Arrived Paphos 21:00 tonight..expected a coach transfer to my hotel in Limassol but was given a taxi..sole passenger. Very pleased about that.
Andros rolls up in his Vito minibus, steady 120/140kph along the dual, didn’t slacken off through the long tunnel with a posted 80kph limit, or the 60kph road works, answers his phone with right hand up to his lug ol, then scrolls through his texts and replies whilst still doing 120/140 kph.
Needless to say no tip. Atrocious driving, hard braking behind slower vehicles in lane 2, almost as if he hadn’t seen them until the last few moments.
Hope to spend a few days walking in the Troodos, dependent upon sensible car hire prices.
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Was the transfer part of a package?
If so I'd be having words with the resort rep.
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Sounds like you got one of the better Cypriot taxi drivers.
Last edited by: sooty123 on Tue 18 Jun 24 at 07:01
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>>Hope to spend a few days walking in the Troodos
Bit hot up there at the mo, best not to go alone if ewe don't know the area!
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Being driven anywhere can be uncomfortable for a driver, especially one who thinks he is a good driver. Being driven abroad is usually even worse!!
But I do find myself thinking that driving style in each country is quite different, as are the rules of the road - so maybe the using a phone while driving isn't illegal even though it horrifies us.
I remember feeling concerned at the apparent risks being taken by the drivers at a roundabout in Hurghada, Egypt, until I realised they either had different priority rules to us, or (more likely) there were known and accepted local methods of roundabout management in play. I didn't monitor it extensively but over here we'd have had serious road rage and numerous accidents but over there it seemed par for the course.
As a driver in Portugal (certainly in the area I visit) you need to be aware that a pedestrian even near the edge of the pavement who might want to cross has right of way, and the cars will stop before he reaches the kerb. You can (and the often do) literally safely step right onto a crossing without looking - which over here would attract some flak at best. Safe until, that is, the next car along is a British rental car.
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Last month saw us in Sorrento with a TUI package. Not been on a package holiday for a while. We were greeted at Naples airport and then we had to walk around 700 meters to an ancient coach. No rep on the bus, which was driven with verve with the driver holding a phone based sat-nav in one hand. Two hours later we were dropped off at the fantastic Hotel Bristol - collection the following week was not as good. An even older bus - an overhead locker door fell onto the people beind us. To be fair the driver didn't bat an eyelid and carried on regardless....As mentioned the hotel was as good as it is likely to get but TUI are a little disappointing.
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Guy who picked us up at Halifax NS on the current trip was of German extraction, but a long-term resident. Very friendly and talkative all the way. When told the destination he responded "I took Tony Blair to that hotel in 1999". ;-)
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You were lucky then. They have gone bust in the meantime.
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My bad - it wasn't TUI which went bust, it was FTI.
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>>TUI are a little disappointing.
Last time I used them, they gave us cockroach infested place and the rep wasn't to be found. Other guests were sleeping in reception as it seemed to be cleaner.
When I finally got through to the UK site, they moved us to a place that was infested with bedbugs.
Never again!
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I’ve taken to walking into Limassol most evenings for food…dual carriageway, occasional 6 lanes, along the front.
Plenty of nutters…cars weaving from lane 3 to lane 1 and back again to get to the lights first. A few cars but especially bikes treat the red stops as optional. Noisy motorbikes racing
up and down, shorts & vests seem to be the standard clothing, 50% wear helmets..mostly the scooter drivers.
Must be some money about because there are plenty of Ferraris, Maseratis, G Wagens, big Mercs ( Maybach ?) and I’ve seen two Bentley SUVs in gaudy colours. Porsche are two a penny.
Seafront full of new high rise offices & apartments with trendy boutiques, kitchen showrooms, art galleries..2 blocks back, it’s 30 yo Toyotas. That’s where I dine with the locals, normally around 21:30, cheap as chips, delicious Middle Eastern & Cypriot food, then an hours walk back.
On the way in along the front Pizza Hut, CafeNero, KFC and tgiFridays are full with tourists. Nice to see the younger locals enjoying the traditional back street cafes& restaurants.
Like Limassol..once away from the hotel strip to the East.
Last edited by: legacylad on Sun 23 Jun 24 at 09:13
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>>Must be some money about
= ₽
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Don't the Greeks have a rather relaxed approach to tax collection? I believe they depend on the public to self declare their earnings, with little or no checks. Wasn't this a reson for the EU to be cautious about letting them join?
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According to my father, it dates back to the era when they were ruled by the Ottomans and it was their patriotic duty not to pay taxes to them. Since Ottoman rule ended 200 years ago, it must have become deeply ingrained if true.
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French friends of mine worked for the French FO in various postings around the world.
One of them was Greece…not Greek Cyprus. They seriously considered a second home in Greece, but the black economy was endemic. They tell tales of having to bribe trades people to do jobs otherwise you can wait literally years….in which case they would stop whatever they were working on and come to your property, where you would then pay them again to do the job.
They bought a second home in Spain. And only use Spanish trades, not the folk who learn a trade on the flight out from the uk.
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>..but the black economy was endemic.
I don't think you're allowed to say that.
Up until a year or two ago in Greece you didn't pay property tax on buildings which were still under construction. That's why many of the private properties on the islands were left with rebar sticking out of the concrete pillars so it could be claimed that they were unfinished.
Most tavernas, shops, taxis and even customs houses in the marinas wanted cash but the govt. have put a stop to it and decreed that they should take cards and always issue a receipt. As usual that's widely ignored.
Quite a few greeks unfortunately got caught out when Greece switched to the Euro because they'd been hiding undisclosed cash under the bed.
We still have a few thousand drachma that gets a laugh when we try to pay our bill in a taverna.
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After a week here I’ve only used cash twice.,.both times in the new Lidl in Limassol which I walk past en route to the back street restaurants.
Where I eat at night happily accept my Revolut card
Once to buy a single almond choc ice magnum type, and again to buy beers to put in my room fridge ( which I’m drinking now on my sunny 29C inland west facing balcony).
I don’t pay extra for sea view rooms when I’m in the sea at 7AM working up an appetite. Tight Tyke :-)
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Several years ago we stayed in a hotel in Paleokastritsa in Corfu. 3 star ish with a pool and fairly quiet.
Unusually they didn't ask to see our passports or and other admin at check in.
We spent most of our time around the pool and staying local. "Pay your bill tonight"
Everything was jotted down in an A4 hard backed book.
Drinks from the bar during the day and most nights we ate in their restaurant.
End of the night we settled the bill. The book was opened and totted up.
"60 Euro"
In fact it was 60 Euro every night. Cash of course. :)
You picked your choice from the menu and out went the owner on his scooter to get fresh ingredients. Food was excellent.
On the last day the owner took us up the mountain behind and showed us the view of the island. An interaction with a couple of Scouse ladies who had just pedaled up was highly amusing.
When we came home we had a look at Trip Advisor. It was commonly known as the '60 Euro Hotel'.
I'm certain as far as tax was concerned we were never there. The Greeks seem very adept with their tax affairs.
Meanwhile back to Cyprus I believe that it has the third highest rate of car ownership per capita within Europe. 645 cars per thousand inhabitants, according to a Eurostat study.
Last edited by: Fullchat on Sun 23 Jun 24 at 20:59
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Cypriot taxi ride - Bromptonaut
