Besalú, #19 (An empty central plaza), La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
The COVID Crisis really is a double-edged sword.
On one hand, here in Catalunya, the tourism industry has been hit hard in the head by an oak two-by-four… hotels, restaurants, tour services, taxis, buses, or any other vendor associated with the tourist dollar is reeling and seeing stars.
These are terrible times for them.
On the other hand…
There are more dolphin sightings along the coast, more fishies in the sea, less trash along the streets and on the beaches. The decibel level everywhere has gone down–fewer motorcycles, less drunk shouting in the city streets on weekend nights, and so on.
And… no hordes of tourists, packed buses, monster cruise ships, or trains of touring automobiles descending upon the quaint villages of this part of Spain.
It’s a strange experience to visit these picturesque spots and be so alone… stores and restaurants closed, vacant vacation rentals, nary a stray cat on the street.
And After?
What will happen when we finally get through this viral crisis?
Will we change at all? Will we be more humble and caring of our neighbors? Will we have a renewed sense of stewardship toward Mother Earth? Will we back off a bit from our frenzied, consumer-oriented lifestyles and maybe value more our family and friends?
Will we?
Nahhhh… I seriously doubt it. Once things get back to some sort of normal, once we have some sort of herd immunity via vaccines and just outright infection of huge numbers, I suspect it will be back to:
Business As Usual.
Note the empty streets in these villages. These are “Top Ten List” kind o’ towns in Catalunya that are usually packed with tourists year ’round…
Besalú
Besalú, #23, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #6, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #7, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #8, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #15, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #21, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
A nearby abandoned textile factory provides an opportunity for a bit of “urbex”…
Besalú, #26, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #24, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #27, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #29, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #31, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #34, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #37 (The factory from below), La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #38, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #48 (The factory from above), La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Besalú, #51, La Garrotxa, Catalunya, 2020
Mura
Mura, #25, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #3, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #5, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #12, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #13, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #14, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #15, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Mura, #26, El Bages, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit
Rupit i Pruit, #39, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #2, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #11, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #15, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #22, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #24, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #25, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #31, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #33, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #34, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #30, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #46, Catalunya, 2020
Rupit i Pruit, #47 (The stray cat), Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles
Banyoles, #7, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #4, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #10, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #13, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #14, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #15, Catalunya, 2020
Banyoles, #26, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell i Llafranc
Calella de Palafrugell, #1, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell, #5, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell, #6, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #4, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #5, Catalunya, 2020
El Far de Sant Sebastian, #2, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #15, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #16, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #17, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #18, Catalunya, 2020
Llafranc, #20, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell, #14, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell, #15, Catalunya, 2020
Calella de Palafrugell, #7, Catalunya, 2020
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