As the calendar changes its date to August, you can almost feel the weight of the sudden hush that descends across the island. All around, the collective sound of shop doors slamming is accompanied with the turning over of the 'closed' sign. We are firmly out of action for August!
August is indeed a peculiar month for us. It is the height of the tourist season and the most defining month of summer, so instead of livening up and getting into gear, we decide to close the entire island down.
The constant thrum of construction work suddenly goes quiet; the roads empty as though the end of the world is nigh, and even those who do stay open or at work slow right down as though their batteries are dying.
When I used to work in an office, August was a real pleasure as I would never take time off then but everyone else would. The drive to work was a dream with no traffic jams and a much quicker journey time, and it was much quieter in the office too. Bliss! But that is probably the only perk of August as when it comes to getting anything else done you either have to accept that August is a complete write-off or go crazy.
Forget anything involving paper work, home improvements, legal matters and other assorted necessary jobs. You literally have to put your life on pause. I always cross my fingers that my air conditioning doesn't decide to conk out on me in August, as finding someone to come and fix it is almost impossible, and if you do find them, they come with a premium just because 'it is August'.
And once again, I think of the tourists! They must find it baffling and highly inconvenient when they try to go to the bank or do some shopping only to find that half of the town is having an extended siesta. I don't know how I would feel if I came to a holiday town only to find that it was instead a ghost town and I couldn't get the most out of it.
So, because of this tradition of powering down in August, everyone does just that, which creates a vicious circle of always powering down… every August. Why should one shop stay open when all the rest are shut and most of the population is on holiday either on island or abroad?
I always brace myself for August and try to remember not to order anything online as it won't arrive until at least September. I ensure that I am fully stocked and prepared for any household disasters and try to put myself in that shut down mode too, because if you can't beat them, you just don't have much choice but to join them… off the roads, out of the shops and on to the beach!
First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly 02/08/14
