A B.C. man who now lives in Sweden says that country's relatively soft approach to coronavirus precautions is like "living in a Petri dish, waiting for the experiment to happen."
Gary Moore, a former Kelowna photojournalist, says he expected a lockdown on public activity to come, but as of Monday, residents still have more freedom to move around than in Canada.
Moore moved to Malmo, Sweden, last year and says the nation has taken "a light approach" to the global pandemic.
"I stocked up on pasta and rice thinking we might be locked down, but it hasn't happened. They are encouraging social distancing, but the parks and restaurants and pubs are all open. It's quite busy still."
Gatherings and cafes are limited to 50 people.
Moore's son is still in school, and his partner still at work in the school system.
"Life seems like it's pretty normal ... you can go outside and do stuff," he said.
A temporary field hospital was built in the capital, Stockholm, one of the country's hardest-hit areas.
As of Monday night in Sweden, the Johns Hopkins global coronavirus resource centre was reporting 14,777 COVID cases in the country, and 1,580 deaths, with 550 recovered in the nation of 10 million people.
"I'm worried like everybody else," said Moore. "I covered SARS, H1N1 and didn't blink, but this one is making me a bit nervous. It's like we're fighting an invisible enemy."
He says many are working from home, but there have not nearly been the same kind of restrictions that are in place in Canada.
"It kind of feels like we're a human experiment," he said of Sweden's 'herd immunity' approach to COVID-19.
"Swedes are kind of a stand-offish people, anyway," he said with a chuckle, so there is not quite the same level of close contact among many people.
