Elena Lavranos, 59, had been up since 7am preparing food for the next 60 or so people to eat. Thursday nights were busy at her restaurant since that is when the Dublin flight comes in and the familiar faces return. It was due to her cooking and her son Georges hospitality that they return year after year. She could see why they would, but she never got to experience the magic of Corfu in the way that they did.
After making the tzatziki, she goes up to her garden, holding her back with her hand as it pained her on the way. The path was full of large rocks and she had to be careful not to stub her toe while she walked. Sweat poured down her face as the temperature hit the high 30s.
Not a day goes by that she doesn’t miss Spiros and wish he was still here. They had married at 16 and now that he’s gone it was as though a large part of her life had been taken away from her. Although, she struggled on because she knows he would have wanted her to.
They had been a perfect match. The two of them had a great sense of humour and lightened up the worlds of the people around them. Spiros would carry out the more strenuous jobs around the restaurant and Elena would stick to perfecting delicious Greek meals. Now, she does both, and it really takes it out of her. She had two days after he passed away. Two days to mourn, and then it was back to work because she really didn’t have a choice. She made the food that provided the income for her ever growing family.
While picking the green beans from her garden she remembers the times when she could do all of these things without wincing in pain. Life had taken its toll on Elena and although inside she still feels like a young woman, the hard work she does has aged her on the outside. Now she must relieve the babysitter, and take care of her four crazy grandchildren with infinite energy levels.
This is an example of a typical day for Elena before the Greek crisis. Greeks work hard no matter what state the economy is in. In fact for those on the islands the crisis hasn’t affected them half as much as those on the mainland. In Elenas case, her life has actually improved. With a new man in her life she doesn’t feel lonely anymore. He treats her to lunches and dinners that other people actually cook for her! Her back has returned to normal and doesn’t hurt her anymore after several physiotherapy sessions. She has taken up a new hobby, dancing, which she thoroughly enjoys after a long night at work. She’s now getting a taste of the life which tourists and the other islanders enjoy every summer. She can swim again without pain; she eats out with friends while her grandchildren are minded by their babysitter. She dances at clubs as if she has no care in the world and she finally feels her age. The state of the economy? It’s not affecting her so much. Her family is still working hard to provide for themselves, that hasn’t changed.
The islanders rely on their seasonal work to survive while carrying out various other jobs in the winter. Since the tourists are still coming, the work is still there and the majority haven’t been severely affected. Life on the mainland however, isn’t so easy. All Greeks are suffering due to the austerity measures forced upon them by the member states of the EU in effort to force them to repay the Greek debt. The Greeks on the mainland don’t have the guaranteed swarm of tourists each year to rely on to pay these taxes.
The Greeks have always had an aversion of paying taxes. This is what’s led them to where they are today. They just simply don’t do it. Some pretend they’ve had only half of the business that they did, and pay taxes for that while keeping the other half. It is fair to say they are doing it so they have enough real income to live on but it has gotten them in this situation. The ironic truth is that on the islands, they earn a lot and don’t give enough back. However the mainland is where the majority are suffering the fall out.
LAURA CONNOLLY JOURNALISM 