Our speakers on May 6th were Bettina & Lena Gaechter from Switzerland. They spoke to us about how they and their country are dealing with Covid 19.
Bettina and Lena are sisters living in Siblingen and Schaufhausen, Switzerland. Their father, Hans Peter, is a life-long best friend of Johann Finkelmeier. Bettina, age 26, is in veterinary school and Lena, age 24, works in multi-media production and will be pursuing a masters in business administration.
Bettina describes herself as an introvert so self-quarantining has not had a huge social impact, except she is now spending a lot more time with her 6 roommates. She has filled her time by gardening, painting, and doing craft work. Unfortunately, it did cause the cancellation of her practical veterinary training. After 5 years of technical, she was looking forward to working with animals.
Lena is working from home, which is a newer concept in Switzerland. She believes that the routine she has established – coffee, work, exercise, lunch, work, socialize – has made the transition to staying at home easier.
Both feel that their age group, and the country as a whole, has taken the stay at home orders seriously. They are not fans of Sweden’s decision to take a herd mentality approach.
Bettina and Lena are very proud of their country for doing their part and following the rules. One of the silver linings that Bettina has noticed is how silent her world is when she steps outside. She finds it very calming to hear the sporadic conversation and see nature blooming. Both are optimistic that we will all get through this and will adapt to our “new normal”
The country is set to open shops and schools in the next week.