The excitement had been building for weeks. Ever since the lock-down on October 20, 2020, a big part of life in France has been unavailable: restaurants, bars, cafés. Darkened windows. Chairs upside down on top of tables. Empty streets. Unemployed thousands. This has been the scene thanks to coronavirus’ third trip around France (and Europe). The numbers of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths rose to such highs that the government did the only thing it could do: keep people from congregating and spreading the disease.
Sports stadiums, “unessential” stores, museums, theatres had to
close as well. Churches reconfigured their pews to reduce the numbers of people from
sitting too closely to each other. From time to time over the past year schools
closed. Masks were required inside buildings and outside on many city
streets. Gel dispensers were set up as an added welcome to the entrance of
stores. Sometimes tickets were distributed to limit the number of shoppers allowed in the store at the same time. Plastic shields separating workers from customers or
clients were installed everywhere. Fines were imposed on those violating the
rules. Borders were closed, too. Police became vigilant in getting people to wear masks or in preventing them from traveling too far from home during certain periods.
This year, just as things began to look better, a variant appeared in England around January and began spreading into France and across Europe. In March, curfews were imposed on the hardest hit areas and later to the entire country. Travel from home was limited to 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). Then, people couldn’t get vaccinated due to limited supplies of vaccine. Then a panic about AstraZeneca's after-effects made several European governments, including France, shy away from distributing this vaccine.
Things began to change once the vaccines finally arrived in mid-April. The numbers of cases and hospitalizations started to decline as people were vaccinated: caregivers, the oldest, and those in senior citizen homes went first. By mid-May people aged 50+ years were going in droves to “vaccine-o-dromes” (stadiums and gymnasiums) to get their shots. Schools opened. Curfews and travel restrictions loosened. But the big day, the one that would open the cities to a nearly normal life again was Wednesday, May 19, 2021, and everyone was looking forward to it.
Restaurants, bars, and cafés had been preparing for the day
for weeks. They scrubbed their floors, dusted their walls and lamps, re-cleaned
their kitchen areas, and set-up their tables at appropriate
socially-distanced spaces—one meter apart. Only outside dining is available
right now. In June, indoor dining would open to 50 percent capacity. Meanwhile, fishers and meat producers are increasing their
supplies. Businesses were seeking employees.
Tourism began opening up again. Buses and
campers are spotted on the road and in parking lots. Tourists are asking locals for directions and walking around with maps. Pilgrims are back again, too, with their backpacks and walking sticks. People are planning their summer
vacations.
Le Petit Train, which offers 45-minute, on-the-road tours of Le Puy, re-started its tourist season.
San Michel, considered a museum, was closed during the lock-downs. It re-opened its doors on this special day.
The May 13 Ascension Thursday holiday saw large numbers of people boarding trains for the weekend. Debates about people wearing masks on the beaches during the summer began. Relief, joy, and rekindled hope in the warming spring months have had a new meaning this year for tourists and tour agencies alike.
In the Centre Ville of Le Puy-en-Velay, the excitement of
this big day going back to normal was in the air. Even cool temperatures and
the threat of rain could not keep people away. For the past year the streets have
been practically abandoned. Now it’s obvious the importance that stores,
restaurants, bars, and cafés play to the city’s vitality and life on the street.
I was overcome with the joy of the day as well. As I walked
down the streets, I waved to shopkeepers and gave a couple of them a thumbs-up
and was reciprocated with big smiles. I stopped at Martine’s lace shop where we take our
pilgrims and guests to literally applaud her re-opening. Relief crossed her face knowing
that the worst was over. This was such a dramatic change from just before the first
lock-down 14 months ago when her face was creased with dread.
From May 19 until mid-June, restaurants can only serve on their
terraces, so the tables and chairs have re-appeared as have the menu boards enticing
diners for their next meal. Some cafés added tables to their storefronts or
they have made themselves more attractive with cushy pillows, plants, or other things that command people's attention.
The tables in Place du Plot were nearly
filled with people ordering ice cream dishes, galettes, salads, beer, and the
usual coffee drinks. Dogs barked at other
dogs wanting to play. Children buzzed around their parents. People interacted with each other
with vigor as though everyone had been on vacation for a year and just
returned.
I spoke French to strangers on this day more than I have ever done. Part of the reason was that my language skills have improved enough that I can more comfortably interact with others. However, the real reason was that I was just glad to see other people—and they were willing to take time to talk with me. Oh, we are such a social species!
To celebrate the day, I ordered a cup of espresso at one of
my favorite outdoor cafés. It had appeared last year
that they were going out of business and selling their store. However, the
familiar faces were working behind the counter again, and I was relieved that they
were still around. As I sat at one of the small tables appropriately distanced
from the others, I did what I usually do: sip my coffee, indulge in some people
watching, and check the Internet. After 45 minutes of savoring the open air, I decided to move on to
my other favorite café for their famous sable cookies (similar to pecan sandies). When the waitress came
back with my bill, I was so happy to be there that I gave her a tip. She seemed
a bit taken aback because tips are included in the bill. “I’m just happy to see
you,” I told her. She smiled and appreciated my small gesture.
On to my favorite patisserie for my sable where I had a nice
conversation with a young woman server and a roughly-dressed older man whose
dog was lying on the floor. Several tables had been placed outside the
café while those left inside were stacked with chairs to prevent anyone from using them—in
compliance with the national mandate that only terrace service was allowed.
As the young woman served me my sable, the man asked me about
myself. I told them I was
from the USA and that I’d been in France for four years and was still learning
French. I quipped that TV news anchor Anne-Sophie La Pix was helping me
understand it better because she speaks correct French without the
colloquialisms that are in films. The man complimented me on my French, and we parted ways full of happiness and joy.
Around the Centre Ville the outdoor cafés
crowded with people talking to their friends in animated ways. It was like old
times again! Most of the shops were open, and some people stood looking at
displays in the store windows while others went inside. Masks are still
required inside stores and people throughout the pandemic have been cooperative
in wearing them. Most people were not wearing a mask outside, however. It was
as though they were taking time to breathe the local air after being shut off from it by the
thin paper or cloth coverings over their noses and mouths.
Having enough staff to run the restaurant is also a problem. Some former servers have been benefiting from unemployment benefits and are slow in getting back to work. Then, having enough clients to pay for staff puts owners in a monetarily tight squeeze. Some restaurant owners are limiting the menu to one item to reduce their costs.
The curfew that was imposed on all of France in early April has been extended from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. until June 9 when it will be 11 p.m. Meanwhile, taking reservations has been a nightmare for restauranteurs because of cool temperatures and intermittent rain and wind. One owner said that he had received calls off-the-hook on Monday in anticipation of Wednesday’s re-opening. However, the unpredictable weather would make outdoor dining difficult. Some owners are outright resisting taking reservations. On June 30 the curfew will end.
Another big aspect of "deconfinement" has been the re-opening of cinemas,
theaters, museums, concerts, and sporting events. The Minister of Culture,
Roselyne Bachelot, promised that “all cultural sectors” would be helped during
the weeks of gradual reopening of cultural places. The government is working
with these establishments on protocols, seating capacity, safe distancing,
curfews, and compensation funds for ticket offices. Sale of confectionery,
popcorn and catering services will remain prohibited initially. Then, to
overcome the “wall of 150 French films and 250 foreign films” awaiting release,
the minister hopes that distributors will manage to agree on “a concerted
schedule”.As for museums, for now a threshold of 8 square meters per visitor will be
imposed, however, it may be relaxed to 4 square meters per visitor on June 9.
The French love musical concerts and they have missed them over the past
year. However, these potential super-spreader events will remain
closed at this time until some “test concerts” take place in Paris and
Marseille. The government will then work to define protocols for future
re-openings in other cities.
The TV news showed people lining up with great joy to get into cinemas. Bars showed young people toasting each other with their beers at the re-opening. Everyone believes that the pandemic will soon be over and that life will go back to normal. However, the government remains vigilant in watching the stats on the number of coronavirus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths to determine when normal has arrived.
Tourism, which accounts for 8% of France's GDP, had been decimated—down 41 percent or 61 billion euros (nearly $74.6 billion) from 2019, said Secretary of State for Tourism Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne in a TV interview. During pre-pandemic days, over 90 million foreign tourists visited France. The economic impact of the tourism sector also affected 2 million people with direct and indirect jobs in the industry, including the hospitality and catering businesses. The tourism that did take place in France was largely by the French people who traveled in France rather than traveling abroad (Anadolu Agency, January 8, 2021), but that couldn't make up for the regular tourism. Europe lost $1.3 trillion in tourism over the past year.
Sources:
L’Éveil, Le grand nettoyage d’avant ouverture, May 19, 2021 https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/pandemic-leaves-tourism-in-france-down-by-40-/2103560
https://www.lamontagne.fr/paris-75000/actualites/couvre-feu-deplacements-bars-restaurants-decouvrez-le-calendrier-du-deconfinement_13946962/
Thank you Olga! I always cherish your informative, descriptive blogs! They expand my world !!
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