Am back from another great trip. I was happy to get home. Flights were delayed due to weather and luckily not to an Air Canada strike. Me and 2 others ended up at seats where the entertainment units malfunctioned.
10 hrs is a long time to entertain oneself when I had been looking forward to seeing 4 movies. We did get a 5% off voucher for our suffering. Thank goodness for my tablet.
Due to jet lag, I've been up the past 5 hrs doing bookkeeping, returning emails and taking stock of phone messages. Less to do on Monday.
This trip had a lot of travel built into it so I didn't walk as much as I usually do. D still thought I loss weight so that was good to hear.
I'm concerned about Athen's future. It was absolute gridlock when I was there as the metro and buses were on strike. I had arranged for private transportation because I didn't want to trust my luck. Those who didn't depended on taxis and paid through their noses to get anywhere.
It took over 2 hrs to get from the port of Pireaus to the Acropolis. 45 min is the norm. On the way back, a truck deliberately blocked the entrance to the port (which was flooded from the torrential rain) so it took nearly 3 hrs before I was able to get off.
People seemed so sad. The weather didn't help. It was 11 degrees Celsius with lightning and thunder and pouring rain. The wind was crazy. Many umbrellas broke and I managed to bruise myself from having the handle of mine so tight against me.
There were a few injuries as well. The marble steps and walkways at the Acropolis got really slippery when wet. My shoes did their job and gripped.
Despite the weather and traffic challenges, I learned a lot and the view from the top was pretty awesome. No time to do a lot of shopping or eating in the Plaka this time around. Because it was so cool, I had been dreaming of Moussaka but I needed to back to get to Rhodes on time.
I am not keen on returning to Athens until they get things sorted out. The logistics and state of the city (garbage and city works dept on strike...) isn't going to help their tourism sector. I saw a lot of unhappy people who were trying to make their way to the port to check in to their luxury cruise liner (Seabourn) having flown into Athens.
Hi MW
ReplyDeleteI am biting the pullet and paying my extra taxes but like you I am not in any hurry to get back. Everytihng is in chaos and almost everyone on strike. The Greeks have a wird taxation system whereby the poor are completely stuffed on a regular basis and the middle class and above avoid taxation almost completely. No wonder tax avoidance is national sport. I dont know an answer and cant imagine how it will end. It is suggested that a controlled default, with rescheduling of the debt, will damage the EU the last. I quite like the euro for ease of use but I cant see how it could work for a group of nations with such different economies.
Lizzie
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Hi Lizzie!
ReplyDeleteI had no idea about the tax evasion issues until now. People must realize that it isn't sustainable and sooner or later it will come back to haunt you?