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Coronavirus: Perth-born Alsha Coppolina’s lonely life holidaying in Italy amid virus crisis

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Kate EmeryThe West Australian
Perth ex-pat Alsha Coppolina in Rome, where popular tourist attractions are near empty.
Camera IconPerth ex-pat Alsha Coppolina in Rome, where popular tourist attractions are near empty. Credit: Alsha Coppolina

West Australians in lockdown in Italy say tourist attractions are empty, restaurants are making guests sit apart and police are on the streets.

As the Australian Government extended its travel ban to Italy, meaning citizens returning home must self-isolate for a fortnight, Perth ex-pats and tourists reported a “sombre”, even “eerie” feeling.

Perth-born Alsha Coppolina, who was holidaying in Italy, told the West Live podcast yesterday restaurants and bars were moving tables apart and leaving doors and windows open.

“The tourist attractions that are usually filled with people (are) very, very quiet,” she said.

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“The Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, all very very quiet, lots of people wearing surgical masks walking around, restaurants very empty, taxi drivers are struggling.

“They’ve put in place at restaurants and bars (that) you have to sit a metre away from everyone... The restaurant I was at yesterday evening they’ve moved their tables further away from each other and they’ve had to leave the doors and windows open in the restaurant to circulate the air.”

Peter Gibbons, who was due to fly home to Perth yesterday until his flight was cancelled, said the mood in Rome was “calm but a bit eerie”.

“Everyone was worried for the economy but now it seems the population has realised that it needs to become more serious about the virus as a health issue,” he said.

Italy had its highest one day coronavirus death toll of 168 on Tuesday. Last night the Italian death toll stood at 631 with 10,149 cases.

Italian-born Angela Pierobon, who lived in Perth for years, said police and the military were patrolling the roads around Padua, near Venice.

“If they stop you, you need to show them a document that declares where you work to prove you're not just hanging around,” she said.

“If they caught you doing something different then what allowed, you might get a fine... or even arrested. There are not too many people around.”

One Australian ex-pat living in northern Italy said restaurants were closed and bars were closing at 6pm but supermarkets were mostly still open and well stocked.

“We aren’t fighting over loo paper here,” he said. “But then, we have bidets in the houses, too.”

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