EU nations reopen widely for summer; Japan in recession

Europe reopened more widely on Monday, allowing people into the Acropolis in Greece, shops in Italy, markets and museums in Belgium, golf courses in Ireland and beer gardens in Bavaria. Many nations are now preparing to open their borders next month, trying to sketch out the parameters for a highly unusual summer tourist season.



Greece reopened the Acropolis and other ancient sites, along with high schools and malls. Paving stickers were used to keep visitors apart. Tourists were local, for the country still has a 14-day quarantine for arrivals. In Belgium, more students returned to school, hairdressers began clipping locks again, and museums and zoos reopened. Churches in Italy and at the Vatican resumed public Masses.

Guards in hazmat suits took the temperatures of the faithful entering St. Peter’s Basilica, where Pope Francis celebrated an early morning Mass in a side chapel. Covid-19 has left the world economy facing its worst downturn since the Great Depression, with Japan — whose economy is the world’s third-largest after that of the US and China — announcing its first recession since 2015.

Meanwhile, in Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro posed for photos with kids from a crowd of supporters on Sunday. As he flouted health advice, mayor of Sao Paulo warned that its health system was in danger of collapse