I have lived in lovely Larnaca for most of my life, but there are many shops and other establishments that I have never set foot in, despite often driving past and thinking 'that looks nice'. The reason is very simple; if I can't park, then I am not going in!
This rule of mine also extends to the shops that are in those fiddly roads you have no idea how to get in and out of too – like the Aradippou/Larnaca road that takes you to the Nicosia roundabout, and the area of Debenhams (either side). I am sure I have missed out on lots of great things as a result of my unrelenting policy, but I cannot understand how and why people open their businesses without having any proper access or parking for potential customers? I am not one to risk parking illegally or dangerously just to pop into a shop, so if I can't easily or legally get to it, then I just won't bother.
I am not lazy, and I am happy to walk – like parking up in the multi-storey or municipal car parks in town and walking around the shops – but so many shops are randomly inserted into residential streets or perched on main roads, without car parks nearby. If I were the Queen of Larnaca, then I would implement a policy of having shops clustered in areas with ample parking, and forbid a random shop opening in the basement of someone's house! If I were to take it one step further (as is my anally retentive need for order and organisation), then I would demand that shops were grouped logically too – like Tottenham Court Road in the UK where you will find all the electrical stores together, or London's Savile Row where the tailor's shops line the street. At the very least, I believe that it should be a legal requirement for establishments to have at least three parking spaces (except for the supermarkets who quite rightly have their own car parks). Maybe it is already a law that I am unaware of, which wouldn't surprise me as hardly any laws are implemented and upheld anyway…
The other issue that drives me nuts – which is probably borne from this lack of parking – is when shop-owners (illegally) prevent people parking outside their establishments unless it is for their particular store. They put signs up to that effect and shout at people who park outside but then go into the shop next door or across the road. We kind of accept this, but in actual fact, the kerbsides do not belong to the property they are in front of and are public property, therefore, we have every right to park there and not use the shop, but would we dare? I have heard many a tale of drivers suffering abuse, and even damage to their cars for parking outside someone's business and not going in!
The most puzzling thing is that new buildings are being constructed without parking taken into account so it isn't just that the population and number of cars have exploded and can no longer be catered for. Someone please make me Queen on Larnaca so I can get this sorted, otherwise I will just have to keep going to the same 10 shops – where I can park - for the rest of my life!
