Less festive Easter observed across Europe despite signs of hope in anti-virus battle

Europeans observed a less festive Easter Sunday, as their attention is still grabbed by the coronavirus, which, according to the data from the World Health Organization, has infected 839,257 people across Europe.

BLEAK EASTER

Watching religious services online, ordering Easter meal deliveries, Italian residents are settling into the “new normal” under the rules of the national lockdown during what may be Italy’s biggest religious holiday.

“Easter 2020 will be remembered due to the closure of over 95 percent of hotels across Italy and … a loss of turnover of 300 million euros (328 million U.S. dollars) between Saturday and Monday,” the National Federation of the Travel and Tourism Industry (Federturismo) said in its recent forecast for the holiday weekend.

To encourage the nation as it spent this major holiday in a less festive way, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte posted a message on Facebook wishing a happy Easter to all Italians.

“We miss the smiles of our relatives, the hugs of our friends, the beautiful traditions of our towns … The sacrifices each of us are making on this important Sunday are a gesture of authentic attachment to what really matters and what we will soon recover,” said Conte.

British people are not in a very festive mood for Easter either, as the coronavirus-related death toll in their country surpassed the grim 10,000-mark.

British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said during a daily press conference at Downing Street that Britain had joined the ranks of the United States, Spain, Italy and France, which “have seen more than 10,000 deaths related to coronavirus.”

Describing Easter Sunday as a “somber day” for Britain, Hancock said, “The fact that over 10,000 people have now lost their lives to this invisible killer demonstrates just how serious this coronavirus is and why the national effort that everyone is engaged in is so important.”

SIGNS OF HOPE

Despite the dampened festive mood, some inspiring news from the anti-virus battle continued to reach Europeans.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson “has been discharged from hospital to continue his recovery at Chequers,” a Downing Street spokesman said Sunday.