdown for fear of desperation. It leads to Las Cruces and it is one of barrios where staying inside was probably not viable for many. Things started opening up early here.

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Pandemic graffiti

I particularly like this work by ERRE. A defiant girl on a bike with mask and a paint roller and a can of paint with skull and crossbones. A pirate of the street.

Eyes to die for

Another example of pandemic graffiti, this work drew me in. I rode past it at first but it stuck in my mind and I finally stopped and rode back to the wall. My first shots taught me nothing. I couldn’t see what it was that pulled me back. As I got closer to the subject I started to see that it was the eyes. Simple drawn but from out of the mask they seem to say a lot.

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Rappi central

The ubiquitous delivery guy. Not only did they not stop during the lockdown, they increased. They were everywhere. Here in front of the Museo Nacional, I found a hub for a bunch of delivery bikers.

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El hambre tiene hoy su bandera

El hambre tiene hoy su bandera

Tiñe de rojo el aire

Herida de muerte la luz

en vano busca la raíz del agua

Las banderas ya no hablan de bosques

tampoco de la migración de los pájaros

o de las fronteras de los mares

Se asoman al infortunio

Rodarán bajo la lluvia

con su pavoroso grito

Las pisaremos tratando de ignorarlas

pero una especie de ausencia

quedará en la calle

y en el alma

Serán imágenes borrosas

en nuestro largo olvido

Mancha gris en nuestro laberinto

Esperanza Jaramillo

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Palms down

For this group of indigenous, masks was not a priority. A quick search shows that indigenous communities have been hit particularly hard in Colombia. This group, however, was carefree and enjoying a game of soccer. Watching, at least, was a kind of relief because the usually constant action in this park had come to a standstill for weeks.

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Headdress

Wearing a surgical mask and a face mask seems to be something that is going to be required for months more. The Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress addresses some of the problems about prolonged use of PPE. One of these is , “Extended work in PPE can create feelings of isolation and claustrophobia, and can lead to anxiety reactions in some individuals.” Another concern can be recognition. With distance and coverings, people can have trouble recognizing one another. CSTS suggests that you can have name tags or even a photo on the outside of your PPE. Personally, my stress is breathing through a mask all the time and my glasses fogging up. Jane Brody’s June 15th article in the New York Times talks about respiratory health. Apparently some people even buy a pulse oximeter to check their oxygen level. There is even mention of the trouble of hearing other speak through masks and the loss of facial recognition during speech. Most interestingly is the mention of how we breath. A doctor is quoted about the importance of breathing through or nose and not taking shallow breaths that can increase anxiety while ““Inhaling through the nose stimulates the release of hormones and nitric oxide, which helps to regulate vital functions like blood pressure and increase oxygenation throughout the body,” …James Nestor has written a book on this: “Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art”. As for my fogging glasses, I found a number of YouTube videos from surgeons and nurses about that very thing. My conclusion: We’re screwed.

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Multitask

For this photo I visited cyclistsdefencefund.org.uk for some definitions on cycling offenses. Item number 2 is: An offence committed by anyone cycling on a road without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration of others.  Hmm, but more interestingly are infractions like, 3. Cycling the wrong way down one-way streets and 4. Jumping red lights and advanced stop lines. So, I’m going to jail and so are at least 50% of all the cyclists I see in Bogotá. It is fortunate that cycling in Bogotá is Lucha Libre and a Free-for-all.

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Dunkin’

Forty-five years ago I was going to my local Dunkin’ Donuts in San Diego, California after delivering papers. And here they are in Bogotá all these years later! Of course they’ve messed with their recipes and the donuts aren’t as good anymore but this photo is just to show the Stand Outside form of service we have had during lockdown.

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Strawberry moon by the jewelry district

June brought us the end of lockdown but on June 5th it brought the Strawberry Moon. According to Almanac.com, “The name, Strawberry Moon, originated with Algonquin tribes in eastern North America who knew it as a signal to gather the ripening fruit of wild strawberries. Alternative European names for this Moon include the Honey Moon and the Mead Moon. It has also been called the Rose Moon, given that many roses come to life during this part of the year!”

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Night traffic on the 6th

Trafic at 7pm on a Wednesday. It is a mad rush to get south and the sixth is one of the few streets that leads that way. This photo is well before the end of lockdown but traffic was beginning to come back in force by this time.

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Lo que no se detuvo

Por Samara Díaz (1996, Colombia) desde Bogotá

Un virus ha hecho que el mundo se detuviera.
Se han cerrado fronteras,
Se han pospuesto los viajes, y las ceremonias de grado.

Un virus ha recorrido el planeta entero para visitar
a los que viven del día a día de su trabajo, y también a los que
acostumbran a comer caviar los viernes en sus yates.
No ha distinguido clase social, raza, ideología política o género.
Ha sido la parca viajera;
paseándose por los continentes 
y adelantado a su paso
el sueño eterno de la muerte.

Parece que el mundo se ha detenido,
Ni el metano, ni el dióxido de carbono, 
siguieron contaminando.
Las fábricas cerraron, los gimnasios también.
¿Y las iglesias? Vacías.

El tiempo se detuvo,
El caviar siguió en el congelador,
el yate en la orilla.
Y las mentas y los dulces del vendedor ambulante
se las está comiendo a escondidas su hijo de 8 años.

Los bancos se preocupan,
los gobiernos también.
Los hospitales no dan abasto, 
y los muertos ni alcanzaron a despedirse de sus vivos.

Las leyes cambiaron,
la cuarentena apareció.
Y el tiempo se detuvo…
Pero en casa, en muchas casas,
el miedo,
el agresor,
el golpe, 
el grito y el insulto
no se detuvieron. 

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Quiet out of Quevedo

Plazoleta Chorro de Quevedo was a busy place for students and tourists alike. Here is one of the cobblestone streets leading down from the plaza. It would normally be packed with people. I was surprised to find these guys hanging out. You can see another ERRE graffiti on the left.

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Man and oranges

Soneto XCI

-- de Pablo Neruda --

la edad nos cubre como la llovizna,
interminable y árido es el tiempo,
una pluma de sal toca tu rostro,
una gotera carcomió mi traje:
el tiempo no distingue entre mis manos
o un vuelo de naranjas en las tuyas:
pica con nieve y azadón la vida:
la vida tuya que es la vida mía.
La vida mía que te di se llena
de años, como el volumen de un racimo.
Regresarán las uvas a la tierra.
Y aún allá abajo el tiempo sigue siendo,
esperando, lloviendo sobre el polvo,
ávido de borrar hasta la ausencia.

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Loneliness

#LonelinessAwarenessWeek

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Hydrant

La Décima, cruzando para San Victorino

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Chaos on the other side

June 9th, 2020: A woman shields her eyes from the sun as she peers towards barrio San Victorino from under an umbrella. What she sees is crowed streets, lots of vendors and the bustle of city that supposedly is still in lockdown. Entrance into the Plaza was easy and there was a line of youths, shoulder to shoulder, taking in the remains of a sunny day. Vendors were crowded in at the entrance to the plaza. Tomorrow Bogotá officially ends its lockdown and all I can wonder about is which way the numbers will go.

Am I Invisible?

By Jacob Folger

January 26, 2018

People pass me by
I must not be here
Sitting alone, down and out
No one will come near.


No gaze from another
No concern for me
I am completely by myself
On this cold street.


In the Morning I wake
From my Homeless sheets
Where I slept the night before
Should I even call it sleep?


Homeless I am
Forgotten by the world
Am I invisible?

Am I invisible?

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PPE personal protective gear

A woman negotiates her protective garment while a man with umbrellas bunched together in plastic walks by. The pastry shop on the right is empty but full of cakes and desserts.

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Social distance is closer than you think

June 5, 2020. As you will see in a pair of photographs taken a subsequent day, this action of non-social distancing has its consequences. Access to the Plaza San Victorino was easy on Saturday… people were relaxed.

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Sitting with birds

This is what it is, a few people sitting surrounded by pigeons. The only reason it is impactful for me is with the cloud of the virus. Do pigeons help the spread? According to MedicalNewsToday.com:

“When it comes to birds, there may be more than just avian flu to be worried about. It has been suggested that there are over 60 other diseases that birds and their droppings can carry. The problem is especially worrisome in residential areas, as many of them are airborne and can be transferred to humans just by being around droppings.”

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Controlled entrance

A couple of days before people could come and go in San Victorino as they pleased. The next day the entire area was closed off and the police were only letting in vendors as far as I could tell. This is part of the line waiting to enter.

Entrance to the plaza

June 9, 2020. Entrance into San Victorino

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Waiting for service at the light store

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Tape

Peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase, peligro no pase,

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The book sellers street

Just down from the Séptima and the Plaza Santander, things were getting back to normal.

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Will masks work?

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Rent

I keep wondering how many For Rent signs I might see after the lockdown.

AlternativeaEconomica.org tuve un artículo 13 Junio, 2020:

“Las empresas, en particular las mipymes, empiezan a contar los cierres y las entradas a reorganización, ya que la extensión de la cuarentena ha hecho que consuman la poca caja que tenían para costear los gastos fijos, como la nómina y los arriendos, y atender las obligaciones financieras. En la medida en que entran a reorganización o cierran, el desempleo aumenta afectando de manera importante a los hogares, cuyo consumo es el principal generador de crecimiento. De ahí la imperiosa necesidad de que las empresas recuperen su vitalidad para que reincorporen la fuerza laboral que despidieron.”

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No more parties

The shirt on this guy says it all.

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Exercise in Plaza Santander

The skateboarders are back, albeit in fewer numbers. The DIAN, the tax authority, can be seen behind. They almost seem to be working.

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Enter /Exit and lines on the floor

You can find lines of meter in front of shops all around the downtown. A couple can be seen inside the Juan Valdez coffee store. What caught my eye here, of course, was the divided entrance.

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Forget Society

Lest We Forget…

Especially written for this series

by Lynn White

We think you can see us,

you know who we are 

behind our masks

Not everything is hidden.

We are not hidden.

We are out 

in the open

in plain sight

even if masked.

So join us for a snack

a glass of wine,

a coffee.

Enjoy!

Take a sip with us

lest we forget

what to do

when we go outside.

Step back in time

one taste at a time,

one sip at a time.

Remember

the first time 

is always challenging

and won’t ever be forgotten.

Remember!

As we will remember

the ones behind the masks

and the ones in hiding,

the ones we know are there

but cannot see.

We know who you are.

No one is forgotten.

Nothing is forgotten.

That’s our promise

one sip at a time.

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Selling arepas

Some stores were open before others on the Séptima. You could not, and perhaps we still cannot, enter the store but getting an arepa was only an arms length away.

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Contraflujo

It was easy to go against traffic just a few short weeks ago: There was NO traffic but by this time, the Sexta was a major thoroughfare. Even at night there was a stream of traffic passing through the downtown and Candelaria.

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Waiting for food

Besides the red flags hanging out of windows (across the street from this scene there were a couple) I found this group of people. I approached and asked a gentleman about it. I could see he was very pained to answer that it was for food. He cast his eyes down and away.

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Rufino and Alicia

This is the iconic couple with their dog. I have another capture of them in their usual haunt by the Casa del Florero where they offer a photo opt for some change. I found them this day, with a less rustic and appropriate background, by the Centro Cultural Gabriel García Márquez. You can hardly see Alicia’s eyes! I was happy to see that they are ok but I worry when I read today, June 19th, of the ever increasing infections and the sobering knowledge that we must reach about 70% infections before the virus is stopped (barring a vaccine) and we are still below 10%.

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A chance to relax

I found this family relaxing in front of the Archivos de Bogotá. The sun was hot on this day and there was a scene of relief in the air.

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The last day of lockdown

 

By the this time the city center was well out of what I would call lockdown.

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Tercer Milenio

I wonder how history will view this Tercer Milenio. This day, the last day of lockdown, shopping was in full swing already as it had been for some time especially in tough areas, like the street, or in poorer barrios. This flee market has grown since lockdown. Now it can be seen extending along the Parque Tercer Milenio and almost into the Transmilenio station.

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The Séptima today

It is filling up quickly

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Masks

I’m loathing the thought that I am going to have to be wearing one of these for some time to come.

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The game has ended

Lockdown is done for now, the game has ended but not the virus. For me, wearing a mask is going to be a long haul as it will be for many of us. When I write this, June 19th, it is a “Black Friday” in several stores and there are no taxes. Some photos I saw show long lines and people packed in waiting to check out. The graph lines for infection are going up. I hope this is the ending and not just the beginning.

June 19, 2020

June 19, 2020

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August 6, 2020 —

Everyone in their cave

Post-lockdown: The lockdown continues. There are many in the streets and the infections are still climbing. 345, 714 total cases, 147,773 active cases, 10,735 new cases, 11,624 deaths.