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My Life in Iran During Coronavirus
Despite being hard hit by Covid-19, human kindness prevails
I came to Iran in April of last year. By now, my husband and I thought we’d be back home in the United States. But with Covid-19 ravaging the country and the rest of the world, our tickets have been canceled. At first, I felt very insecure about being here, even as it is becoming clear that nowhere is safe from the spread of the coronavirus. We’re in a large city that is purely dependent on agriculture from other areas — questions of supply chain shortages and failures concerned me, as well as the potential for civil unrest. After all, it has been an extremely hard 2019 and 2020 for Iranians, pandemic aside.
However, after reading Western news and media and seeing the panic buying of toilet paper, disinfectants, and masks, I’ve wondered if perhaps it is not actually better to be here in Iran.
It has been an extremely hard 2019 and 2020 for Iranians, pandemic aside.
These days, supermarkets, farmers markets, and other shops in Tehran are at times crowded, full of people waiting in line with larger than usual amounts of food to buy. But so far, I haven’t seen any shoving, grabbing, fighting, or hoarding. The shelves are stocked. There haven’t been any shortages that I have yet noticed. I can still find everything I need.
Toilet paper is not as big a need here as elsewhere — people wash their bodies with water after using the restroom and might use toilet paper just to dry off. Nobody is doing the customary three kisses on the cheeks anymore; some have adopted the Wuhan Shake, or foot bump.
Very likely, the upcoming Nowruz, or Persian New Year, is going to be quite different, as it is customary to visit all your living relatives and host them as well. The road to the north has been blocked, banning Tehrani travelers from potentially spreading the virus to other, more susceptible and less prepared communities, like what has happened in Rasht, where there are no beds at the local hospital and plenty of patients still needing care.
There is an underlying belief in Iran that if you want to be safe from the coronavirus, you…
