Greeks celebrate Easter under Covid lockdown

Athens: People across Greece celebrated the Christian Orthodox Easter on Sunday under a Covid-19 lockdown for a second year in a row, gathering with family and friends in small groups and expressing hope for the post-pandemic era.

Traditionally, Easter is an opportunity for many people to leave the urban centres to celebrate in the countryside. As the country is still in its second lockdown since last November and travel outside of prefectures is still forbidden, Greeks either roasted lamb on a pit along small streets or in their backyard, Xinhua reported.

Authorities allowed gatherings of up to 9 people indoors for the traditional meal or 12 in outdoor spaces. “It is better than last year, but it is not as good as in previous years,” Yannis told Xinhua, while checking the lamb outside his store in central Athens. During last Easter, gatherings were only allowed indoors with a maximum of 9 people.

“I would have been at my summer home at Akrata (a town at Peloponnese peninsula) by the sea. Due to the circumstances, we stayed here,” explained Yannis’ guest, Dimitris Xilomenos. “It is different. I didn’t go to church. In previous years I always attended the mass,” Thodoros, another resident from central Athens, told Xinhua.