Christmas celebrations continue around the world despite Covid restrictions
The country was eventually forced to restore its toughest distancing guidelines, such as a four-person limit on social gatherings and a 9pm curfew for restaurants and cafes.
Authorities reintroduced night-time curfews and restrictions on gatherings of more than five people in big cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai. People attended midnight Mass in Mumbai and elsewhere but in smaller numbers.Christians in India, some wearing face masks, attend a Christmas MassNew Zealanders celebrated Christmas in the warmth of mid-summer with few restrictions, in one of the few countries in the world largely untouched by the Omicron variant.
In August, New Zealand’s largest city, Auckland, was thrust into lockdown for 188 days. At its peak, the Delta-driven outbreak saw around 220 cases a day. Lately, the daily average has been around 50.But that success has come at a cost. There were empty chairs at some tables this holiday season because some New Zealanders living and working overseas were not able to return home due to limits in the country’s managed isolation and quarantine programme.
Around 200 people pass through the base over the summer season — scientists, support staff and Defense Force personnel who provide communications and other services. Numbers are lower this year because of the pandemic and all staff traveling to the continent have had to isolate and undergo Covid-19 testing before departure.
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