The waiters remove the chains that connect the small bistro tables to each other.
"It's a beginning of a return to normality which brings a little fresh air".
Daniele Vespa, 26, does not hide his joy.
The head chef at the Baccano restaurant, a stone's throw from the Trevi Fountain, hopes that this reopening will be "beautiful", and "that as soon as possible we can also serve inside".
Because since Monday, Italian bars and restaurants are allowed to serve on the terrace, and also in the evening, for the first time in six months.
Cinemas and theaters are also partially reopening.
Even if the curfew at 10 p.m. remains in force, Italy thus finds a semblance of normality after months of alternation between drastic closures and timid openings.
Read also Covid-19: England, Portugal and Spain come back to life and make us dream
Cinemas, theaters and concert halls can also accommodate the public up to 50% of their capacity.
Next will be swimming pools, gyms and amusement parks by July 1.
A large majority of the twenty regions are now classified in yellow, the lowest level of risk in the face of the pandemic.
"Calculated risk"
The former head of the European Central Bank admitted he was taking a "calculated risk" as Italy continues to record an average of more than 300 deaths every day, even though contagions and the number of admissions in resuscitation decrease.
VIDEO.
Covid-19: Italy is partly reconfiguring itself, Draghi deplores "a new wave"
The vaccination campaign has reached a cruising speed with around 350,000 doses administered each day, but disparities between regions.
"It is clear that if the gradual reopening is interpreted as a return to life before, a new peak of contagions could compromise the summer season," warned Nino Cartabellotta, who heads the GIMBE foundation, specializing in issues public health.
While the country is opening up, Mario Draghi must present to Parliament his recovery plan financed by the European Union.
The Prime Minister has come under pressure from regional leaders and several protests to ease anti-Covid restrictions.
Italy, the main beneficiary of the EU's recovery plan
Italy, the first European country to be hit hard by the pandemic at the start of 2020, lost nearly a million jobs and suffered a drop in its GDP of 8.9% in 2020. The third largest economy in the euro zone is therefore counting on the mega-stimulus plan adopted in July by the EU, endowed with 750 billion euros, to reinvigorate its economy.
Italy is the main beneficiary with 191.5 billion euros in loans and grants.
Among the priorities listed are the renovation of aging infrastructures (highways, railways, etc.), renewable energies (hydrogen, etc.), high-speed internet and the digitization of businesses and administrations. Another objective will be to bridge the gap between the north and the south of the peninsula, while coming to the aid of young people and women, particularly affected by the current crisis.
