Its main problem: people don’t pay taxes. Therefore, the public sector borrows money to get stuff done, which is what led to the disaster of 2009-2010………which is all but gone now, yet one of the main reasons it happened is still here. Budget degicits are not just spending, it’s also COLLECTING!
I had to get some stuff done in the apartment, different guys came amd went to fix stuff, get everything back in order after 4 years of absence, and not one of them gave me a receipt. It was all cash, no questions asked. That’s how even good governing goes bust.
They are trying to make it so everything is done through plastic, credit/debit cards, but it is going to be TOUGH.
The guys, a plumber, and air conditioning guy, a roller blinds guy, etc., all got here in no time, same or next day, did a good job, all were Greeks not foreigners(a great thing), but they all hide money like Donald.
The other thing is, certain neighborhoods have been taken over to a degree by Asians, many Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Africans, etc. My neighborhood has been taken over to a degree. Lots of mini markets, they seem to be their preferred business. Funny thing, one of them, Mustafa, has a hair salon right in my building, right next to the entrance. He is polite and hard working. He was cutting a woman’s hair at 10:30 last night. But, some small businesses, keys guy, glass guy, butcher, and a few others, stores, have closed. It will take years to restart these shops. The skills aren’t there with the new crowd. Thankfully, the big bakery, florist, pharmacy, an amazing ice cream guy, the souvlaki shop($8 for three huge gyros!)etc., are still here.
Athens is more like Paris in some areas/neighborhoods than what others are, not the way I remember growing up: multiracial.
Life continues and changes……
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