LEVELS DROP SO DO RESTRICTIONS

Originally Published the Week of Sept. 8, 2021 in Western Outdoor Publications

          Living and running (or trying to run) a business in Baja during a pandemic has often felt like an exercise in frustration.

         I’m reminded of the story in Greek mythology of Sisyphus who is punished by the Greek god Zeus.  Sisyphus is condemned for eternity to roll a huge boulder up a hill.  And when he gets to the top…the boulder rolls back down.

         Bummer.

         I’m sure many folks around the world have similar stories this past two years of dealing with the new normal.  Or “abnormal” as the case may be.

         Down here in Baja, the restrictions were much more rigid than in the U.S.

         To go along with closed restaurants, hotels, stores, churches, public events and more, folks had to deal with curfews;  closed beaches; restrictions on the number of persons in a vehicle; even having to sanitize your shoes and feet before entering a building.

         On top of that, there are no unemployment checks; stimulus packages or the ability to “work-from-home” like in other countries.

Classrooms have been closed since last March. Sure, there were online classes.  But, most kids or homes don’t have expensive laptops or computer pads. 

         Most of us from the U.S. were locked-down to a greater-or-lesser degree last year. 

         Imagine being locked down in a 2 BR apartment with 6 or 7 other family members. No one working.  No Netflix.  No TV.  No face-time or zoom.  Often no food.

         Heck, there were several months when all beer sales were cut-off.  The government determined that breweries were “non-essential” business.

         That was reality during the last year’s lows.

         To measure restrictions the government instituted a “stoplight system” of alerts.

         There were 6 levels.  Green was Level 1.  Green was the best.  That was the goal. That’s what it was like pre-covid.  Remember how that was?

         Red was Level 6…the worst at the other end of the spectrum.

         In between 1 and 6, there were 4 levels ranging from yellow to orange (best-to-worst).

         Depending on the level, it told you what you could and could not do for a good portion of the last two years.  We have bounced between Level 3 (yellow) and Level 5 (orange) depending on the ebb and flow of infections and hospitalizations.  

          We were always somewhere between green and the dreaded red which would be pretty much a complete shutdown. We got close a few times.

          However, for southern Baja which includes Cabo San Lucas and the areas up to La Paz, where we live, the government lowered the levels last week. 

          We were dropped to Level 2 (yellow). 

          That is the lowest level since things shut down last March.  The government says this is based on the reduced number of infections and hospitalizations in recent weeks.

          It’s good news for all of us who live and work down here.  It’s good news for tourists, especially.

          It means the beaches are open again. 

          Restaurants are open.

          Hotels are open.

          Public venues are open.

          Public events, churches, schools, theaters, gyms are open.

          Lots of big tournaments are coming up.

          There are still some restrictions regarding capacity or hours of operations.  Masks are still required. You will probably still get your temperature taken at some places. 

        But overall, it feels good.  It’s good to see families out on the beach again.  It’s good to see people eating at restaurants and hotel parking lots full of guests. It’s good to go shopping again like normal.

        Outdoor activities such as fishing, snorkeling, tour buses and other events critical to the economy are filled. 

        I’m not naïve enough to think that the problems are solved.  Far from it.  It’s not that kind of world these days. 

        But for now, it’s pretty enjoyable.  It reminds of what it used to be like.

        But especially to still be vigilant and not take things for granted.

That’s my story!

Jonathan