The fast transmissibility of the Omicron variant of Corona Virus has started to make life more and more uncertain for populations all over Europe. Governments across the continent have responded heavily to the threat of its quicker spread. Although first signs are that it is a milder form, it passes from host to host much more quickly than previous strains and would now appear to have replaced the Delta Variant as the most dominant.
Because of that uncertainty, our friends have returned to the UK from Spain a little early, not wishing to be caught out by whatever reaction the Spanish Government make over the coming days and weeks. The local Andalusian Junta have already decreed that anyone wanting to ‘enter’ any form of hospitality venue, has to show their Covid pass. For us, this has meant showing our NHS App, which details our state of vaccination.
Just today, the Spanish Government have reintroduced the necessity of wearing a facemask at all times when out of the home. The exceptions to this are if you are out in the countryside or on the beach, provided that a 1.5 metre distance can be kept from others.
We feel (rightly or wrongly) that one possible next move will be to forbid movement between Provinces (e.g. we would be prevented from leaving Malaga Province), but maybe not until after Three-Kings which is celebrated on the evening of 5th January every year. A step up from that would be for the Province (Andalucia) to prevent movement between its Municipalities (e.g. we would not be able to leave Fuengirola to go to Mijas or Benalmádena). But, that would be going right back to the early days when deaths were increasing and hospitals were overflowing. Hopefully, that is not going to be the case just now.
The practical effect of all these changes is that airlines may cancel flights that they have currently listed, thereby making it harder for anyone to fly (home in our case). We can only wait and see, and hope that we can still complete everything we came here for.
Saturday Walks 