The two different Sydneys in lockdown

People outside Sydney seem to know an awful lot about what Sydney’s “mockdown” is really like. Problem is, they’re mostly wrong.

OPINION Right now, there are two different Sydneys.

They coexist but in entirely alternate universes.

It’s hard to tell them apart because on one level they look the same – the golden sands of Bondi, the shimmering sails of the Opera House, the glinting water of the harbour as it eases itself up towards Parramatta.

But there the similarities end.

In one version of Sydney – as judged by many who are not actually in Sydney – we’re all having an absolute ball in our so-called “lockdown”.

Trains and buses are full to the brim. Why? Because we’re flocking en masse to jewellery stores of course. As all Sydneysiders know, there’s no better time than a “mockdown” to spend up big on bangles and earrings.

And when we’re done with trinkets we’re all off to Louis Vuitton. Those designer handbags won’t pick themselves!

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian at her daily press conference.

Every day we choose an hour and leave the house all at once so we can meet our pals and picnic. But there’s just so many people about we have to squash up close.

The weekend brings parties galore – mask-less masquerade balls – and trips away which we can do so long as we whisper to any passing police officer the magic word: “essential”. With that we’re merrily on our way.

Then there’s the Sydney of reality – the one I currently reside in – which seems very different to the fantasy Sydney I keep hearing about on social media.

In real Sydney, where the lockdown has just been extended to July 30. There are four reasons to leave the house. Even then, 10kms is the limit they can travel.

A closed jewellery shop in Sydney. But aren’t they all supposed to be open and teeming? Picture: Benedict Brook

In real Sydney, I’ve been on a bus a handful of times in weeks – twice to go to the supermarket and once to get a jab. Often I’ve been the only passenger.

In the CBD, trams transport mostly air between Circular Quay and Central and then out towards the east.

You’d be hard pressed in IRL Sydney to find a jewellery store operating. Those shops that remain open have few customers. Even supermarkets are eerily quiet.

Real Sydney has parents once again trying to balance the real struggle of virtual schooling with fractious kids.

The weekend brings box sets and board games but mostly boredom.

A packed Opera House during lockdown. Picture: Brendon Thorne/AFP

‘This is not a lockdown’: *yawn*

The discrepancy between these two versions of Sydney is huge.

I see people doing their best under the circumstances, grabbing some fresh air along with a takeaway, giving people a wide berth on the footpath.

But according to those outside an area bounded by the Illawarra, Blue Mountains and Central Coast we just don’t care. That uniquely among Australians we can’t, or just plain refuse, to do lockdown.

The latest piece of proof was a five second video of locals in the eastern suburb of Coogee walking down the main strip at lunchtime. Some weren’t in masks, others were queuing by takeaway outlets. Cue the interstate outrage.

“This is not a lockdown” thundered one commenter. “This lockdown is BS,” said another. “Appalling,” chided one. “We are in for a disaster”. “Have they learned nothing from Melbourne?”

Given during Melbourne’s lockdown people were also allowed to leave the house and get a takeaway, it’s unclear what Sydneysiders should have learned exactly.

Yes, there were fewer masks. But another thing that’s been learned is that outdoor transmission is incredibly low. That’s why NSW doesn’t mandate them in the open air.

The apparent proof that Sydneysiders “don’t get it” showed no one breaking the rules or even lingering. It showed no one doing anything wrong at all.

Below is a picture that I took in Sydney at 5pm last Saturday when it would usually be bustling. No, I can’t see anyone either.

An empty Pitt St Mall in Sydney’s CBD at 5pm when shops should be busy. Picture: Benedict Brook.

Apparently we’re all ‘flippant’ in Sydney

Perhaps the worst example of fantasy Sydney came from WA Premier Mark McGowan who last week gave his appraisal of the Sydney lockdown.

“It’s odd that they are so flippant about it,” he said in a press conference.

“Flippant?” Well, cheers Mark for assessing the situation from your crystal clear viewpoint of Sydney from a mere 4000 kilometres and two time zones away.

I also enjoyed watching the sunset over the Indian Ocean last night which I could definitely see, if I squinted, from Sydney.

Cheers WA Premier Mark McGowan, thanks for the kind words. Love NSW xxxx Picture: Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

That’s not to say Sydney isn’t in the mire. It was always a risk that Australia’s largest international gateway would see a Covid outbreak. And here we are.

But the interstate armchair epidemiologists have an answer to Sydney’s woes. They know how to get the city’s Covid-19 numbers down. Zero cases within days with this one simple trick.

Close Kmart.

That’ll do it. Never mind barely anyone is in Kmart. Or that since lockdown the main retail transmissions have been in stores that would remain open under any circumstances.

Never mind that where cases are primarily cropping up is in households, workplaces and GP waiting rooms.

The message from Melbourne is actually that limiting the riskiest interactions, having top notch contact tracing and communicating and supporting those people and communities most at risk works.

Failing at that is what will put us into lockdown for months.

Many shoppers. Picture: Brendon Thorne/AFP

Error people are making about fantasy Sydney

But the drumbeat of demands continues: 10km limits should be 5kms; curfews are needed.

Even though some commentators admit these demands are less about their actual effectiveness but about the “message it sends”.

A message to send to all the fantasy Sydneysiders who are living it up in mockdown.

Another fantasy is that residents of other cities were so much better at this whole lockdown malarkey.

In Melbourne, apparently, streets, parks and beaches were empty. Expect when people were getting a coffee. Or a takeaway. Or when they were thronging to the beach in large groups. Or organising protests about lockdowns during lockdown.

St Kilda’s infamous lockdown beach party.

It’s the error all the holier than thou on social media are making. The fantasy of their own city’s lockdown then is just as wide of the mark as their fantasy of Sydney’s lockdown now.

The reality is lockdowns are difficult for everyone, everywhere. The majority of us try hard to do the right thing; a small minority will organise parties on beaches or in apartment blocks and break the rules.

The reality is most people in Sydney are staying at home as much as possible, wearing a mask indoors and not lingering in the shops.

There aren’t two Sydneys; there is just one. And right now it’s in a strict lockdown and is doing it tough.

Sydneysiders are scared and are trying our damnedest to get on top of this.

What we could do with is fewer sledges and more support.