I’m spending this portion of my summer in Greece. So I thought I would tell you all a little about what its like here right now.
Well for starters? Its REALLY weird! Greece is normally borderline desert in a lot of places, due to the intensity of the sun and the lack of precipitation. Naturally the land is pretty dry, and the green bits you see on google earth are the developed bits. See all over Greece, land owners are selling their large chunks of land, or else developing it themselves to make condo or maisonette type complexes. These come with nice little patches of green grass that is laid over the earth with a web and is kept alive by doggy sprinkler systems (or by possessive housewives with a hose, or else they have their hired help do it for them). Sense the sarcasm.
And thats on the mainland. All year round. Now lets talk about the islands and summer. Everyone associates Greece with beaches. But the beaches aren’t accessible everywhere. Sure they are only 45 minutes from where I’m staying now, and its fine for a little outing. However so many houses, and new houses/developments/hotels on the islands all have their own pools. And they aren’t all small. This furthers the problem.
Can you see the problem with this? Well, I hope you can, because people here are in denial about the harm they are doing to the environment. They think its worthless to do their small part in helping the environment because they think it will have no different, but thats exactly the point. If EVERYONE in Greece cut down their water consumption just a bit, that would make the entire situation a great deal better. Why do you think we have all the problems with forest fires in the summers? Yes I know they are started by anarchists, but if the forests weren’t so dry, they wouldn’t spred so much, or at least so quickly.
Which is why I love the weather Greece has been getting lately. More than enough sun to be happy with, soak up your healthy dose of Vit. D. but there has also been a great deal of rain lately. I know so many people complaining about it. OHhh, that limits my time to go to the beach (not that they would even be at the beach then, they just want the opption of going whenever they want- sorry, but mother nature holds the reigns) Ohh, its not so warm when it rains(sorry, but I rreally dont like feeling like I’m in an oven). Whatever stupid excuses people come up with for why they DON’T want it to rain when it is so desperately needed, I say they can just get over themselves and realize that they aren’t king of the world and the universe doesn’t revolve around what they would like to do. Every summer Greece goes into a water crisis because there are so many tourists, taking extra long showers, splashing around in a pool and not to mention putting a lot of strain on drinking water.In some tourism towns, there is a noticeable dip at about 3-4 p.m. when everyone has come home from the beach to relax in the A.C. and take a nice cool, long shower to get the sand off.
Of course there is also the Power problem. Many times throughout the summer one can count on encountering a power cut, particularly if you are staying on the mainland near Athens. There are so many people with their air conditioning on full blast, not that I blame them in the city where it is horribly stiflingly hot. Who I DO blame is the shops. You can walk around the commercial areas in the summer, where ever there are clusters of shops, and you might actually feel cool with the noon time sun beating down on you. Because all the stores, boutiques, and shops have their air conditioning on full blast and leave the doors wide open.I wonder what goes through their minds, from and economic and environmental point of view.
So why do I love the weather they are getting right now? Its a warm pressure system, so its windy, which would be bad if there were any fires, but its also rainy, and the air isn’t as dry. The clouds aren’t always in full coverage, so you can still enjoy the natural light without the harsh glare of the naked sun in your eyes. Its beautiful like this. The thunder and lightning is also beautiful to hear and see. Its a beauty Greeks don’t always appreciate, yet I love it. Hopefully having all this rain so late in the year this year will help them out a bit. Keep the reservoirs filled, tourists happy, and the forests healthy.
Happy and Healthy. That’s all our parent’s wish for us, and that’s all Mother Nature wishes for her lands. So quite complaining, and embrace this weather Greeks. Get out there and Dance in the rain!
6 responses to “I hate it when the thunder interupts my Yoga routine, but God, I love this weather!”
Sex, Spirit & Soul Mates....Ivonne's Journey
July 4th, 2010 at 08:36
..get out and dannce in the rain…what a great thing to do…sadly for the planet it is not just in Greece but all over whare humans are not considering the effects of their action on the enivironment.
It is great that you are so aware at such a young age…
kudos to you
😉
ivonne
Mirellarose
July 4th, 2010 at 09:09
🙂 I love too. I just have to make sure I’ve got good grip on my shoes or else who knows where I’ll end up!
I know its not just in Greece, its just that Greece is a good example to show it. Its a shame. There are too many people who believe global warming is a hoax. Ok, maybe its the earth’s natural cycle, although its coming on faster and sooner than scientists expected due to info the glaciers give us, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t helped it pick up speed.
Thankyou. I hope that if I can talk to people, or write to people about it, it might help them to think about it. (though so many people still refuse to listen to “children”).
Thanks for reading, and commenting,
Mirella
The Blade of Light
July 9th, 2010 at 20:17
Dancing in the rain is indeed an overrated activity, but this weather sure isn’t ! It is simply the best weather a summer can have and I haven’t seen it in Greece since 1996-1997 when almost ever day it would rain for a while in the afternoon and give such wonderful breezes for the night.
The weather is just fine as it is and those who do not like it are simply people in the habit of complaining … if we had the usual heatwaves the same people would have complained about the excessive heat … now that we have a cool summer (in more ways than one :P) the same people complain about it …
There is no pleasing in some people … and if those people happen to be Greek, then they WILL nag even if it rained one euro coins instead of water every day. 😛
> But the beaches aren’t accessible everywhere. Sure they are only 45 minutes from where I’m staying now, and its fine for a little outing.
“Little” outing .?. It is actually quite far …
> However so many houses, and new houses/developments/hotels on the islands all have their own pools.
By far the stupidest idea to ever dawn on any mind in the country … oh, yes, we do have thousands of Kilometers of beaches, but let us build a pool on a beach hotel, just to be on the safe side in case the Aegean sea dries up.
The stupidity of it all is infuriating …
Anyway … I hope that you enjoy you vacations in the partially sunny Greece. 🙂
Mirellarose
July 10th, 2010 at 08:54
Over rated or not, I love the refreshing feeling of freedom to be dancing in the rain. Defying Society, lol. I agree about the weather (well obviously :P) Its perfect because you can sleep comfortably, do your activities in the morning before it gets to warm, and then enjoy the breather of rain in the afternoon only to have the evenings free. My family loves to eat alfresco in the summer. Well there are four kids so, especially here, and if we’ve had the stove/oven on it gets really warm in the kitchen/dinning room. So long as it doesn’t rain in the evening, everyone is happy. Plus the sun goes down so late, which is lovely!
I agree about the complaining. During my year here as an exchange student from New York, I noticed a lot of kids my age were really into complaining as though it were a competitive sport. No matter what they always found something that wasn’t perfect…about the weather…teachers…lessons/homework…and even people. I felt like telling them to shut up and let other people live their lives the way they want. Maybe it was just that becasue of all the other changes I was very inclined to noticing the differences. However, when I spoke to my grandmother about it she told me that there have always been people like that here, though she couldn’t speak for other countries.
Yes, some of them are Greeks, or else Brits, or else foreigners who have lived here their whole lives 😛 I know a swedish girl who has lived here since she was 4 and despite being pale she insists on tanning until she burns and then adopting a greek attitude towards the summer… unfortunately not the attitude everyone has or even like for other people to have. Makes her rather disagreeable. But maybe its just me.
I like your image about the Euro coins raining. I think I would probably complain about that, haha, probably go on a rant about how they will clog rivers and streams and then the oxidation with pollute already polluted water systems, not to mention the head aches people will get from being hit on the head, 😛 not that raining euro coins are a bad idea in this economy.
haha, Yes I agree, it is a bit far. We don’t get to go every weekend, but when we do, we make an outing of it. Leaving in the early morning (By early I mean by 10:00 :P) to get there for a quick swim and then lunch of either a picnic or else at one of the psarotavernas in which case I would probably bring a sandwhich (I haven’t eaten fish in over two years. Mom made a really nice fish dish for Christmas (the traditional italian seven fishes dish) and it smelt so good I had to try… but I ended up puking instead… :S) and then swim again once the sun isnt so harsh, until the evening.
And my thoughts exactly. How stupid can a person be to want to swim in a pool if you have the sea… RIGHT THERE *points infront of her feet :P* Ok, maybe if, like my brother last year, you are recuperating from a dislocated knee or other leg injury, a pool is preferable to the beach where you might slip, get your foot stuck in a dip or even do more harm than good battling the currents… but for the most of us… I dont see the joy of swiming in a chlorinated pool with a view of the sea when you could just as easily be swiming in the sea… baffles me still!
Thank you, for the well wishing, the comment and for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful summer too! be it sunny or rainy!
The Blade of Light
July 11th, 2010 at 12:28
> However, when I spoke to my grandmother about it she told me that there have always been people like that here
Nag is our national sport ! Almost everyone plays it …
> I noticed a lot of kids my age were really into complaining as though it were a competitive sport. No matter what they always found something that wasn’t perfect…about the weather…teachers…lessons/homework…and even people.
… especially kids … It pays to learn young, I guess. 😛
> I like your image about the Euro coins raining. I think I would probably complain about that, haha, probably go on a rant about how they will clog rivers and streams and then the oxidation with pollute already polluted water systems
Ahahaha !!! I bet that in case of such a pollution there would have been plenty of voluteers to go and clear the rivers and the water … especially if they got to keep the “polluting” euro coins and “dispose” of them personally … Yup, there would have been a real rush for developing an ecological mentality. ;-p
> How stupid can a person be to want to swim in a pool if you have the sea…
A lot is the answer and apparently there is always a surplus of their kind in this country, else those hotels wouldn’t never have found the funds to build all those pools …
Thank you for your wishes, btw. 🙂
Mirellarose
July 12th, 2010 at 12:15
That’s certainly true! If only the Olympic commitee would authorize it as an Olympic sport! 😛
Of course! All good athletes who hope to make a place in history need to be goal orientated from a young age! haha
Hmmm, thats very true… maybe we should all go and dump coins in the rivers… It would be a gold rush all over again! 😀
Too true… I still find it a waste though! Its unfathomable in my eyes!
No worries, and thank you too!