Buying local… if I can find it! - Paula Manoli-Gray

It was my son's birthday last week, and he wanted a desk from his nouna. A simple enough request, but as always, I found that when I have something specific in mind, I can never find it in Cyprus!

Of course, there are many shops that sell children's desks, but sadly, the nice ones are all designer and overinflated in price. Then you have the other end of the scale – cheap MDF - which is again sold out here for far more than it is worth. Eventually, a plea on Facebook was responded to by a nice lady who lives 10 minutes away from me, and was selling her children's old desk. It fit the bill, and the task was completed!

But this is something that frustrates me no-end about living in Cyprus. I can never find what I want, so I most often end up buying it online. This upsets me to some degree as I do really, really want to support local businesses, but when a) you cannot find the item, or b) it is double or triple the price you can get it for online, then supporting my town goes out of the window in favour of getting what I want at a reasonable price – and I feel bad about that. But my pocket is not unlimited and even if it were, why should I pay more just because we have an issue of chronic overcharging out here? I always tell people 'vote with your feet', and that is what I do; I give my custom to those who provide goods or services to a good standard and at a reasonable price, which is why you do not see me sitting at trendy cafes drinking beverages that cost more than they do in London!

Granted, it is so much better than it used to be… I remember the days when a trip to Nicosia was the only way to get most things as Larnaca was lagging so far behind – especially in franchises. At that time, there was little choice even in the capital, so it was either the limited number of things at overinflated prices, or not at all! And those who have lived here a long time can surely relate to the era where anything that came from Greece or Italy – however cheap in its respective country – would be marked up ten-fold and lapped up by consumers just because it was 'made in Greece' (or Italy!). Those were the days when consumers too shared the blame as there was an air of snobbery and a desire to pay more to be able to boast that what you had was expensive or designer, and businesses were happy to oblige. Oh how the mighty have fallen since then.

Thankfully, things have changed. Larnaca has caught up and - with the exception of a handful of franchises and restaurants - we have just as much as Nicosia and Limassol have, even if we do not have a mall. And variety has also entered our market; variety in goods and the welcome addition of variety in prices. There are reasonable shops, there are budget stores and cut-price outlets, and there are much better sales than there previously were. Add to this the big surge in second-hand goods being sold in bricks-and-mortar shops and on Facebook groups for both Larnaca and the island as a whole, and theoretically, you should be able to pretty much find everything. But still, I struggle to find 'the right thing' a lot of the time. I don't know if it is just me and I have very specific/fussy tastes, or if we tend to have a lot of variety and an over-saturated market for some things and a lack of certain others.

But there are still businesses – who despite the crisis and a drop in customers – that will not get off their high (pricing) horse. And this is one of the reasons that I think I will probably be buying online for a while yet.

First appeared in 'The Cyprus Weekly', 13/03/15

Playday with the hungry Caterpillar - Angels with Special Needs

No need to call back - Paula Manoli-Gray

We seem to be living in a paradoxical time when it comes to communication – or at least it feels that way on the island.

Whilst most people have the latest smart phone, tablet or computer and spend more time with their heads down trying to impress faux friends on social media than talking to their real ones, they seem totally incapable of answering business emails or returning calls.

Not having lived in the UK for many years, I do not know if this is a global phenomenon or one of our 'quaint' Cyprus-isms, but it is certainly wide-spread here and extremely frustrating.

I have personally found that even some of the most 'professional' or esteemed business people – and/or their assistants – can be totally incapable of sending off a polite reply to at least acknowledge an email. And this also extends to civil servants and public services where there should – at the very least – be an automatic reply to say that your email has been received.

And when it comes to returning calls, forget it. I know of a friend who had an appointment with a respected specialist doctor in Limassol but had to cancel and has now spent the last two months trying to reschedule another, only to be told (literally) several times a day that 'someone will call her back'. No one ever does – and they know that it is in regards to a fairly urgent medical issue.

But this lack of communication also occurs when you are trying to give something or help someone and there is no actual benefit to you for getting in touch, so it is not a one-way street of being ignored only when you require assistance or information - it is just a system of being ignored all the time!

As a journalist, I am always left baffled as to why my emails and phone calls go unanswered when it comes to my approaching someone to write an article on them – a positive thing and a source of free publicity. You would be amazed how many people completely ignore me, or tell me they will be back in touch with some information and are never heard from again. It costs very little time, effort and financial outlay to fire off a reply to someone or return that call in the name of manners and professionalism, and I have to admit, I often judge someone on the basis of how efficient and considerate they are in answering their communications.

So, why does this occur so much in Cyprus? Is it because people are so busy and overstretched, or because they believe that their time or lives are more important than the rest of the island's? Or is it one of those laid-back attitudes that we have (and that was the polite way of saying it)? Whatever the reason, it creates a culture of frustration and distrust in people, services and businesses. We stop asking questions, we stop complaining, we stop getting involved, we stop offering our time or assistance… simply because 'no one will respond to us anyway'.

And the saddest indictment of our times? That you are far more likely to get a response from someone if you go via their social media account than any other form of communication, along with the pleasure of seeing photos of them partying, cuddling their cat, or showing off the remnants of their dinner!

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 06/03/15

Bright Sparks - Fun SUNday

Piggy in the middle - Paula Manoli-Gray

The recent news that a number of wealthy individuals and businesses on the island collectively owe over €163 million in taxes to the state cannot have come as a surprise to anyone. There is a commonly held belief amongst the 'not-rich' that those who amass that kind of wealth do so precisely because they do not pay their dues.

In previous years you couldn't have dreamed of seeing a 'name-em-shame-em' list as these issues were hushed up, and no one would dare to humiliate those in the Big Boy's Club. But, what with The Crisis blah-de-blah, things have changed, so now we know exactly how and why the big bank balances are as high as they are – and shame on them.

Then you have those at the very bottom of the social class structure who have nothing. These people are (rightly) helped out by the state, charities and kind individuals through food packages, subsidised bills, clothing and household donations, state benefits and the like. But, for some people in this bracket, things are actually better than they ever have been, and some are much better off due to the increase in the different avenues and benefactors that they receive from.

So, what we have is the rich-set not paying their taxes and enjoying a life of riley, and those on the very bottom being fed, clothed and generally looked after. But what about the 'forgotten middle class'?

The forgotten middle class typically looks like this: married couple, both in employment with 2.5 kids. On paper they seem to be financially okay and can buy food, just about pay their bills and are likely to own their home. As such, they would not qualify for help and would be considered to be fine. But the reality is, the forgotten middle class is almost worse off than the lower class in these current times. They might be able to pay – or just about pay – their mortgage, but they certainly don't have the funds to maintain their home and will go white at the thought that there might be an emergency plumbing situation that would require fixing, because they just couldn't afford it. They might be able to feed their family, and even enjoy the occasional coffee or takeaway on the weekend, but they won't be going on a holiday any time soon. They might have a car, but whereas before they would have been happy to take a trip into Nicosia for a day out, they now have to think twice about their petrol consumption.

This class is the most stung, most targeted and most overlooked class, who, despite the previous definition of what being middle class was, are now just about scraping through, and are most likely living hand-to-mouth. But they simply do not qualify for assistance and they certainly won't be getting anyone's sympathy or charity. They are taxed to the death, they are worked to the bone and they are surviving rather than living. For the first time, this class is worse off than their parents, and in many cases, has to rely on their parents' help to buy the kids their new school uniform or pay for them to go on a school trip. Quite simply, this class is drowning without a life-raft in sight.

I am not trying to imply that all those who are classed as 'needy' are being adequately fed and clothed or enjoying it, and for a great many, these times are hell as one or both partners are out of work and they literally have nothing. But I do think it's time that the ones in the middle were acknowledged too, because they are the ones struggling to pay the taxes that the super rich refuse to, and the needy simply cannot.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 27/02/15