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As told by a Singaporean traveller: what was life in Greece like during the crisis?

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An anti-austerity protester holds a Greek flag in front of the parliament during a protest against austerity policies on July 21, 2015 (Photo: AFP)

By Angela Low

It was 1 July and I was beginning my week-long sabbatical in Athens, Greece. During that period, the banks had just closed and each citizen could only withdraw a maximum of €60 a day from cash machines. At the end of the week, there was to be a public voting for the bailout as well.

With a total debt of about €323 billion, Greece’s current situation dates back to 2001 when it entered the Euro, Europe’s fledgling single currency. By 2009, after the global financial crash from the previous year, the government knew it was in trouble and admitted they had been regularly understating their budget deficit for some time, leading to an economic meltdown.

The bailout from European creditors was meant to help Greece pay off its debts, and pre-empt the Grexit (Greece’s exit from the eurozone) and the country’s financial collapse, but under a condition: Greece had to accept the severe austerity measures, which were imposed by its creditors.

All who bothered to be concerned had advised against going through with the vacation. Chaos and dangerous uncertainty, they said, awaited in Greece. A higher chance of getting pickpocketed and a possibility of diving straight into Bloody Riot Avenue were some of the imagined issues.

I confess I was rather strung up myself of the potential hazards. God forbid, the airport holds a strike and delays my flight. However, at least on the surface, I was surprised by how calm the Greek capital seemed.

Granted, you could still sense a tinge of solemnity in the air and spot the strain of the fiscal disaster take a toll on the faces of the denizens. Nonetheless, it was apparent that for the majority, life goes on. The handful of Greeks I chatted up refused to be burdened by the bailout ballot. All they knew was to reject it.

“So what’s this Sunday about?” I enquired of a slender young woman perched in a quaint eatery looking calm. She lifted her long fingers to her lips, took in a deep drag of her cigarette, and exhaled.

“I don’t know,” she coolly replied.

She knew about the referendum. She had already decided to vote no, when this reporter probed further. She just did not want to talk about it. She told me that she did not care.

Another 29-year-old Greek male preferred to stay positive, withhold complaining and ditch the voting altogether. As for his girlfriend, “no, no, no, no” was her approach to the poll.

Low on cash, high on generosity

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A man ® reacts as people line up to withdraw cash from an ATM outside a Eurobank branch in Athens, Greece June 28, 2015. (Photo: Reuters/Alkis Konstantinidis)

Lining up every day at the cash machine, the Greeks were low on cash, yet high on generosity. You would think a modest little neighbourhood produce market would need the most help, but that did not stop its benign proprietor from presenting my companions and I a banana each, free of charge. Before we left, he blithely gave us another bunch of bananas gratis.

My plans went off without a hitch. I encountered no violence or demonstrations, although that may just be sheer dumb luck, considering the recent strike in Athens on 15 July that turned ugly with petrol bombs and tear gas, according to Reuters.

While it would be fallacious to say that everyone is happily going on with life, utterly unconcerned by the crisis, it would not be accurate either to claim that the nation lies defeated. The people soldier on.

A selfish blessing in disguise, my week was sweetened up with free public transport, due to the ongoing crisis and bank closure. The complimentary pass (available only in Athens) lasted the whole week until 7 July, the day I was supposed to leave the city. The streets were quieter, which meant more peace and fewer crowds. Not to mention, I was aiding Greece’s economy with all the money I was squandering.

At the end of the day, the financial turmoil did not directly impact tourists. And in my experience, the general atmosphere was hardly marred by affected natives, whose hopefulness remains unwavering in the face of straitened circumstances.