In the beginning of January, someone wrote this: “One thing that I know for sure about this new year is that nothing’s gonna be what I expect”. Well, I guess that we can all agree upon that. This year of 2020 has changed the life and perspectives for most of us. Who would have thought that a pandemic would alter our plans and expectations for the new year and for the future? This blog post is about my experience and my personal view of some of measures taken in Sweden and in Denmark.

Sweden

Sweden chose to keep schools open. But high schools and universities were closed down on March 17 and the government told everyone to work from home if possible. The public transportation demanded everyone to only travel if truly necessary. People started hording toilet paper and shelves were empty in the groceries. For some weeks, Stockholm was like a ghost city with empty streets, empty buses and trains. Restaurants and shops had to close down and a lot of people lost their jobs. However, there was no lock-down as in many other countries so we could still be outside and I could run as much as I wanted. The running communities had to take a break and we only gathered a few people together running. The government set up the rule of not having gatherings of more than 50 people and that still holds! Still, the outside world considered Sweden to “live as normal”. When I talked to my family in Denmark they were surprised to hear about my life in Stockholm since they had got a totally different view from media.

So, Sweden and especially Stockholm were restricted areas for many countries. Denmark did not welcome people who lived in Stockholm. Finally, at the end of July, Denmark opened up for Sweden and I could go and visit my family. Crossing the bridge between Sweden and Denmark was no problem with my Danish passport but it was still a relief when I finally drove through Copenhagen and arrived at my sister’s home. So here started my visit to Denmark where I could experience this country’s view on the virus.

Denmark

I went to Jutland and stayed in my sister’s summerhouse (my old childhood house) which is almost next to my mother’s house. This is a beautiful place on the west coast with the vast ocean and a lot of space. No crowds. In the little town nearby, the groceries had marks in on the floors about keeping distance, the same as in Stockholm. However, there were quite a lot of tourists and when I walked in the streets, people didn’t seem to care about social distancing.

We followed the news and now the number of outbreaks had started to increase in Spain. Also, there was a huge outbreak in Århus on the east coast of Jutland where they now made it mandatory to wear masks on public transportation. The irony was that masks were sold out everywhere…

On the news, the reporters interviewed a travel agency that had problems because they had to cancel trips to Spain. They also interviewed a family who had booked a trip to Spain and the young father was disappointed because they had to go to Greece instead. Seriously?! Did anyone feel sorry for them?

Focusing on the good things

In Århus they wanted people to wear masks partly to protect the driver from catching the virus. In Stockholm, you cannot enter the buses in the front and the front seats are sealed so you cannot get near the driver. Why doesn’t Denmark do the same? I think we can learn a lot from each other. Yes, Sweden have had many dead from the virus but the measures taken also prevented many people from being too isolated and suffer from depressions, abuses and psychological problems. Why not focus on the positive outcomes? Why only focus on the bad things? We should learn from what went wrong, of course, but we should also embrace ourselves for the things that worked.

Personal Responsibility

Well, the differences were not that big between Denmark and Sweden. In Denmark, they allow gatherings of 100 people whereas in Sweden the number is still 50. Both countries put up signs about keeping distance but people are not always following these guidelines. However, this is not a problem of the government. I believe that everyone has a personal responsibility and that everyone should respect the precautions; respect our fellow human being.

I admire the Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen. She’s eloquent and clear; she’s tough but at the same time humble. She’s asking the Danish people to be together in all this and follow the guidelines. In Sweden, the person in the limelight is the epidemiologist Anders Tegnell and I truly admire him as well. He has got a lot of critique – positive and negative – but come on, how can you put the responsibility on one person? He’s also humble and if anyone knows about virus and diseases, it’s him!

Running

Finally, just a few words about my running. When everything turned upside down mid-March, I had to give up dreams and plans as many others. No Paris Marathon in April and no Stockholm Marathon in June. I kept running as usual, sometimes with friends but mostly alone. I am grateful to live in Sweden and to be able to run and move outside.

The fitness center where I work chose to keep open but many clients became afraid to come to the facilities. Some clients wanted to work out outside and fortunately, there are many outdoor gyms in Stockholm. I truly believe in the importance of working out and keeping your body in shape – both for your immune system but also, maybe mostly, for your mental health.