Don’t feel stranded during the lockdown in Madrid! Here at Kids in Madrid we have put together a list of reliable websites you can turn to for practical advice during this period of confinement.
Where to get your news about Madrid
Madrid Metropolitan, with their overall good news view of life in the city, is a breath of fresh air during these difficult times. Nevertheless, the Madrid Metropolitan is taking their public broadcast role seriously and have put together this list of do’s and don’ts that spells out our obligations and responsibilities under lockdown very clearly.
For up to date news about the situation in Spain, the Olive Press are doing a great job at communicating the measures to be followed during the state of emergency. Another reliable source on Spanish current affairs is The Local. Likewise, Spanish broadsheet El Pais offers an impressive online English-language news feed. For news and commentary, both the Guardian and the Telegraph have excellent correspondents reporting from the frontline, as it were. Also bear in mind the British Embassy in Madrid’s Facebook page with practical advice for travel and tourism; with accurate advice for Americans offered on the US Embassy in Madrid’s Facebook page too.
Educational support
We love our kids but having them home all day while many of us are also working from home is definitely a challenge. We’ve already shared some of the Educational YouTube channels out there. The more ideas, inspiration and stand-in educators we can find online, the better!
PE with Joe Wicks (a health guru from the UK) will have your kids burn off their morning energy with some indoor-friendly exercises. Monday to Friday, get your TV linked to YouTube at 10am (in Madrid) and let the kids follow the routine so you can get some time off and they have fun too!
Online Spanish Classes for Kids (and adults!) are becoming more popular while so many families are in isolation. LAE Kids, the only Spanish School for Kids and Families in Madrid, has launched daily classes from as little as €13 per hour. Its blog and Facebook page also has loads of materials to learn vocabulary and Spanish history.
Send us a message if you have any other ideas for great educational support so other parents can benefit too!
Where to get your food
Grocery shopping
The shopping guidelines are clear: we can go food shopping, but only one person per household. The large supermarket chains are currently asking that shoppers only use online services if you are too unwell to go outdoors. This is so that their overstretched internet delivery options are available for those who have no other way of buying provisions.
However, in Madrid we are incredibly lucky to have a wide range of indoor markets that are offering local delivery services. This trustworthy website (only in Spanish) coordinates all 47 markets and is worth relying on in these uncertain times. Another less well known online grocery service that is committed to buying locally and thus having low environmental impact is Deliberry.
You can and should buy takeaway food
Here are some great guidelines about consuming delivery food at home, such as washing your hands before you eat delivery food, which is more important than disinfecting the packaging it came in. And remember, hot food can kill coronavirus.
Valentina Hernández Ruffoni’s Eat Out Madrid Facebook group is a wonderful resource for bewildered parents looking for practical support during the never-ending round of mealtimes caused by confinement. We turned to Valentina for recommendations of good restaurants that are still doing home delivery during lockdown and she suggested the American Restaurant Radicals 1979, Sandro’s Chicken that deliver amazing Nando’s type chicken meals and Eat Me for burgers. She also speaks highly of Mazal Madrid who deliver bagels to any address within the M30 for orders over 10 euros.
Home cooking
And, now you have the luxury of time, perhaps mealtimes can become a fun family moment where you can show your children the joy of eating with your five senses. The internet is awash with YouTube channels dedicated to kids food. Our child-led favourites include Cook with Amber and Charlis Crafty Kitchen.
Lockdown in Madrid: Services
English-speaking medics during lockdown
Multilingual private hospital HM Madrid provides online sessions with paediatricians that can be paid for via transfer or through health insurance policies. Meanwhile the International Women’s Health Center in Madrid is fully operational for pregnancies during Covid-19 outbreak. For other healthcare services during this time of quarantine, check out this directory compiled by English Speaking Healthcare Association Spain or contact Trip Medic. Our friends at Sinews Multilingual Therapy Institute offer counselling online and are experts at dealing with issues such as homesickness and anxiety caused by living away from loved ones.
Where to get legal advice
Apart from the very reliable and up-to-date Embassy list of English-speaking lawyers that can be consulted here, we at Kids in Madrid know of many happy clients who have worked with the following fluent English speaking lawyers: Lucia Goy, who specialises in immigration and citizenship, Margaret Hauschild, who specializes in property and Brexit-related issues, and Eduardo Franco who specializes in tax and self-employment issues.
Where to get financial advice
You might also be worried about your finances during this unstable period. Chris Webb is a trusted qualified Financial Advisor and is available to chat through your circumstances.
And finally, take it easy, we are natural survivors! Chris Neill, an English psychologist based in Madrid, reminds us in his recent blog entitled How to cope with lockdown and stay sane that we expats are a resilient bunch who can get used to uncertainty and are entitled to a measure of madness during these extraordinary times.
#staysafe and #stayhome