Writing from Rome, Italy – by VAN ARKADIE, Alex Sunday 22 March 2020:  Less than our first week in Rome from Colombo (via Doha thro. courtesy of Kuwait Airways in association with Qatar Airways) the day continues to remain cool, sunny, and pleasant. A near-deserted Historic City including its suburban Provinces remain closed, calm, and solemnly quiet … like during national mourning !!! The only audible sounds I hear re-echo freely from the chatter and chirp of birds flying outside in the autumn air. Like other affected nations elsewhere, Italy is fighting hard to resist.  Recorded numbers of the nation’s afflicted to date are nearing 30,000 with almost 4,000 in  recovery and  over 2,900 dead. The number of infected persons irrespective of age continue to rise in Rome as well as in the North although reflecting a gradual drop in warmer regions along the coastal South.  ...

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