MUSCAT: With the total lockdown now in its third day, many residents in Oman have almost come to their wits end having exhausted board games, Netflix shows, online family gatherings and cooking sessions.
While families have the luxury of experience and infrastructure, not to mention the support from family members to manage the lockdown efficiently, the same cannot be said of the bachelors, and those staying alone.
Sajith Krishnan, a bachelor employed with a leading automobile agency in Oman, who is staying in bachelors’ accommodation in Al Khuwair, an upmarket locality in Oman, says that he had to invest in an induction cooker, cookware, groceries and other essential stuff for cooking to manage the lockdown days.
“I cook only once a day as it gets tiring and I also like to spend some time in gaming. I have now special respect for those who cook daily.”
Rani Ashokan, a housemaid who has just recovered from COVID-19, says that it was her building mates that helped her with essential purchases as she was down during the days preceding the lockdown. “I have just recovered from my illness and I have barely any strength to cook or clean. But then my friends who stay in the same building help me. It is tough but you have to survive.”
Many husbands have discovered a new found passion for cooking, giving wives a break from their kitchen routine. Adil Mazhar, a businessman staying in Qurum beachside feels stoked by his successful kitchen experiments.
Another resident, 25-year-old Avaantica Ashok ensures boredom is kept to minimum by introducing her family members to new board games and card games that she has dusted out from her cupboard.
