Staying In with Jan Powell

I'm a journalist and humanitarian living in France. With a third of the world having to stay in because of the Covid-19 lockdown, I talk to people from different ends of the earth to hear how they are coping with their own particular coronavirus confinement. From Paris to Penzance, Istanbul to India, what are people experiencing - the local rules, the frustrations, the highs and lows and what, if anything, do we all have in common? Audio postcards from the pandemic with me, Jan Powell.

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Episodes

Quarantine, Cocktails and Kimchi in South Korea

How has South Korea got through the COVID19 pandemic with such low rates of infection? How does its famous Track-and-Trace system work? And what was it like living in the capital at the height of the pandemic? Jan catches up with her son Hugo Powell in Seoul, where he spent three months as a Master's student. After two weeks of strict quarantine, Hugo wasted no time before delving into Korean cooking, the rising popularity of cocktails, and international rivalry for the best kimchi....

Mar 22, 2021•31 min•Season 2Ep. 2

Convoys, COVID and Negotiation in Afghanistan

Working from home is something most of us complain about but have had to get used to. But what about people who don't have the luxury of staying in, and for whom getting the job done means being out on the front line? People like Peter Scott-Bowden, who was working for the World Food Programme in Afghanistan when Jan caught up with him in December last year. Afghanistan has been in a state of war and turmoil for over four decades, leaving millions short of food. Peter's job was to get supplies o...

Feb 18, 2021•35 min•Season 2Ep. 1

COVID Fatigue, Favela Life and Rugby in Rio de Janeiro

This week Jan talks to George Powell, a journalist and film maker who has lived and worked in Rio de Janeiro for the past 6 years. He's chosen to live in one of Rio's smaller favelas, and has some interesting insights into life as the only gringo in the village, how to survive preferring rugby to football in the land that worships the Beautiful Game, and why the country's president, Jair Bolsonaro is hitting an all-time popularity level despite the rampant spread of Coronavirus, and the devastat...

Aug 31, 2020•34 min•Season 1Ep. 6

The SARS Generation and Home Cooking in Hong Kong

Many countries are facing a resurgence of COVID-19 and nowhere is that resurgence more painful than in Hong Kong. After weeks with no cases at all, the virus has struck back in the crowded island and strict control measures have been reinstated. This week, Jan speaks to Yvonne Ng, a young PhD student who was born and brought up in Hong Kong. As a particle physicist Yvonne spent the last 11 years dividing her time between the US and Europe. She was working at CERN, (the European Organization for ...

Aug 07, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 5

Living through Lockdown in Lima

This week Jan’s in Lima, the capital city of Peru, perched on the very edge of the Pacific Ocean. She’s talking to Helen Binge, a paediatric physiotherapist who moved to the city 3 years ago when her husband Chris took over the headship of Markham College, an International School in the city. Little did she realise that she would live through one of the longest Corona virus lockdowns in the world. Jan and Helen chat about why the country has suffered so badly in the pandemic despite its strict q...

Jul 17, 2020•29 min•Ep. 4

Lockdown Legacy and Ageism in Bergamo

The Italian town of Bergamo in Lombardy was devastated by the Coronavirus back in March when it first began to spread in Europe, with hospitals and cemeteries overwhelmed by the number of cases. This week Jan talks to Bergamo citizen Matteo Tarantino about his memories of the frightening early days of the pandemic, and how he and his family coped with strict lockdown conditions. Matteo is a sociologist and university lecturer who has some interesting thoughts about how ageism affected the treatm...

Jun 26, 2020•29 min

Corona, Cats and Ramadan in Istanbul

Jan finds out what it's like to be locked down during the Covid-19 pandemic in Istanbul with TRT producer and journalist Sitara Jabeen. How do you make TV reports when you can't leave home? What was it like living through Ramadan, that most sociable of months, in solitary confinement? And what's happened to the hundreds of cats that roam Istanbul's back streets, now that the restaurants and markets that normally feed them are closed by the coronavirus?

Jun 11, 2020•23 min•Ep. 2

Pandemic Painting in Penzance

Jan catches up with film-maker, old friend and colleague, Gill Fickling (find her at Gillfickling.com) After years of travel, Gill moved back to Britain to a new home in Penzance just a few weeks before the lockdown began. We take a look at what its like to settle down after life as a global nomad, how to adapt to a new community while social distancing rules apply, and the delights of being immersed in your own language and culture after years away. Gill is coping with lockdown restrictions by ...

May 25, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1

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