'A ghost-town, tumbleweed quality': New York shuts down over coronavirus
It was romantic, in a post-apocalyptic sort of way.
A young couple, walking arm-inarm in downtown Manhattan, huddled under their shared umbrella. Their eyes seemed bright, filled with affection – and, unlike the bottom half of their faces, unobscured by pale blue surgical masks.
They were among those meandering this part of New York City despite widespread anxiety over coronavirus. While neighborhoods were not completely dead, many shops were closed and there was a marked decline in foot traffic.
As coronavirus cases continue to spike in New York and across the US, individuals, authorities and institutions are all taking steps to contain this outbreak. New York’s court system has slowed to a crawl. Public schools here are shuttered. The city has ordered its world famous restaurants, bars and theaters closed, except for takeout. Broadway shows have gone dark.
In Chinatown, coronavirus-spurred quietude was most apparent with empty and shuttered eateries. Many bakeries, usually abuzz with customers buying buns and coffee, were nearempty.
“Under these dire circumstances selections may be limited,” advised one bakery’s sign. It was printed on paper and affixed to the window. Other signs posted on doors advised customers of temporary and indefinite closures. Through windows, chairs were seen stacked atop tables. Salespersons in some of the neighborhood’s eyeglass and jewelry stores stood idle, waiting for customers.
Slightly north, a sign in a still-open
Little Italy bakery advised clients: “For Your Safety + Ours, No More Than 4 People At a Time.”
Handbags and haute couture sat unsold at closed boutiques as one neared the chic SoHo neighborhood, though some signs advised prospective customers that they could make shopping appointments.
On Broadway, walking downtown from Houston Street, the sidewalks were near-empty. Victoria’s Secret, normally swarmed with patrons picking over buy-three, get-three unmentionables, was locked. The Prada outlet once popularized by Sex In the City, was newly silent.
Further south, near City Hall, a man ambled down the sidewalk, toting a cylindrical container of sanitizing wipes. One white disinfectant sheet was sticking out.
“As much as I like my dentist, I don’t trust the seat was being fully cleaned,” said the man, Mark Oldman, who had a dental appointment. “You have to bring your own.”
“The hottest accessory on the streets of New York is no longer an iPhone,” he joked.
Did the city seem different to him, with all the closings?
“It feels like Thanksgiving,” he said of the US holiday, during which many New York City residents leave town. “Not completely dead, it just has this kind of ghost-town, tumbleweed quality.”
“It’s not as apocalyptic as the TV news would suggest,” he continued. “I just saw a woman walk into Zara and I thought, ‘That’s interesting, shopping during the plague.’”
There were other glimpses of cautious normalcy.
Two construction workers conversed while walking towards Wall
Street. One had a N-95 respirator mask on his face, and it somehow remained in place though the straps were down. His companion was not wearing a mask, and he spat on the ground as they walked.
Near the Civic Center, a young woman in a surgical mask exited a college building. She sat on a bench and pulled down her mask, so it rested below her chin. Then, she lit a cigarette. She smoked , though it entails repeated hand-mouth contact.
Back near Chinatown, a queue had formed outside the city marriage bureau. Because of social distancing initiatives, only 50 people were permitted inside at a time, slowing down
the licensing process.
Rei Hayashi and Ben Shaul, who have been together eight years, were among those waiting. The license is just “paperwork”, Hayashi and Shaul said, but they had the time to come down and decided to get it.
Hayashi, who has legal permanent residency, was concerned about potential border closures.
“It’s just checking off boxes,” Shaul said.
Federica Bressan, a Fulbright scholar, plans on returning to her home town of Gorizia, Italy, on Sunday. She was “heartbroken” to leave New York City and while she didn’t fear coronavirus here per se, “It’s the uncertainty.
I don’t know what’s going to happen.
“No matter what happens, I think being at home is always better.”