The Easter Pause didn’t have as much impact as hoped but the Covid numbers have been deemed to be enough under control for the break to end on Monday, as planned. This means, among other things, that people can meet outside in groups of up to ten, we no longer need to make an appointment to go shopping and hairdressers and other non-medical contact professions can re-open with restrictions. I think I need a haircut again.
The big news, though, is that bars and restaurants with terraces can reopen on 8th May. There are a number of restrictions, but these amount to: go with a small group, or your household; stay seated; and be out by 10:00. Not all restaurants are going to be able to re-open because the tables have to be at least 1.5 metres apart, but I’m feeling optimistic.
May 8th is also when restrictions on youth club activities start to bee loosened, with a further relaxation (provisionally, as always) on 25th June. This should mean that the boys will be able to go on summer camp this year.
This, of course, all depends on people getting vaccinated so it’s good to see that the Belgian vaccination campaign is receiving something of a boost, with the delivery of nearly 900,000 coronavirus vaccines. This, along with the minimum age limit for the AstraZeneca vaccine being lowered will, hopefully, see the schedule speeding up a bit.
According to the Flemish Health Minister, Flanders is expecting to have half of it’s population vaccinated by the end of May, at which point things can start returning to normal.
Here’s hoping that we can all look forward to August.
Lightly Seared on the Reality Grill 
Yes same things going on here, fingers crossed it doesn’t all go t*ts up!
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Absolutely. Everything’s provisional at the moment, but there does seem to be some light at the end of the tunnel.
Hopefully it’s not another train.
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Here it’s as if the virus is beat. Masks going, social distancing going, crowds allowed, hugging welcomed. Yet our daily new cases are still at 2000. The WHO has found that it is an airborne virus. The vaccines are not perfect and have unknown life span. The youngest are not vaccinated. The really worrying Indian mutation is doubling in numbers every week, even in places where everyone has been vaccinated. This is all while the country has been in lockdown and now the floodgates are opening.
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I can’t believe just how quickly the UK is trying to open up. As you say, it’s not over yet and trying to rush things can only end in disaster.
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