Chinese beer lovers leave facemasks and worries behind as festival opens

Thousands of Chinese beer lovers left their facemasks and virus worries behind to gather in large crowds and raise a much-needed glass as the annual Qingdao beer festival opened over the weekend. China has largely brought the coronavirus outbreak under control through a series of lockdowns and restrictions, and the small number of cases reassured beer-lovers to turn out despite the global pandemic. And at the festival, which opened Friday and…