This footage was filmed and produced 3 May 2021.

Greek restaurants and cafes reopened their terraces on Monday after six months of pandemic shutdown, with customers flocking to soak up the sunshine and a return to "normal life". The reopening was all the more poignant and joyous as it came a day after Orthodox Christians in Greece celebrated Easter, when believers mark the resurrection of Christ. Greece has been under Covid-19 restrictions -- including a curfew of varying strictness -- since November.

The third wave of the pandemic has hit Greece particularly hard with the majority of the country's nearly 10,000 virus deaths occurring over the last few months. Non-essential businesses and schools reopened in early April.

The video shows Athenians gathering in reopened bars and restaurants until late at night. The Greek government has decided to ease the lockdown and reopen coffee shops and restaurants, as they are one of the main sources of state revenue from tourism. The new measure means that bars and restaurants can be open until 23: 00 at night.