NIKKI’S ROMAN NIGHTMARE
A NEW ROSS woman has been left stranded in coronavirus-hit Rome, describing the atmosphere in the city as ‘apocalyptic’.
Nikki Saridakis, 23, has been living in the Eternal City since October, working in restaurants and studying to be an English language teacher.
She said everyone is on high alert: ‘I have never seen a city change so much in a matter of hours. I was at college in the IH (International House) on Wednesday and everything was completely normal. As I was leaving school, someone said there was a possibility that it would have to close but no one believed it would happen and then it did.’
With only five days left to go in her course, Nikki is hoping she can complete it by the end of the month, but is considering leaving Rome today (Tuesday) if the situation worsens.
‘I have been out in the city the past few nights and it feels like the last days of Rome. There are only two or three people on buses and the metro was empty one time I used it. Even at rush hour, there is nobody around. It’s not nice walking around this spectacular city when there is nobody there. It’s so eerie and unusual not to see hundreds of people around the Colosseum. I pretty much had the city to myself.’
An outbreak of the coronavirus in the Lazio region, where Rome is, has seen widespread panic grip the city.
‘I am 100 per cent in limbo. I will wait until Tuesday and if things have gotten worse, I’ll most likely get out of here. The thing is there was a case in Rome before and the person went straight into isolation. The hysteria is far more now. We are hearing about it every day in the news. It’s just spreading so rapidly.’
Nikki said, as in other affected countries, people are wearing masks and latex gloves and there are ‘wash your hands’ signs everywhere.
‘A lot of things have been cancelled,’ she said.
The problem she will face is travel within Italy is restricted so Nikki is considering moving to Greece.
‘It all depends on the airline. It’s 100 per cent hysteria and panic here. Everyone seems to be getting ready for the announcement that Rome is an affected area. It seems to me like it’s a normal flu.
I think if you are young, you are fairly OK but obviously if you have any major respiratory problems or if you are older, it’s a serious concern.’
Deputy Verona Murphy’s haulage company, Drumur Transport Ltd delivers to northern Italy.
She said deliveries of frozen prwans and beef supplies have been affected.
‘We are down on tonnage. It’s not currently at crisis levels but we will see what the next week brings.’
She said some of her drivers have been issued with personal protection kits, including gloves.
I HAVE BEEN OUT IN THE CITY THE PAST FEW NIGHTS AND IT FEELS LIKE THE LAST DAYS OF ROME