During COVID-19 Lockdown, Italians Gather on Balconies & Sing Patriotic Songs

Trying to boost their morale during a nationwide lockdown which started this week in Italy because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Italians have been gathering on balconies across the country and singing.

The videos of Italian neighbors singing have been popping up on social media after the PM of the country, Giuseppe Conte; announced restrictions that closed virtually all daily life and only grocery stores, banks, and pharmacies remain open.

One video showed one person playing a harmonica and others joining him for a song.

The resident captioned the video ‘people of my hometown #Siena sing a popular song from their houses along an empty street to warm their hearts during the Italian #Covid_19 #lockdown’.

Empty Streets, but Italians Are Trying to Remain Hopeful

On the video, we can clearly see that the street is empty, yet we hear several voices of men and women singing a popular Italian patriotic song, Canto della Verbena or And While Sienna Sleeps.

Other videos have appeared from Naples where people were singing Abbracciami by Andrea Sannino.

The residents from this port city in the south of Italy were recorded singing their national anthem from their balconies.

Sadly, millions of children remain at home since their nurseries and schools had to be closed down.

A lot of Italians have been leaving handwritten notes throughout their neighborhoods, like ‘don’t give up’ or ‘hang in there’, which has been also seen in Wuhan since the start of the outbreak.

Chinese Are Showing Solidarity for Italians

Posts on social media from Chinese people have also appeared, expressing their solidarity with Italy, one of the most affected European countries from the virus after China.

The videos show people saying ‘keep up the fight’ and ‘stay strong’.

The residents of Wuhan who were also in lockdown at the end of January were also chanting the same phrases on their apartment balconies.

This remains a message of human solidarity in a time of isolation and adversity.

The Virus Is Decreasing in China

Growing evidence is showing that the outbreak has diminished in China. Last reported cases were only 11 and 13 deaths, 10 of which happened in Wuhan.

A declining trend is also noticed in South Korea.

Unfortunately, Italy is the most affected European country with 17,660 infections and 1,266 deaths.

They’ve banned all travels unless certified because of health or professional reasons.

The 62 million-population is expected to remain mostly at home.

Sources:

THE GUARDIAN

CLASSIC FM

CNN