As strict curfew measures remain in place across Greece to limit the spread of coronavirus, millions of Greeks tried to find new ways to celebrate the greatest feast of the year at home.
Many Greeks spent the day with their close families and roasted lamb on their ‘souvla’ from the verandah and balcony.
“We had ordered and sent lambs to Corfu in order to go and celebrate Easter with relatives, but coronavirus came along and we are stuck here,” Vassilis Kourtelis told Reuters from the porch of his house in Athens while roasting the lamb.
“But we are not going to let it ruin our mood. We are celebrating here with the family, as if we were there with our relatives. We send them video calls, they see us as we sing and dance.”
Others sent their orders to souvlaki shops and restaurants, which set up their traditional ‘souvla’ outside of their shops to prepare the meat and then deliver it to families.
Some people even sent their trays of food to nearby bakeries or takeaway shops in order for them to bake their Easter Sunday dinner for them.
This different Greek Easter celebration came in the face of the Greek Government banning unecessary movement from Holy Saturday night to Easter Monday midnight, doubling the fines for offenders.
“This Easter is different. We will not go to our villages. We will not roast in our yards. We will not go to our churches. And, of course, we will not gather in the homes of relatives and friends,” the government spokesman Stelios Petsas said at the time.
“For us to continue being together, this year we stay apart.”
Greece has a relatively low rate of infections at 2,235 people, including 113 fatalities.
