Sunbeds are taking a backseat here on Symi, at the moment, at least. One might say, they have been consigned to the back row of the beach where the cheapest beds lurk, while downstage centre, where you can pay upwards of €25.00 of the right to lie down, a new news story is about to wade into the water and make a splash. In fact, it already has, with comments on social media that range from outraged to sensible, and from unhelpful to downright ignorant. But what is this hot topic and what are the facts?

Well, my first fact is that I am only telling you what I have seen, read and heard, so you must remember I am not a journalist or a newspaper. (If in doubt, see About.)

Here’s a line from Real Voice: 3 euro fee for daily visitors to Symi – We are not talking about overtourism, but about covering the Municipality’s operating expenses.

[The full story and recorded interview are here. If you need to, you can translate the page into English using your browser’s translate function. That’s what I did.]

That’s part one: the idea that day visitors (and only day visitors) will be charged €3.00 and that money will go to supply the extra services needed because of the number of day visitors the island receives. That has been estimated between 1,000 and 5,000 per day.

According to the article, the council will be submitting a relevant proposal to the co-responsible ministries of National Economy and Finance, Interior and Shipping and Island Policy. The mayor is quoted as saying, “The municipalities cannot meet and cope with their obligations with the revenues they have. And on the other hand, ordinary people cannot pay the cost when the permanent residents are 2,500 and the island receives 5,000 visitors on a one-day excursion daily, without overnight stays.” He also pointed out that €3.00 is less than a coffee of a souvlaki. Well, I don’t know where he drinks his coffee, but it’s still only €1.50 or €2.00 for an ελληνικό in the village.

On the other hand, and in the same online publication, the opposition party at the town hall has a different view. The head of the minority on the Symi Board of Directors opposes the introduction of a special €3 fee for daily visitors, citing the absence of a strategy and a sustainability study.

[Here’s the link to that article. Again, you will need to translate it.]

The opposition is doing their job and have raised some good points. As I am no longer allowed to vote for either side, I’m not here to sway anyone’s opinion, and I rather agree with both sides.

I was in Yialos on Friday (hence today’s pictures), and I counted 14 boats coming and going from Rhodes during the one day. I remember when we used to get excited if we saw three, but that was 21 years ago. Not all of these boats are day-trips ones, and not all were full, which is hardly surprising when you have so many all after the same customers. However, the main streets of the harbour were an uncomfortable place to be around midday, and that’s one thing. Another is what a café owner had to say about it which was basically being fed up with people asking for directions, asking if they could use his toilet, and not sitting down to buy anything. He’s happy to let the young and elderly use the WC, but as I pointed out, it is still him who has to pay for the water and other associated overheads. I don’t know if the public toilets are still operating in the backstreet, but they might be. I do know that the original ones were knocked down and a council office put in its place. So, toilets are one thing the harbour needs and the €3.00 could go towards. What else? Oh, rubbish bins and collections? Yup, need more of that. Parking? No. Charge longer-term visitors who bring their cars? Yup. There are plenty, if not too many hire car and bike places here now, some of them can’t even park their hire cars near the harbour and have to zip off on a moped with two people so one can bring the car to the customer. I could go on.

So I will. The mayor was quick to point out that this isn’t a case of over tourism, because, I suspect, he doesn’t want to put people off visiting. I think the point is, why should us local tax payers have to foot the extra bill for the extra work needed to repair the island after up to 5,000 people tread all over it per day in the summer? If every one of them brought only one small plastic bottle of water with them, or bought one here, that’s 5,000 extra pieces of unrecyclable plastic filling the Symi landfill. Maybe they can be recycled, but they won’t be here unless someone gets their finger out of the dam and does something about recycling before we all get buried under a pile of plastic. But that’s another story.

Meanwhile, the opposition make the valid point that you can’t just say, ‘We’re going to charge you €3.00 a day,’ without a plan. I for one, have several questions which I may or may not ask during the week, depending on what mood I wake up in.

For a start, how do you collect the tax? You can’t take it from each person as they get off the boat. In some cases, it would take so long, those at the back will never set foot on Symi.

If the boat owners are made to add it to the ticket price, how can you ensure they will be honest about the numbers they have carried? Oh, Mr Cynical! I know, but… Well, we all know how that works.

Then, how does the council show accountability? How do residents know the money is going to where it needs to go and is not misappropriated? And we know how that works too.

Then, don’t get me started on this one: When coming back on a morning boat from an overnight in Rhodes, how do I prove I am a resident and not a day tripper? How am I not charged extra for coming on a day boat, like the Sebeco or the Express. Mind you, the Sebeco team probably know everyone who lives here, but you know what I mean. Will we have to swear an affidavit before embarkation if we happen not to be carrying anything with our address on it. To get from Athens to Symi on the night before lockdown in 2020 we had to show our tax papers to prove residency; will we see a return to that? Or will the charge not apply to ferries but only to excursion boats?

There are other questions and concerns too, but to be frank, I can’t be arsed to think of them right now. I’ve written this so quickly there are probably 100 typos, but what the hell. I charge €3.00 per typo to change them, so choose wisely before you point them out.

Back tomorrow with more nonsense no doubt. Off now to write chapter twenty-one.

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Despite the temperatures and lack of water, the plants in the courtyard are doing well. Here, for example, is the chili corner.

These plants prefer to be in the shade, so they are huddled in the northwest-facing corner beneath the vine. Also faring well are the two roses and some unnamed things, and even the bougainvillea has started resprouting. That thing is a law unto itself, and, I think, objects to being in a pot, even though the pot is large. The one in our neighbour’s garden is planted in the ground and has just about taken over their house, so we’ll not be doing that.

I have a book day planned today. Writing one this morning (or part of one), collecting another from the post office later, and reading one this afternoon. At the same time, I shall water the aforementioned garden, get the washing done, do my old person’s exercise routine and have a shower, all in the few hours when the mains water is coming in, so we start the weekend at midday with a full tank. I’ve said before how much water one person uses, even when being careful, and it’s scary. If it were just the two of us, a 500 ltr tank would last roughly four days if we did no washing and had only one shower each during that time. That’s something like 75 litres a day per person, which sounds like a lot, but you’d be surprised how quickly it goes. Currently, we have three people using the same 500 ltrs, and when we next have a bank holiday weekend we could be in an interesting situation. It’s possible that we’d fill the tank on the Friday, but not have any more water until the Wednesday, which would mean being on half rations. Naturally we do what we can. For example: use a large bowl in the shower to collect water to use in the WC, fill buckets on water day for garden and WC functions, buy in more bottled water for the kettle, only wash up once per day, run the shower only to get wet and wash off, none of this luxuriating nonsense, and only then if going to work with the public (Neil).

As usual, I have no idea where that little chat came from. Just mulling over my thoughts and getting excited because it’s a water day, I suppose. Well, it’s also 05.46, the cicadas have started already, as have the sparrows and the cockerels that never stop. I have a collection of Baroque music playing on my speaker, and a wonderfully empty page with the heading Chapter Eighteen to see me through until it’s time for the water-based chores to begin.

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Here’s a story which, in my opinion, came about simply because of greed. Once upon a time, somebody thought, ‘I have a spare property. I will do it up and make it a holiday let.’ So, they put in a sink and fridge unit, supplied a bed, and listed it on that website where the background is blue, and where if you even dare search for a location out of interest you suffer several weeks of constant adverts with, ‘James, booking bargains are still available in Eritrea,’ of wherever you happened to misspell. All well and good (except for a young local family who could have made a permanent home in that spare property but who will now have to move away to find affordable accommodation).

Meanwhile, in a country far, far away, a would-be holiday maker is searching for somewhere to stay and goes to the blue website, finds something within budget and close to amenities, and it’s just what she wants, so she goes ahead and books it. Holiday excitement mounts as travelling time approaches, until one week before departure, the blue website contacts her to say that property is no longer available at €700 for two weeks, but not to worry. They have plenty of places available in Eritrea, and, better still, one of them is up the road from the original booking (in Symi), so she can have that. Yes, it is advertised at €2,300 for two weeks, but she will not have to pay any extra as the blue website is taking the hit. Not only that, but this brand new property is also an ancient island feature, on the crest of a hill, with sea views and not far from anywhere. Here, the blue website enthuses, see these (AI generated) images of what the place looks like. See, it has stone walls and new wood, and a sink/fridge unit, and a bed. Now, how can life be any more perfect?

Well, for a start, it could be finished. On arrival, said visitor finds a few faults. For example: the image on the blue website is clearly an artist’s impression of what the property could look like one day. According to that set of images there’s no need to climb over a building site to get to the door. There is no hole in the bathroom floor, leaving the drainage open, and a wonderful, nay, some would say, unique trip hazard right where your left foot will be when you’re on the loo. No table to eat off? No worries, it’s how they live on the island. Shower? It’s behind that curtain under the stairs… The list goes on. Terrible experience.

The place is clearly not fit for purpose and certainly not fit for €2,300 for two weeks.

What do you do? Some of us would contact and complain, insist on repatriation, or get on the next plane to Eritrea and launch a case of false advertising, bring in health and safety, an inspector or ombudsman, or do whatever you could to point out that whoever listed this property should be thoroughly disbarred and spanked, and that the blue website should take some responsibility for not checking the suitability of their offerings. In this true-life case, however, the visitor decides, ‘Oh well,’ and rolls with it. That’s up to them, of course, but it rather makes my blood boil to think that people think unfinished, unfurnished, and falsely advertised properties is a way to go for the sake of a few bucks.

I’m not pointing out the property publicly but I have seen the advertising and the visitor’s own images of the reality, and it’s despicable. Imagine how you would feel if you had paid over two grand for the place and on seeing it, you could tell you had been lied to. There are, apparently, even neighbouring properties in the main photographs which are not there in real life. Okay, so if you are going to try and grab tourist money from your property at least get it ready and safe before advertising it as available.

It’s pure greed on someone’s part. Terrible. Enough said. Off to make a cup of tea…

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There’s nothing more exciting than a blank piece of paper, virtual or otherwise, except for today when I have a blank piece of virtual paper and can’t think of anything to write about. I have a subject that came to mind yesterday, but I am in a rush this morning and want to give that subject more time and attention than this morning allows for, so I will come back to it in time. It’s all to do with greed of holiday rental owners, or a few of them as I don’t want to tar everyone with the same feather, or whatever that expression is. There’s a word for that… for when you say things like, ‘I’ll burn that bridge when I cross it,’ or ‘It’s not rocket surgery.’ They are called malaphors, as I am sure you know, and that’s about as interesting as I can be today. I can show you what early morning view today, and as you can see, you can hardly sea the coast of Turkey. Looks like it’s going to be a humid day.

I’m going to have to leave you with that as I have a busy morning ahead, and as it’s water day, I can have a shower. Yay!

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Had a lovely evening celebrating the godson’s birthday yesterday, even though they were both at work at the time. We managed to see them for half an hour beforehand and were able to hand over a gift. It was a bit of a working gift – new kitchen shoes, but what he wanted, apparently. After that, we went to Georgio’s and watched one run up and down stairs next door delivering what the other had cooked, so that was that, and this is this.

This ship comes in every year and has done for a few years now. Yours to rent with prices starting at $490,000 a week plus all expenses, fuel, food etc., but it does house twelve guests, so it’s a bit of a bargain really. Either that or it’s obscene; depends on your point of view, I guess. Interesting to look at, but if I had that kind of money, I’d hire something more trad, like HMS Victory. The Cutty Sark would do. You can’t really see it in my photo, but you can learn more about it here.

That was the view the other morning, and this morning was pretty much the same. Temperatures in the courtyard starting the day around 28° and rising to 37° by mid afternoon, humidity between 40% and 80% depending on the breeze. Fan on in the sitting room when there, beside me at the desk here, and overnight. You get used to the constant white noise.

And that’s about all the news today.

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