Shanghai reopened on Wednesday after a bitter two-month lockdown under a relentless Covid-19 lockdown, with stores reopening and people returning to offices, parks and markets.
For many of the 25 million residents who were finally able to re-experience the outdoors in China’s largest city, life on the streets felt like a distant memory.
While passengers were getting on the trains and buses again, the cars were on the road again. Runners and skaters defied the heat to stroll through the riverside parks.
There was the joy of reuniting with people close to you, the comfort of being able to buy anything, but also the vigilance of another possible epidemic after a long period of disappointment, stress and economic loss.
A Shanghai resident with the surname Dong, who was having a beer with a friend, was not in the mood for celebration.
“It’s not like the happiness you feel when you welcome the New Year. It’s very complicated. The last two months have not been easy for anyone,” he said.
“I’m happy because I can see my friend but I really wanted to cry when I was alone.”
The Shanghai quarantine was the result of China’s “zero covid” strategy to eradicate epidemics at all costs. The country has challenged the global consensus that coexistence with the virus is inevitable.
source: Noticias
