Businesses in Salisbury have been looking back on their successful reopening after lockdown was partially lifted earlier this week.
On Monday April 12, society finally started to unlock with shops, hairdressers, gyms and beer gardens among other things being allowed to open their doors once again.
Salisbury was full of life as people went back to doing the things they missed the most for the first time in more than four months.
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By lunchtime, the city had come alive again with families and groups of friends flocking to beer gardens or outdoor cafes for delicious meals they didn’t have to cook and freshly poured pints.
Graeme McNulty, of the Greyhound Inn in Wilton, had to turn a few people away, though the majority had booked their place and have already rebooked to come back, he says.
“It was a bit hectic but the weather held off and we all enjoyed ourselves and the customers enjoyed themselves,” he said.
“The atmosphere was great, it felt like we were in a foreign country. I think people needed to get out and relax after everything that’s happened.”
Rebecca Clifton, landlady at The Duck Inn in Laverstock, said the reopening was just as successful as she expected.
She and her team had spent the past six weeks turning a car park into a beer garden so they could reopen outdoors-only.
“It was fantastic, very steady all the way through, there was just a lovely atmosphere,” she said.
“A lot of my locals came out to support us but we also had people I’d never seen before.”
The high street, with its eclectic mix of independent shops, salons and cafes, was also heaving on the first day of lockdown easing as people celebrated the return of life almost as we remembered it.
Rachel Tribbeck of HR Tribbeck & Son on Bridge Street said: “Everyone was so happy to be out and about, being able to come into the shop and have chats again and catching up with everyone’s news. There was just a lovely atmosphere.”
The next step of Boris Johnson's roadmap out of lockdown is May 17 when hospitality venues should be able to reopen indoors.
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