A Doll Hunt Keeps New Zealand Kids Sanitary Amid A Lockdown

JAKARTA - We have spent many weeks in the alert status for the COVID-19 pandemic. Tired of starting to haunt. Even in New Zealand. There, the government is not only looking for ways to end the spread of the virus, but also how to get rid of the boredom of the community, especially children in the midst of a lockdown situation. "Bear hunt" is a solution.

The New Zealand government realizes children need entertainment. Bear hunt, aka teddy bear hunting, is hoped to be able to help New Zealand children stay busy during the month-long lockdown. Tens of thousands of families participated in the activity, including New Zealand Prime Minister (PM) Jacinda Ardern.

This activity was inspired by the popular children's book We Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen. The way to play the game is quite easy, people will put their teddy bears in the windows facing the street. The children later "hunt" for bears in their neighborhood.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern confirmed that she also placed a teddy bear in the front window of the Premier House in Wellington. There, Ardern isolated himself with his son and fiancé Neve and Clarke Gayford.

The teddy bear hunt organizer, Annelee Scott, said the hunt was designed to entertain children. The children will be busy arranging the dolls in such a way that they can be seen from the window.

Besides being able to see the dolls in their environment, children can also be busy arranging teddy bear clothes and changing which teddy bears will be displayed every day. Fun, of course.

I'm by the window with some friends hoping to see people going on a #bearhunt. pic.twitter.com/l1XFdc2EtG

- Adventures with Gauss the Panda (@Adventure_Gauss) March 25, 2020

Launching The Guardian, Wednesday, April 1, a student named Jiavra Cohen is isolating himself with his family in Auckland. Cohen said that every day he and his mother set up a teddy bear as a new view on their porch. Sometimes they make teddy bears like they are on a picnic and fishing.

"Mom and I set up a new scene every day, but fishing scenes are one of my father's favorite hobbies. Coming up with ideas is a great time to fill in when I have finished my assignments. I also enjoy chatting from the terrace with our neighbors," said Cohen.

People who don't own teddy bears will paint or make them. Not only teddy bears, they paint other characters and children's characters in the windows, including Kiwi birds, Shrek and Donkey, Woody and Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story.

Not only in New Zealand, teddy bear hunting is also carried out in other countries such as Ireland and Australia. The teddy bear hunt is also a tribute to the author of the book, Michael Rosen. He is currently in the hospital in intensive care. However, it is not known what disease he has now.

"Get well soon, teddy bear hunting kept us all sane in the last week of the lockdown," wrote a New Zealand mother on Facebook.

There were 708 confirmed cases of COVID-19, one person died and 83 people had recovered. New Zealand is in the midst of a lockdown period, one of the strictest policies implemented by several countries in the world.

Going outside is prohibited, except to buy essential supplies, such as food and medicine. In addition, sports are also allowed, provided that you are not too far from home.