Covid and Armenia, part II (or is it III or IV or V...)

First, allow me to post a picture of a street I mentioned yesterday, for fun (pardon the bit of narcissism!)

OK. Covid in Armenia: after being here for a few weeks, allow me to post some slightly (hopefully) more enlightened thoughts than when I first arrived.

As I have mentioned, Armenia's Covid rates are pretty low right now, compared to Canada. Yesterday there were 173 cases and 2 deaths in Armenia. Canada's was 4,255 cases and 141 deaths. With about 13-14 times more population, the adjusted rates (14x) would be 2422 cases and 28 deaths, so about half the cases, but 5 times fewer deaths. Armenia has been in a downward trend for a while now, whereas Canada has JUST started its downward trend.

I'm sure many of us have seen examples of bell curves with and without social distancing, but in case you haven't:

So, the first bell curve shows that the health care system cannot reach everyone, and many more may die, as I believe was the case in Armenia around September-November 2020, but the curve ends quicker. In the blue curve, as with Canada, the health care system could JUST be able to help everyone, maybe not quite everyone, but more than in the first curve: so, fewer die overall, but the pandemic stretches out longer. 

Here's what I have noticed since being in Armenia. First of all, masks seem to be a social thing: they are not used properly. It seems funny that within pretty much every closed space, where the virus spreads more easily, people aren't wearing masks, yet on the streets about half the people do, when the possibility of catching anything is fairly remote. It seems like people wear it because they were told to, rather than understanding the science behind it. They want to be seen wearing a mask, perhaps.

I say this with the caveat that, as I understand it, a lot more people in Armenia wore masks (and gloves too) in closed spaces, and there were even inter-provincial (even inter-village) travel bans, as of March 2020, which lasted for several months. The difference here is the war. If you look at this bell curve, you can clearly see the huge spike during the war (September - November 2020) for both cases and deaths.

So: today, one sees stores displaying in the window "No entry without masks" and sometimes "or gloves" added, yet really, nobody does, except for servers, workers, etc. It was the same in Yegh. I am one of the few that puts on a mask in most closed spaces. Though not in restaurants: so really, what's the point for me too? I am sure I have been exposed to Covid many times over since arriving, it's possible I got it already and am one of the lucky ones who present no symptoms. I wrote extensively about this during my first few days in Yegh, but I have not really discussed it again and have meant to. Among so many other things, which I hope to get to, having little to do here.

I feel like I'm writing a research paper...

Anyhow, those are my thoughts for right now. People are "living" in Armenia, whereas people are "hiding" in Canada, as one person put it. This reminds me of the concept of gated communities, or a border wall: when you are rich enough, you might want to stem the problem with whatever means are at your disposal, whereas when not, you resign yourself to your fate and do the best you can. Advantages and disadvantages abound in both, the biggest one, for me, being that more people in Canada will have access to better health care, or a ventilator, as a result.

Maybe my MD brother can add any thoughts in this post: things I missed or things I may be wrong about? Hadeh yeghpair!

Jazz lovers: yesterday the jazz club (completely maskless...) was amazing! All of the performers were young but extremely talented, and they were having so much fun on stage. It was a great performance, and I enjoyed it very much. Below are a few photos and videos of the In Time Quintet (the name of the very talented pianist isn't included in the list provided on the FB page, regrettably):

Videos: