Photos: Nightlife returns to Covid-19’s original epicentre

Nightlife returned to Covid-19’s original epicentre Wuhan almost seven months after the city lifted its stringent lockdown. In scenes unimaginable in many parts of the world that are reeling under a resurgence of the pandemic, young Wuhan residents during a recent night out, crowd-surfed, ate street food and packed the city's nightclubs as they looked to make up for the lost time. Wuhan was shut off from the rest of China in a surprise overnight lockdown beginning January 23, with roadblocks erected and planes, trains and buses barred from entering the city. Almost 3,900 of China's 4,634 recorded Covid-19 deaths have occurred in Wuhan. Now the revival of the city's hard-hit nightlife economy offers a glimpse into a post-pandemic lifestyle that many hope will become a reality, after the global rollout of vaccines.

Updated on: Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM IST

News

Share via

• 
• 
• 
• 

Copy link

• 

1/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

People dance at a nightclub, almost a year after the global outbreak of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Wuhan, Hubei province, China on December 12. Nightlife in Wuhan is back in full swing after the city lifted its stringent lockdown and the city’s young partygoers are embracing the catharsis. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

2/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

Zhang Qiong, 29, wipes cake off her face at a beer hall in Wuhan on December 11. “After experiencing the first wave of epidemic in Wuhan and then the liberation, I feel like I’m living a second life,” Zhang, who works in a textiles shop in Wuhan, told Reuters. (REUTERS)

3/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

People seen playing the drums at a park in Wuhan on December 11. In scenes unimaginable in many cities around the world reeling under a resurgence of the pandemic, young Wuhan residents are looking to make up for the lost time. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

4/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

A woman dances at a nightclub in Wuhan on December 12. The revival of the city’s hard-hit nightlife economy offers a glimpse into a post pandemic lifestyle that many hope will become a reality in 2021, after the global roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

5/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

A view inside a nightclub where hundreds gathered and danced in Wuhan on December 12. Wuhan hasn’t reported a new locally transmitted case of the coronavirus disease since May 10, after undergoing one of the strictest lockdowns worldwide, Reuters reported. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

6/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

A man opens a bottle of beer at a street restaurant in Wuhan on December 11. The city of 11 million was shut off from the rest of China in a surprise overnight lockdown beginning January 23. Almost 3,900 of China’s 4,634 recorded Covid-19 deaths occurred in Wuhan, Reuters reported. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

7/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

Empty cups are left on a dining table at a street restaurant in Wuhan on December 11. Despite the thriving night scene, Wuhan business and restaurant owners say it could still be some time before the surge in turnover makes up for massive losses during the lockdown. (Aly Song / REUTERS)

8/8

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Dec 18, 2020 11:30 AM

People dance at a nightclub in Wuhan on December 12. For patrons now flooding Wuhan’s nocturnal hotspots, the message is more straightforward. “I just really want to cherish this time, because in life you never know when it will end. Make every happy day count,” Zhang told Reuters. (Aly Song / REUTERS)