France lockdown 2 - vers un deconfinement

[CroissantsAtDawn]

2nd thread discussing the lockdown in France and the impending deconfinement...

First thread here:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/coronavirus/3850860-Lockdown-conditions-in-France

Do you find a big difference in deconfinement where you are in France and Switzerland? A friend teaches in Switzerland where the kids are not being kept apart except by class group and trying to keep teachers distanced from kids, no masks needed and then she collected her kids from French primary where they were practically in full PPE, visors etc....

I have to say it does feel a bit weird having populations with very different rules on this mix...

Last week was of course very different, as life in Switzerland was pretty much as normal. Now haven't noticed that much, but my DC have not been back to school yet.
Blick.de writes that the borders with Switzerland, France and Germany should be opened in coming weeks, fx! www.blick.ch/news/wirtschaft/badeferien-doch-moeglich-drei-laender-wollen-die-grenze-zur-schweiz-oeffnen-id15888087.html

@usuallydormant I'm in Pays de Gex and it must be lax given the amount of CH registered cars on the roads.

Friends in the city said life is back to normal, hardly anyone wearing masks and no real social distancing efforts.

Yesterday was our first day back to school...

DS (3) had a half day. Only about 10 kids present, so half the class as far as I could tell. The teachers knew how many to expect in advance and prepared a table for each child to work on that was a couple of metres away from the nearest neighbour. Kids were asked to bring in their own pencil cases and given individual activities. At the end of every activity, each child's equipment was taken away and cleaned/disinfected.

Tomorrow is a full day and DS has to take in a packed lunch that doesn't need to be reheated, along with his own cutlery and utensils.

The headteacher sent me some photos which were very reassuring. Bit odd to see the kids working apart and I don't know how they managed break time, but it's great to see how much effort they're making to reopen.

Of course it'll be a few days/weeks before we know if sending him back has in fact been a good idea, but DS came home on cloud 9 yesterday, he was so thrilled at having been back to "Skoo[l]". His teacher even rang me afterwards to say how well he'd done, respecting the new rules, working quietly on his own, and how much he'd changed/grown up in the last 2 months.

So I think it's been the right decision for us to send him back. I do half-expect a second wave to hit in early summer and the schools could be closed again, but hopefully by that point I'll have handed in my dissertation and be better prepared for DC2's arrival in August, so a second confinement should be easier to manage...

Glad to hear it went so well mamansnet.

Just had my hair cut for the first time since Jan 31st. Utter bliss. All very carefully arranged and clear procedures.
My first time out of the commune (population 60) since the week before lockdown. 😊

DS will go back full time next week! I'm not too stressed about it - the health workers' children have been in school all the time, there would have been outbreaks for sure if they were indeed super-spreaders.

DD's class won't go back - but at least we are allowed to have play dats now, so either she's at her bestie's place or the friend is here every single day, way easier than dealing with a bored whiny 4-year old.

As for borders, I was waived through both ways today, certainly more relaxed.

Lots of people out walking/shopping in Paris today. 95% wearing masks. The Lindt shop had a queue outside it....

We went to an open space that has a couple of enclosed play areas. I was hoping we could play in the non enclosed areas, but there were loads of barriers up and notices. Its 1.4km from our flat hence why we hadn't been before!

Quite a few shops weren't open. Only 1 shop had a sign up saying masks were obligatory (a chocolate shop). I tried to find something in monoprix home area but it wasn't a great experience dodging round people. The aisles are really narrow.

Glad your DS enjoyed school mamansnet. I suspect mine will enjoy it but I'm also expecting emotional overload like at the beginning of confinement. (And at various other times during the last 8 weeks). It's a lot for little ones.

Can't believe I didn't see this thread and missed all the confinement chat! Hope it's ok to join in now. I am in 01 in the Pays de Gex (waves to LongPause, ChateauMargaux and usuallydormant). Agree the difference between France and Switzerland is weird! DH managed a walk in a Swiss park last week when we were all still locked up here!

missclimpson I'm amazed you got a hair appointment so quickly. I called yesterday, the first day my hairdresser opened, and have an appointment for the end of May I was a bit nervous about going so I looked up the fiches sanitaires for hairdressers and feel quite reassured!

I've dropped kids (14&15) off to friends. They'll be back in a week. I figure risk is low now and is only likely to get higher over the next few weeks. DH not keen for them to have anyone here at the moment.

Traffic is not particularly light. I was surprised by how much traffic there is and I was traveling at non peak times in Normandy.

DH is back part time. Not sure how part time -he's CNRS. I think they are evaluating the situation. DSC back this evening as they're not going back to school before September and they're mum's working. I'm not back at uni before September either.

We are assuming no travel to the UK for us this year. All rather vulnerable groups. I think we need to believe that there will be no gite bookings this year.

Rather a bleak assessment but we are surviving confinement pretty well.

Just an idle thought, but does anyone else watch French news programmes and spend time judging face masks for fit, pattern and level of chicness?

Hello Vive and all the other alpy people. I was dying to get out on the trails but the weather is so incredibly miserable.... I have to admit I am quite pleased the border is still up for tourists as the Geneva rules are so different- it will be interesting to see how many Swiss residents try to get to the mountains here for the long weekend. My neighour said they were waving all the FR plates through this afternoon but stopping all the CH ones.

Missclimpson, my kids are getting mask envy as some friends were showing their customized ones on zoom so my son has visons of me putting logos on his...sewing a button is the height of my ability. Some very snazzy ones spotted in our local intermarché and our local FB groups are full of local sewing groups sharing patterns and producing reusable masks.

Managed a trip to Noz! For 15€ I got 2 bottles of wine, a notebook with a lock and a llama (for dd3), a jar of chillis, a jar of peanut butter, a bag of kelloggs granola, a pack of kelloggs cereal bars, and a packet of bourbon creams. Nothing I actually needed (except the wine) but still nice to be able to wander around.

Most people here are now wearing masks, and it is noticeable that those that aren't are also ignoring the other advice such as distance and going one way round the shop.

We have managed pick up a couple of gite bookings for asscension/pentecost. The original bookings have moved to next year and we now have some smaller more local groups booked in. It won't make up for the bookings we've lost but it will help to pay a couple of bills.

ViveLEntenteCordiale I had one booked for the first day of lockdown, so my hairdresser rang me about two hours after the PM's déconfinement announcement to offer one as soon as they opened. She is lovely.

Hi Vive - welcome!

@Wallywobbles and @Frenchfancy - whereabouts roughly are your gites? Do you have wifi? Are there things to do accessible without a car?

We re thinking of booking a week or 2 early July and taking it in turns to work / take the DC out.

But you'd have to accept Parisians from the red zone

@CroissantsAtDawn our gite is near Granville on the west coast of la Manche. 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms. 5 mins walk from the 8km sand beach. Most of everything is walkable, although the proper supermarket is 3km. Should I mind that you are from Paris? It hadn't occurred to me!

I went today to pick up the old garden furniture and replace with new but I've no idea how the season will work.

One of the restaurants was doing take out lunch. They said evening take away moule frite trade is good.

I think it's impossible to judge how it's going to go but probably safest for us to look on the bleak side.

normandie-rentals.com/

They said no quarantine required for Brits coming to UK and vice versa, right?

Oooh nice Wally. My DH is from round those parts.

Its a lovely area and used to be my local beach. I've now moved 2h away but have a very efficient and rather scary cleaner.

Oh crap.
DS2 went to school yesterday, came home transformed, saying he wished it wasn't only every other week and that he could go today (Wed). He has been so cheery and happy today, like a new person.

His head has just emailed to say that he has to take 2 extra priority pupils whose parents work, so would it be OK if I please remove DS2 as of next week as there isn't space for him.

I can't bear to mention it to him.

@CroissantsAtDawn we are in the Vendée, about 45 mins from la Rochelle. Not lots to do in the village but plenty in the local area. We have heated swimming pools and more sunshine than most of France We have WiFi fresh air and lots of space.

We have no problem with Parisiens as long as the 100km limit is lifted.

@AuldAlliance is the "would it be OK" giving you an option? Can you say no? If it were me I wouldn't mention it to DS just yet and Talk to the teacher first. I know that someone else might need the spot but sometimes you have to fight for what is best for your own dc rather than the greater good.

Auld what a shame for your DS :(

Has everyone seen That Photo doing the rounds on social media today of a school playground with kids in squares on the ground? Honestly wonder if it was staged. Anyone who cared about those kids would surely have blurred their faces.

My DS will go back if lycée reopens, I can't say that he has enjoyed his year in terminale (not very good teachers tbh), and he enjoyed the first half of confinement but he's quite keen to go back now. He has had no on-line lessons at all except 1 class in philo - which I think is shocking in S-SI where they are supposed to have something like 18 hours of science lessons a week. Other classes in the same lycée have had lots of lessons!

I didn’t realise you had to have a justificatif de domicile with you all the time, I definitely haven’t been doing that! Although it is common sense I suppose.

They will supposedly accept anything with your address on (it doesn't have to meet the official criteria for proof of address). I've been taking my cheque book.

Still have to work out what paperwork my student DD will need to come home from Paris.

I hope I have room to manoeuvre.
I'm going to speak to the head tomorrow. I think, TBH, there are other DC in the group who more easily could give up their place, who have 2 parents at home not really doing télé-travail.
I'm on my own with the kids and have taken on extra marking in the next couple of weeks because I thought DS2 wouldn't be at home. If I have to go back to doing dictée, etc. at the same time, I'll be screwed.

I'll see what the head says tomorrow and try and fight DS2's corner a bit. Until then, I won't say anything to him.

I can't quite understand why these 2 priority kids have popped up since yesterday.