Yesterday, the sun shone over Maastricht for the first day that the Terrasses were allowed to open in over 6 months. With opening hours from 12:00-18:00, people were taking advantage of a ‘Working from Home’ lunch break to enjoy a glass of wine and take advantage of the fact that someone else would be doing the dishes. (Well, I certainly was, anyway).

The protocol was similar to that of the first lockdown lift in summer 2020, where diners had to fill out their contact details before being seated. Tables are restricted to 2 persons and lots of restaurants have installed clear plastic screens between tables to allow more customers to be accommodated.

Many Dutch mayors (including the Mayor of Maastricht, Annemarie Penn-te Strake), had been urging the government to open outdoor spaces such as terrasses, zoos and botanical gardens in order to reduce the concentration of people in parks on sunny days where rules are often not observed.

 

After day one, our Mayor, declared the decision to open, a success, noting that parks were noticeably emptier but also adding a word of caution, “We are still in a pandemic and the figures do not look good. But on the other hand, the city also longed for relaxation.”

Let’s hope that this is the first step towards some normality.