An elderly man walks along a nearly empty street of Psiri, in central Athens, on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. Outbreaks of COVID-19 prompted Greece to impose two countrywide lockdowns, in the spring, keeping infection rates low, and in the fall as authorities scrambled to cope with a rampant rise in cases. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
The Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - It's been a while since visitors to Greece sought out souvenirs in Athens' oldest neighborhood.
The winding streets of Plaka, laid out long before the city imported a grid system, are lined with closed stores behind aluminum shutters. The coronavirus pandemic has kept tourists away from the historic city center that forms a semi-circle around the Acropolis, and the area remained unusually devoid of pedestrians and motorists before Christmas.
In their absence, ancient monuments are a little easier to make out from a distance, fewer horns are sounding in traffic and homeless cats parked in front of cafes are a little less aloof.
Greece so far has imposed two nationwide lockdowns since the start of the pandemic. The first, in the spring, kept the country's infection rates low. Authorities ordered the second in response to a rapid post-summer rise in reported cases and as of Christmas Eve has seen 4,4,57 confirmed virus-related deaths.
The restrictions have closed bars, restaurants, coffee shops and many other businesses considered non-essential but which make up a large slice of Greece's tourism-dependent economy.
The number of visitors traveling to the country plummeted 76.1% during the first 10 months of 2020 compared to a year earlier. Spending sank 77%, according to central bank data released this week.
Greece is expected to see a 10.5% contraction of its gross domestic product this year compared to the forecasted EU average of 7.4%, while its debt-to-GDP ratio is set to surge to a staggering 208.9%.
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A family looks at an empty street in the Plaka district of Athens during a lockdown order by the Greek government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Athens, on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. Outbreaks of COVID-19 prompted Greece to impose two countrywide lockdowns, in the spring, keeping infection rates low, and in the fall as authorities scrambled to cope with a rampant rise in cases. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A man walks in the Plaka district of Athens past closed coffee shop and restaurants during a lockdown order by the Greek government to to avoid the spread of the coronavirus in Athens, on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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An elderly man wearing a mask to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walks with his dogs near Areopagus hill during a lockdown by the Greek government to prevent the spread of COVID-19, in Athens, on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. Most of Athens' historic center, Plaka and nearby districts in a semi-circle around the Acropolis, is unusually quiet during the two nationwide lockdowns imposed by the greek goverment.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A man sleeps on a street outside shuttered shops in the Monastiraki district of Athens during lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, on Monday, April 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A man walks in Syntagma metro station, with the Greek Parliament building in the background, in central Athens, during lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic, on Wednesday, April 29, 2020 . Greek authorities say the use of face masks will be compulsory on pain of a 150-euro ($163) fine - in public transport and shops from May 4, when the country starts to ease its lockdown restrictions.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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Empty streets near Omonoia square, in central Athens, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2020, during a lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic. The number of visitors traveling to the country plummeted by 76.1% on the year in the first 10 months of 2020. Spending also sank by 77%, according to central bank data released on December. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A woman walks on an empty street in the Plaka district of Athens with a part of the ancient Erechtheion temple on the Acropolis in the background, Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020. Outbreaks of COVID-19 prompted Greece to impose two countrywide lockdowns, in the spring, keeping infection rates low, and in the fall as authorities scrambled to cope with a rampant rise in cases. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A man with an umbrella walks in the rain on Pnyx hill in front the ancient Acropolis hill, with the ruins of the fifth century BC Parthenon temple, in Athens, on Monday, Nov. 30, 2020 Greek officials say the number of new infections is waning in most parts of the country, which has been in lockdown for weeks.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A cat sits on a table in an empty street in the Plaka, district of Athens, in the background is the ancient Erechtheion temple on the Acropolis hill, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. Outbreaks of COVID-19 prompted Greece to impose two countrywide lockdowns, in the spring, keeping infection rates low, and in the fall as authorities scrambled to cope with a rampant rise in cases. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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A woman prays outside an Orthodox Church in the Monastiraki district of Athens, on Sunday Dec. 20, 2020. Despite six weeks of lockdown measures, coronavirus deaths and infections remain high, piling pressure on the country's health system.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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Two men wearing face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus walk past a giant mural by Greek street artist iNO depicting the eyes of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, in Athens, Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020. Greece is expected to see a 10.5% contraction of its gross domestic product this year, above the forecasted EU average of 7.4%, while its debt-to-GDP ratio is set to surge to a staggering 208.9% according to the EU and Greek authorities. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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