It really really depends on where you are. E.g. in my country it's almost like "normal". But that's not what you think. People just don't follow restrictions, people don't wear masks, abuse vaccination (simply skip or even buy fake vaccination certificate to fulfill government / employer requirements). The only difference from "normal" is increased workload on hospitals and daily news "over thousand people died today from covid-19".

When it's absolutely unbearable for healthcare system, government also introduces soft lockdown where restaurants / cafes / public places are closed. Then everything goes back to "normal".

I really don't see how it can be 100% normal next year. At least in here.

Masks became a regular fixture in Asia after original SARS. Not by regulation, but they just became an ordinary item used by people to avoid getting sick or avoid getting others sick.

Having been to many parts of Asia before Covid hit, masks were indeed not unusual, but were never worn by _everyone_ or even the majority of people, even in crowded places like subways.

Ah, yes that’s more what I meant to say. We’ll get to a place where masks aren’t required anywhere, but we may never return to a world where masks are a weird or unusual sight.