Fun And Games
I was watching from the balcony the other morning, just seeing what was going on down below when I saw a man hovering several feet above the sea. One of the new attractions at Nos beach (Paradise Beach) is the… The… (Don’t know what it’s called) the ‘floating over the water via water pressure jet boots’ thing.
The appearance of this new toy/sport/distraction has caused some ruffled feathers on social media along the lines of, ‘We don’t want our Symi to have things like this,’ and ‘No! Not on my favourite island,’ with a few ‘What a shame it’s getting like Rhodes,’ and other judgemental complaints. Well, for a start, ‘becoming’ would have been a better verb than ‘getting’, but that aside, I might be more inclined to listen to the complaints of the complainers where actually residents here and were trying to eke out their livings from a tourism industry which has been declining over the years due to world economic problems. ‘Our island.’ I ask you! I’ve been living here nearly sixteen years, and it’s never going to be ‘my’ island. Yes, I know some people are worried that…
Sorry, I was interrupted by someone having fun. Some people see things like this in use and are worried that we’re suddenly going to have huge all-inclusive hotels on Symi, Club 18-Hell tourists, young people who might actually enjoy themselves, and something called modernisation, so let me put your fears to rest. We’re not. You can hire all kinds of sea-sports equipment from this beach, and a few pleasure boats from the Nireus, but that’s about it. You can still find your tranquil places at St George and Nanou, Maruthunda and elsewhere where the only thing you’ll have to complain about are goats nosing through your bags. Besides, from what I am told, no-one actually here is disturbed by this new attraction.
Anyway, you get my message. I’ve no time for nimbies (not that I’ve heard of any actual Symi residents behaving as such), especially ones who claim island ownership because of their annual two-week holidays. Sorry if you’re one of them and that offends you; if it does, you’ll know how your comments make me feel. The bottom line in Greece right now is, everyone must make a living, and if you really supported the country, you’d support all endeavours and not moan about them from the safety of your computer.
Maybe today’s mood comes from being awake at 4.00 a.m. An early night is always a good idea for someone who works best in the early hours, but whether I go to bed at nine as I did, or two in the morning (as I rarely do these days) I still wake up early. That’s what the last image is of; a quiet moment on the balcony without anyone having fun except for the mosquitos wanting breakfast, just as the sky was beginning to turn its pre-dawn orange.
