Und weiter geht es mit unserer „2020 im Ausland“ Serie. Ich freue mich ganz besonders, euch heute Sally vorzustellen, die mit ihrer Familie im wunderschönen Melbourne in Australien lebt. Wir lernten uns im Januar auf Bali kennen, wo sie mit ihrem Mann Evan und den beiden Töchtern Amelie und Annabel urlaubte.

Seitdem sind wir immer wieder in Kontakt und haben uns auch über die aktuelle Situation ausgetauscht. Chris und ich waren während unserer Weltreise zwei Mal leider viel zu kurz in Melbourne und uns hat die Stadt mit dieser unfassbar hohen Lebensqualität so gut gefallen. Ein Ort, an den wir definitiv einmal länger zurückkehren möchten, wenn solch eine Fernreise wieder unbeschwert möglich sein wird.

Zurück zu Sally und ihrer Familie. Melbourne war bekanntlich eine der Städte mit dem härtesten und längsten Lockdown weltweit. Wie es ihnen in dieser Zeit ergangen ist und wie die aktuelle Situation am anderen Ende der Welt ist, das erzählt Sally euch heute selbst.

PS: Nachdem ich mit dem Übersetzen des Interviews begonnen habe, dachte ich mir, wie schade es immer ist, im Deutschen Aussagen nicht Wort für Wort wiedergeben zu können. Und so habe ich mich dafür entschieden, stattdessen die Original-Antworten von Sally mit euch zu teilen. Ich hoffe, das ist für alle okay und ich wünsche euch viel Spaß mit dem vierten Teil unserer Artikel-Serie.

1. Wie würdest du dich selbst in wenigen Sätzen vorstellen?

Married to my husband, Evan and a happy mother to daughters, Amelie (aged 12) and Annabel (aged 10). Working full time as the National Sales Manager of a luxurious French company who specialises in the manufacturing of premium wine and spirit bottles. I am devoted to my family, friends and my work and love the city in which we call home; Melbourne. Keen traveller and lover of all things French, luxurious and elegant.

Sally mit ihrem Mann Evan und den Töchtern Annabel und Amelie.

2. In Melbourne hattet ihr einen der längsten und härtesten Lockdowns weltweit. Wie sah euer Alltag in dieser Zeit aus?

Our girls were home schooled for the majority of 2020 and therefore a normal day started with a relaxing coffee with my husband at home, a rare event in a non Covid year! In truth, we enjoyed our mornings during the lockdown period as we were able to spend more time as a family without the stress of racing against the clock, dropping girls at separate schools (on time) and arriving at our respective offices in time for first meeting!

Our girls were lucky enough to receive a home school education which kept them engaged, busy and smiling. Our 4 year old cavoodle (Louis Oliver) was also smiling given his new found company!

Working full time with children is often a very tight juggling act and the first few months of lockdown enabled me to take a breath, slow down and enjoy this extra time with my family whilst also concentrating on my work. Despite the sadness of the virus, the loss of lives, separation of loved ones and hardship endured by the medical professionals all over the world, our new Covid life taught our family to think more about what matters most.  It was a time of reflection and daily meditation and reading became a new routine.

However, when on-line school finished each day at 3.30pm, it was a different story. Our daughters were without extra curricular activities such as sport, music, socialisation. They felt isolated, bored and at times, lonely. It became difficult to manage their demands whilst trying to complete corporate demands. We noticed a higher usage of technology by Amelie and Annabel and it was way too easy to open another bottle of Champagne!

However, we survived and felt very grateful that during the extensive lockdown period in Melbourne, we had a warm home, hot water, enough work and each other to get us through. We are very aware that this was not the same situation for many others.

3. Wie ist die aktuelle Situation in Melbourne und in Australien im Allgemeinen?

Melbourne is alive again, yet we remain vigilant with the social distancing rules and wearing of masks in a confined environment. We understand that a lapse in judgement by our government and society could lead to an uncontrollable outbreak. We have learnt our lesson and we are more United and proud of our city than pre-Covid.

Melbourne is one of the most vibrant cities in the world and with the recent easing of restrictions, our city is now dancing again and it’s a great feeling. We are no longer required to wear a mask in a public arena (outside of a confined space), we can entertain friends and family in our homes again and thankfully, we are now allowed to enter all States and Territories in Australia. The freedom to travel within our vast country, to finally meet up with loved ones and simply escape the business of our large city was welcomed with elation, relief and joy.

4. Ist es zum jetzigen Zeitpunkt erlaubt, den eigenen Bundestaat oder sogar Australien komplett zu verlassen?

Within the last two weeks, we were finally given permission by all States and Territories within Australia to resume interstate travel. Leaving Australia for most Australians at the moment is not a high priority!

5.  Verfolgst du aktuell den Umgang mit der Situation in Europa und anderen Teilen der Welt? Würdest du sagen, dass es eher ein Vor- oder Nachteil ist, „weit weg von allem am anderen Ende der Welt“ zu leben?

As I work for a French company with large global presence, I follow the international situation very closely and think about the significance loss of lives and families impacted by the Covid-19 virus. Personally, I am happy to be far away from the pandemic which has such a huge impact in Europe, USA and other parts of the world, however I pray for the quick arrival of a safe and effective vaccination to enable all Australians to regain our freedom to travel overseas again. Personally, I have spent the last 20 years traveling to Europe 2-3 times a year and other international cities and I miss Europe every single day.

I know I am not alone with these thoughts. Generally speaking, Australians are travellers and not having the freedom and liberty to jump on a plane to experience an entirely different culture is extremely frustrating.

6. Welche Perspektive gibt die Regierung für die nahe Zukunft?

Our government has handled the Covid-19 pandemic with strength and courage, trust and resilience. They have provided all Australians with hope and we look forward to a new year in 2021 with the continued low rate of cases.  Australia introduced a social payment system at the very commencement of the virus to assist with financial difficulties caused by the pandemic. I can only commend our state and national governments for how they have managed the virus and their ongoing support.

Thank you very much dear Sally! Wishing you all the best for you and your family! Looking forward to meeting you again soon anywhere between Germany and Australia!

Bilder: Josie loves, Sally Arnold