(CNN) – People in the Czech capital Prague built a 1,600-foot table and held a large public dinner on Tuesday to celebrate the end of the country’s coronavirus blockade.
Residents spread through the streets of the city and over its famous Charles Bridge after the government lifted restrictions on large gatherings.
The dinner table went through the streets of Prague and across the Charles Bridge.
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The Czech Republic was quick to implement a blockade at the start of the global coronavirus outbreak and became one of the first countries to tell its citizens to wear masks, helping it to avoid the worst of the pandemic and ease restrictions earlier. than many other nations.
This meant that the locals could enjoy an amazing outdoor dining show and forgo social distancing to celebrate the country’s progress.
Everyone had to bring something to the party.
Gabriel Kuchta / Getty Images
But the World Health Organization warned that the pandemic is not over and that the Czech Republic still prohibits many foreigners from crossing its borders, a rule that allowed the event to take place.
“We want to celebrate the end of the coronavirus crisis with people who meet and demonstrate that they are no longer afraid to meet others. They are not afraid to take a bite from someone,” said Ondrej Kobza, the Prague café. owner who organized the event, told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
The Czech Republic has seen relatively few cases of coronavirus compared to its European neighbors.
Gabriel Kuchta / Getty Images
“Everyone had to do something to be here, bring food or a flower. The idea was for everyone to get involved,” said Kobza.
The tables were adorned with white tablecloths and flowers, and the locals drank and shared food as the sun went down over the city.
A country of around 10 million, the Czech Republic has seen around 12,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 349 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Those figures are relatively low compared to some of its close European neighbors.
The country was quick to implement a blockade at the start of the pandemic.
Gabriel Kuchta / Getty Images
The European Union formally agreed on a set of recommendations on Tuesday that will allow travelers from outside the bloc to visit EU countries, months after it closed its external borders in response to the pandemic.
As widely expected, the list of 14 countries does not include the United States, whose current rate of Covid infection does not meet the criteria established by the EU for it to be considered a “safe country”.
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