When we arrived in Greece from the Peloponnese, we did not feel like being in a country in crisis. While the vast terraces of the restaurants were deserted but what is more normal in the month of October. Also, most of the time, the tourist navigates out of the social reality of the country he visits, so that boils down monuments, arts and traditional cultures and cuisine. The host country is often very careful to keep the tourists away from social conflict, creating tourist police for example, it maintains only idyllic image of her visit. Our first week in Greece can be summarized as no trace of any crisis.
Upon arrival in Athens, we are greeted by a Greek couple our age, Stratos and Kelly and the early discussions the crisis erupted. Thus, Stratos which prepares a thesis in physics has been deleted her purse overnight and do not know if he can go through. In this "knowledge economy the most competitive in the world" promoted by the European Union, the first victim of the crisis is research. With Stratos and Kelly we meet young Greeks forced to live with their parents, to juggle three little jobs when they have the chance to work. They tell us that increase cigarette prices, petrol, everything, they are sharing their concerns about an uncertain future, to see the streets of Athens populate police. For in times of crisis, the police becomes a solution to a multitude of problems : It provides work for unemployed youth, it helps curb the development of the crime that accompanies the impoverishment of a part of the population but also to repress social movements claiming a different distribution of wealth.
Thus, in one week, through these meetings we have started a healthy change, mere tourists we have become travelers, explorers of the social, cultural and political of the countries they pass through . But the tourist itself can sometimes finds himself facing the reality of conflict places he visits. We have seen one of those moments of grace when, on Oct. 12 last one hundred employees of the Ministry of Culture went on strike and it blocked access to the site of the Acropolis, claiming renewal their employment contract meant to end on October 31, obtaining permanent contracts and payment of wage arrears for some back up to 24 months. These represent some 6 million euros, one can hardly believe that the Greek government has chosen to make such savings tip candles to repay its debt by several hundred billions of Euros!
From that time was put in place a very careful choreography between strikers, police, journalists, tourists and politicians. Thus, the primary objective of the strikers was to draw attention to their situation has been reached: the Acropolis, the first tourist site of Greece and a symbol of Athenian democracy, blocked for the third time this year, journalists rushed to establish a permanent camp outside the main entrance. The next morning, October 13, it's time for police to enter the dance on the basis of a court decision declaring Express blocking the Acropolis illegal. The mobile police take storm the site literally in a cloud of tear gas enveloping shovel-mell strikers, journalists and tourists. After this dramatic change, the choreography takes over, but this time it was the police who took control of the site entrance. However, it remains locked in that employees in charge of monitoring the site, until then not involved in the movement, begin to turn on strike in solidarity with their colleagues! Two days of locking the "Jewel of Greece", the number of journalists has tripled and the international media are there, we are offering fabulous Radio sidewalks disgruntled tourists to discover the reality of a country in crisis and having to review their plans: "We came to the Acropolis, we understand the problem with that Greek economic crisis, but do we need really be affected by this? "Tourism is the main economic activity in Greece with shipping, this strike is a bit like if the Greeks were shooting a bullet in the foot! ".
Finally, the third day, October 14, the Greek government has found a way around the strike by guards and was thus able to satisfy the legitimate claims of those unfortunate tourists by opening free access to the Acropolis. They pass in front and a beautiful row of police before joining the Parthenon, and meditate on the ups and downs of democracy.
Finally, the third day, October 14, the Greek government has found a way around the strike by guards and was thus able to satisfy the legitimate claims of those unfortunate tourists by opening free access to the Acropolis. They pass in front and a beautiful row of police before joining the Parthenon, and meditate on the ups and downs of democracy.
However, the noise generated by the international media event led to the Greek prime minister speak before Parliament in endorsing little argument about the tourists: "Giving such an image on a global scale as we saw in the media today is hurting our country. Is this the image we want to give our country? Is this how we will help workers in this country, our businesses and entrepreneurs? Is this how we are going to develop tourism? Is this how we are going to help investment? . One is tempted to return the question: is using employees of the Ministry of Culture in precarious conditions in paying them with a slingshot that the government will help the development of tourism?
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