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Trump Extends Social Distancing Guidelines; The Challenges Of 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games Postponement; The Appeal Of Lisbon
Aired March 31, 2020 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello to everyone watching worldwide. This is CNN 10 and I`m Carl Azuz. It`s great to see you this Tuesday.
We`re starting in the U.S. and then moving to Japan to fill you in on the latest concerning the coronavirus pandemic. President Donald Trump has
extended his administration`s social distancing guidelines.
These are government suggestions intended to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. They urge Americans to avoid groups of more than people they say
older people should stay home and they also encourage Americans to work and learn from home. Those guidelines were scheduled to end on Monday and the
president had previously said that Easter Sunday, April 12th, would be a great time to reopen some parts of the United States.
But this week, after looking over disease information with his top health advisors, President Trump said the Easter deadline was, quote, just an
aspiration, and he said he`d lengthened the government social distancing guidelines until April 30th.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won. That would be the greatest
loss of all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: The president added he believed America would be well on its way to recovery by June 1st.
Several health officials we`ve heard from in the U.S. and abroad have said the COVID-19 pandemic is going to get worse before it gets better.
Among all of the health problems it`s caused and events it`s postponed are the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. The Summer Games were supposed to
kick off in Tokyo, Japan, on July 24th.
Leaders from the International Olympic Committee, Japanese Olympic organizers and the Japanese government held a phone call on Monday and
decided the events would start almost exactly a year later, on July 23rd, 2021.
IOC president Thomas Bach said humankind currently finds itself in a dark tunnel and that these Olympic Games can be a light at the end of it. But
for the country of Japan, the buildings that`s constructed for the events and for the athletes themselves, this presents a number of new challenges,
how can they be overcome.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No visit to Tokyo`s Asakusa neighborhood is complete without a ride on a rickshaw. But this year, almost no one`s
riding.
This is a lot of empty rickshaws here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we have to fight like, you know, like a coronavirus (ph).
RIPLEY: Finding customers is like fighting over scraps for rickshaw drivers like Yoshi Foriya (ph). And now that Tokyo 2020 is postponed at
least until next year, the road ahead is looking long and lonely.
Japan`s tourism industry is bracing for an economic bloodbath, millions of jobs and billions of dollars are on the line.
When you combine postponing the Olympics and the coronavirus outbreak, can you put a price tag on how much that`s going to cost Japan?
SAYURI SHIRAI, KEIO UNIVERSITY: It`s likely that the loss will be around 36 billion U.S. dollars.
RIPLEY: Thirty-six billion U.S. dollars?
SHIRAI: The damages might be.
RIPLEY: Keio University professor Sayuri Shirai says that astronomical cost includes cancellation and maintenance fees for more than three dozen
Olympic venues, compensation for thousands who`ve already purchased condos in the Olympic athletes village, billions in broadcasting rights and
prepaid advertising.
SHIRAI: We do it next year, we don`t know how successful is 2020 Olympics will be.
RIPLEY: More than 4 million tickets are already sold, some seats costing up to three thousand dollars.
Eight hundred dollars for two tickets?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
RIPLEY: Wow.
Demand was so high, ticket holders like Kenji Fuma (ph) had to enter a lottery. He wonders if his luck has run out.
Has anyone told you what`s going to happen with your tickets?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing didn`t happen yet. So, even the government didn`t send any emails and didn`t make any announcements. So we`re just
waiting for their next steps.
RIPLEY: Fans are not the only ones waiting. Olympic organizers need to sort out a mind-boggling jigsaw puzzle, resolving scheduling conflicts with
other major sporting events, rescheduling Olympic qualifiers.
Kaori Yamaguchi is the 1988 Olympic judo bronze medalist and a member of Japan`s Olympic Committee. She knows postponement has a huge impact on
athletes.
If the games are delayed by a year, their training schedule drastically changes, she says, but I think the athletes can handle it.
Yamaguchi says this is a marathon not a sprint.
The coronavirus crisis will end, the Olympics will go on, Japan will have its moment in the global spotlight.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ (voice-over): Ten-second trivia:
"The Night in Lisbon" was written by one author who also penned "All Quiet on the Western Front"?
Nevil Shute, Graham Greene, Stephen Crane, or Erich Maria Remarque?
German writer Erich Maria Remarque wrote both of these novels.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: Lisbon is the capital of Portugal. It was also a transit point in World War Two for refugees who were fleeing Nazi Germany. But its history
goes back much farther than that, given that Lisbon is thousands of years old.
Right now, the city is shut down, like many other capitals grappling with coronavirus. But once that passes, it will once again be an extraordinary
place to visit and you don`t have to wait another moment to join us on a virtual trip there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REPORTER: Lisbon, Portugal, beautifully combines old world charm with modern culture and sophistication. Adding to its appeal, it`s a bargain for
tourists.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, for any traveler looking for a great travel there right now, Lisbon is actually the perfect choice. It`s one of the
most affordable cities in Europe right now.
REPORTER: Located on the west coast of Portugal, this capital city overlooks the Tagus River.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lisbon is actually built on seven hills. So if you`re going, you should definitely pack your walking shoes.
REPORTER: As you stroll along winding cobblestone streets, you will find tiles or azulejos are everywhere in Lisbon. The Moors introduced the art of
tile making in the 8th century, and the Portuguese are still masters of the craft today.
The National Museum of Tile housed in a lovely former convent is dedicated to the art. Highlights include the tiled Manueline cloisters, the Lisbon
cityscape dating from 1738, and a tiled nativity scene from 1580.
To see another practical craft elevated to an art form, stop by the National Coach Museum, the museum founded by Queen Amelia in 1904 is home
to a one-of-a-kind collection of a neatly embellished coaches and carriages, some dating back to the early 1700s.
One neighborhood packed with must-sees is Belem, Portuguese for Bethlehem, about 30 minutes west of the city center.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People go there for three main things: the monastery, a tower of Belem and a pastry shop.
REPORTER: The Jeronimos Monastery includes a mixture of architectural styles.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s a beautiful 16th century structure that took 50 years to build and it`s not hard to see why. The architecture on the
outside, you`ll see detailing that really refers to the nautical history of Portugal, so that in the cloister, the columns look like coiled ropes,
you`ll see anchors and seashells embedded kind of on the exterior and it`s really quite lovely.
REPORTER: Just down the road is the Pasteis de Belem, founded in 1837. The pastry shop is famous for its creamy egg custard tarts.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They`re made from a secret recipe and the recipe came from the monastery, Jeronimos. This is just beside us and the fact that we
make them all throughout today and they`re always warm and freshly made I think that makes the big difference.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These egg custard tarts actually make about 10,000 of them a day and it`s not hard to see why, very easy to eat three or four of
them. They`re under a euro a piece, so they`re priced just right.
REPORTER: Once you`ve had two or three pastries, a walk along the Tagus River leads to a storybook castle on its banks, the Belem Tower. Built
between 1515 and 1520, the structure marks Portugal`s many maritime victories and was once used as a military base to guard the port from
pirates.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When it was built, it was actually on a small island in the middle of the river. Though flow of the river had since moved, so
it`s actually now on the banks of the river.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
AZUZ: At Michigan`s Grand Traverse Academy, it`s a tradition to notify students in person when they become valedictorian or salutatorian. But
because the schools closed due to COVID-19, the principal had to get creative.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are GTA`s 2020 classic valedictorian.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am?
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are. You are.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: And as far as the salutatorian announcement went -- well, the principal got creative with that too.
Some people might choose to drive through that kind of excitement, but who can keep it all bottled up when your principal mission is to be
salutatorian, your top two students, but all the doors are closed, sometimes you got to open a window, or drive up to one to wish them your
"congraduations." And then you could take your vale-victory lap.
Windhoek International School is watching today. It`s in the African nation of Namibia.
Thank you for subscribing to our official YouTube channel.
I`m Carl Azuz for CNN 10.
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