When I didn’t wear a mask, “I got a vaccine”… Israel’s Spring in One Year [영상]

The streets of Joppa in Israel on the 4th (local time). In the warm spring sunlight, the crowded streets are full of vitality. Even among the citizens who have regained their daily lives in more than a year, a flower of laughter is bursting.

The Korean people who photographed the scene on this day and reported it to the JoongAng Ilbo were also excited. “Wow, seeing this distance again.” Even when I moved from cafe to restaurant back to cafe, the conversation did not end.

Korean resident Yoo Hyun-ju, 41, said, “Cafés were closed or only takeout was possible not long ago, It’s like a dream to meet people at a cafe like this, and drink coffee.” After eating at a restaurant, I was sorry to break up, so I headed to another cafe.

It was the Corona 19 vaccine that brought Koreans back together in one year. All six people who gathered on that day are said to have completed the second vaccination of the vaccine. This is why you are not afraid of infection even if you take off your mask and eat together. Lee Young-ran (49) said, “In Israel, the Passover (March 27 to April 4) is the beginning of spring, and the number of confirmed cases decreased by vaccination, so I can enjoy the spring.”

Israel, where 61% of the population has been vaccinated, is quickly regaining its pre-Corona 19 routine. The achievement of collective immunity has entered the countdown soon. The New York Times (NYT) on the 5th said, “Israel’s economy has almost completely resumed.” “Israel is giving us a hint of what life will look like after the Corona 19 pandemic.”

On this day, there were 177 confirmed cases in Israel based on a world meter. This is the first time since June of last year that the number of confirmed cases in Israel has been recorded 100 per day. On January 20th, the number of confirmed patients soared to the 10,000 level a day, and then made a remarkable reversal.

As the number of new cases drastically declined, Israel has opened all the doors of commercial facilities. The use of restaurants, cafes, shops, shopping malls, gyms, theaters, hotels, pubs, clubs, and sports facilities has become free. Lee Kang-geun (55) said, “Even places that initially requested vaccination passports are now rarely tested because there are now more vaccinations, and if they say they have received the vaccination, they will let them in.” On this day of Easter, face-to-face worship was also allowed without a limit on the number of people after a year.

The Korean people said, “Everything is looking for a place at a fast pace.” The Korean people are on the streets of Ben Yehuda, According to a video taken and sent to the JoongAng Ilbo, Israel’s There is a long line in front of the restaurants. The band returns on the street, and the excited adult dances, and the child shakes the body. Many parents pull a stroller or go out with their children. Young people are busy taking pictures of the surrounding landscape and themselves. Israel currently allows 50 people outdoors and 20 people indoors for private gatherings, and plans to increase this number.

The Parade on Palm Sunday (last Sunday before Easter) in Jerusalem, which was canceled in the aftermath of Corona 19 last year, was also held with thousands attending.

“The weather is good, so the parks are crowded with people. It’s frustrating to see people who are happy to eat and take a walk as a family. “It seems like the real spring of Iran is coming,” he said.

In the outdoors, the number of people without masks increased noticeably. Lee Kang-geun said, “I used to avoid seeing people who didn’t wear masks in Israel. Now, even looking at people who didn’t wear masks, the atmosphere has changed to’I guess I’ve been vaccinated.'”

According to Israeli media Harets and others on the 5th, Israel is expected to lift the mandate to wear outdoor masks starting next week. Professor Nahman Ash, the head of Israel’s Corona 19 quarantine, said on the day, “According to the recommendation of the Corona 19 Task Force of the Ministry of Health, we expect that you will not need to wear a mask outdoors from next week.” However, the duty to wear a mask is maintained at indoor events. The Israeli Army (IDF) also started an experiment to check whether it is safe by taking off its mask and working outdoors on the 5th.

Israel’s return to daily life was largely influenced by the rapid vaccination rate. Israel, who entered the vaccination on December 20 last year, recorded a vaccination rate of 12.25% on January 1, after 10 days. On January 20, the first month of vaccination, the vaccination rate was 28.01%. When the blockade began to be lifted in stages on February 21, the vaccination rate already reached 50.33% (based on the first vaccination). The number of confirmed daily cases in Israel decreased sharply from this day onwards. It has decreased from 5000 people, 4000 people, 3000 people, 1000 people or less to 100~200 people.

Israeli public health expert Ronnie Gamju told the BBC that “the number of severely ill patients and deaths in Israel has also decreased significantly,” he said. “Israel is demonstrating how the country can get back to normal with vaccination.” Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious medicine at Korea University’s Guro Hospital, said, “Israel seems to be the winner in the world vaccination war.” In Israel, it is analyzed that the high vaccination rate was driven by the government’s fast vaccine acquisition and well-equipped medical system.

Koreans said that they would like to travel abroad first when the situation of Corona 19 improves and the procedure becomes simpler around the world. Yoo Hyun-joo said, “The country I want to visit in the first place is Korea.”

Reporter Lim Sun-young [email protected]