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You could be jealous just by looking.
People sitting comfortably outside in a bar.
To eat and drink.
Accompanied by street musicians.
There are scenes from Madrid - and a noticeable number of French tourists and students among the guests who fled to the Spanish capital from the hard lockdown in their homeland.
Because here the corona measures are nowhere near as strict as in the French one.
O-Ton Theo Perucci »" I was tired of not being able to do anything. It went on for almost a year. So we went on a whim. We both wanted (she's my sister) to go somewhere. We needed fresh air and we knew that there are open bars and restaurants in Madrid. "
Original sound: Adrien Durand French student »To see the restaurants open is a bit of a shock. Because in Paris it's depressing, everything is closed, all the blinds are down. Here you can feel that there is more human warmth. We can finally eat in a restaurant, on a terrace, that's a feeling we've been missing for a long time. "
People in Madrid are allowed to be outdoors until 10 p.m.
Even if the wearing of masks is compulsory and the public spaces are only allowed to be half occupied, Madrid's conservative regional government has imposed one of the loosest curfews in Spain and thus defied national recommendations to close restaurants and non-essential shops.
O-Ton Clara Soudet French student »That is also the reason why I came back. There is life here. Everything is open. Even with a curfew, there are still many things you can do. So let's make the best of it: we go to the restaurant, we have a drink on the terrace. Even if it's already 4 p.m., you can sit there and relax. That was very important to me. "
It's a pandemic time paradox.
After all, 650,000 tourists came to Spain in December, although the numbers here were also relatively high.
164,000 French of them were French.
Of course, only those who can afford it - and have a more relaxed attitude towards the coronavirus.
O-Ton Clemence Berna »Even in bars and restaurants I feel very safe, wearing masks is much more respected than in France or Great Britain. So it's very nice. "
Party tourism can quickly become a problem in Madrid.
The police have already had to break up two celebrations organized by the French.
Dozens of people stayed in private apartments at night without a mask and the necessary distance.
