On a regular afternoon in West Didsbury, people are walking with shopping bags in hand or sat drinking coffee outside one of the many small independent cafes.
It doesn't feel overly chaotic - despite being just two days before Christmas.
Yet in this south Manchester suburb, Covid rates are continuing to surge by record amounts.
West Didsbury has recently been named as one of the country's 'Covid blackspots' - one of several areas of Greater Manchester that are some of the worst hit by Covid-19 in the entire country.
Here, more than 2,200 people in every 100,000 have coronavirus.
The ‘hotspots’ are coloured black on an interactive government interactive map , which charts the number of positive coronavirus test results in every neighbourhood.
It shows the number of infections per area, broken down into neighbourhoods containing roughly 7,000 people.
In south Manchester, West Didsbury saw 185 positive cases in the days leading to December 19.
This is 131 more than the previous seven days, giving the area an infection rate of 2,239.2 per 100,000.
The Manchester Evening News headed to one of West Didsbury's busiest streets - Burton Road, to get the reaction from local people in the run up to Christmas.
Trisha Yates owns the Sip Bar in West Didsbury with her husband, and told of how the couple have been having to deal with a huge influx of cancellations over recent Covid fears.
She said that if more restrictions were introduced, including social distancing, her small bar would have its indoor capacity cut from 25 to just 10 customers.
She said: "I don't know why cases are so high around here - I suspect it could be because there is quite a large young population and lots of flats which are obviously quite close together and it is easier for it to spread in those conditions.
"There are also lots of students and young people who come to enjoy all the bars and restaurants.
"As a business owner, I can say we have certainly felt the impact of the rise in cases as our bar has been seeing a lot of cancellations recently with people wanting to be safe before Christmas.
"It is surprising as I think most people in Didsbury have been complying with the rules - we understand why people are cancelling because people are still worried at the moment and we respect that people want to be safe.
"Everyone seems to be wearing masks and the bars don't seem that busy.
"I had heard cases were higher and I have certainly been more cautious because I want to see my 80 year old parents on Christmas day.
"Elderly people have lost their independence throughout this crisis so I made sure I could do everything to be able to be with them this year."
30-year-old Joe Spencer, who lives in West Didsbury, also suggested that the huge surge in cases could be down to the suburb being a 'hub' for socialising.
"I suppose it is surprising to hear cases are the highest in your area, and I am shocked as it definitely hasn't been as busy here as usual," he said.
"Didsbury is a popular place to come out for food and it is great for nightlife with all the bars, so I suspect that may have something to do with it. It is definitely a hub for young people.
"There are a lot of bars within very close proximity to each other and most of them are pretty small.
"As soon as hospitality venues opened back up, I think people were eager to get out and enjoy themselves again.
"I respect the restrictions, but it is becoming hard to understand them and I think people are starting to get fed up with this constant cycle of lockdowns.
"If there is another lockdown, places like Didsbury would really suffer because of all the small independent businesses here - especially the bars and restaurants.
"This year, I planned to go ahead with Christmas as normal and want to see my friends on New Years. I do follow the rules and wear a mask when I am out but I also think it is important that we carry on with life as normal."
Other 'Covid blackspots' in south Manchester include neighbouring Didsbury Village, with a case rate of 1,896 per 100,000 people and Withington West, with a rate of 2,016 per 100,000 people.
Chorlton North had a rate of 2,041.7 per 100,000 people in the week ending December 19.
Ella McCarthy, 56, has chosen to not get the vaccination for personal health reasons, but says she follows the rules and has continued to wear masks and social distance throughout the pandemic.
She only ventures out for essential trips because her granddaughter is extremely vulnerable, and blames the surge in local cases on the younger population enjoying the nightlife Didsbury has to offer.
She said: "I really think people are becoming more and more fearful and worried of what is going on, just like at the start of the pandemic when everyone was scared.
"Hearing about the cases going up in Didsbury, I suspect it is because there is a big student population nearby who want to go out and enjoy themselves. They may be vaccinated but that doesn't stop it from spreading to others.
"It will definitely make me even more wary of going out, but I have always been safe and only gone out for essential trips to the shop and when I need to.
"I think if everybody just used common sense and was a bit more cautious, we would not be in this situation."
Couple Amy and Stuart, 34, both work in a primary school nearby and have remained cautious throughout to protect school children.
Yet, they were both surprised to hear that they lived in an area with one of the highest Covid rates in the country.
Amy said: "It is quite shocking - but we try to avoid looking at the figures because it just makes people even more worried about it.
"To hear cases are so high right where you live is definitely surprising, but we have been extremely safe all the way through because of where we work.
"We haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary - people in Didsbury seem to be following the rules, always wearing masks in shops and social distancing. To be honest, it has felt much quieter than usual."
