Vote!

We could spend a whole evening talking about climate change: finally we had a reasonably cool summer and September was the coldest ever. There are friends who claim that in years gone by you could sleep outside on the beach in December and in the spring, March and April, you mainly lived outside. Well, I just remember our first winters a few years back, when snow and rain poured down on the island. Is the climate here in Greece getting colder?

Last week proves the contrary: temperatures climbing nearly to 30°C and a sea temperature that still attracted some swimmers. But no rain and many Greeks get sad looking at their olive trees, that this winter don't bear much fruit and the olives that hang on the trees are small and crave for water to get just that magic touch to be able to produce that healthy, yellow gold oil.

World history proves that climates are not stable. Here on Lesvos this is proven by the Petrified Forest where trees and fossil plants from millions of year ago have been found. Some of the plants and trees, like the sequoia tree, can now only be found in the tropical and subtropical climates in South-East Asia and North America. This is a reason for scientists to conclude that Greece, in any case Lesvos, once used to have a tropical climate.

If you want to see volcanoes in Europe, you go to Sicily to climb the rumbling Etna or you descend into a spectacular crater in Madeira to visit the village of Curral das Freias. No volcano lover chooses Lesvos, although Lesvos has all its fertile land and its biggest attraction thanks to volcanoes. The island is full of wonders for geologists, and the park of 15,000 acres with its petrified trees and plants will be a paradise for them. Although you will no longer find active volcanoes here.

When a guide accompanies you when you get to this wonderful, geological park in the west of the island, approaching the villages of Anemotia and Agra, you will hear that you are travelling through the crater of a volcano. But you will need a lot of imagination to think you are moving through the cone of a crater, because the rugged mountain slopes and rough mountain peaks form an intriguing landscape, but do not look at all as a cone shaped mountain with a crater on its summit from which smoke escapes.

Everywhere on the island you will find bright coloured rocks and old crushed lava fields, evidence of the presence of these extinct volcanoes. As is of course the Petrified Forest, where wonderful trees are on display. Thanks to the volcanic eruptions and the following rains huge trees with roots and all were petrified and now you will find large tree chunks that have been changed into semi-precious stone.

When during the summer heat you shuffle one by one through the park, the crowd and heat may not allow you to imagine that once the island was covered with huge trees. But when you go in the low seasons like spring or autumn, when the sun is not burning yet and you can walk around at your own pace, those million years old trees will for sure move you to tears.

The Petrified Forest of Lesvos is the largest park in the world with petrified trees. Some smaller parks in the world are the Petrified Forest National Monument in Chubut Province in Argentina, the Geosite Goudberg by Hoegaarden in Belgium, the Geopark or Paleorrota in Brazil and the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona, but also in other countries, including Egypt, India, the Czech Republic and Australia, you will find small sites with petrified trees.

Lesvos is of course very proud of this unique park, but in terms of tourism it has a lot of competition in its own country, like the Palace of Knossos on Crete, the ancient medieval city of Rhodes, or the Acropolis in Athens, which was in the race for the New Seven Wonders of the World.

The Acropolis just missed the finish and was not announced as a new wonder of the world by the New7Wonders Foundation, which is committed to saving world heritage. In addition to the New Seven World Wonders, which are buildings made by men, the organization next year wants also to proclaim the Seven World Wonders of Nature. The preliminary rounds, where everyone can vote (also through the Internet), are already in full swing, and ultimately each country may enter the next round with only one site.

And that's not good news for Lesvos, because the Petrified Forest now has to compete with the Meteora rocks, the island of Santorini and the highest mountain in Greece, Olympos. Olympos is now ranked 107, Santorini 137, Meteora 111 and the Petrified Forest only 322!

Curiously enough the Petrified Forest is amongst the nominated forests, while I would consider it amongst the 'Rocks' or 'Parks'. Not that it matters, but I would still like to see the Petrified Forest finishing at least amongst the 100 World Wonders of Nature. The fascinating Petrified Forest on this beautiful Greek island is certainly worth your vote. So don't let your voice get lost and vote for the Petrified Forest of Lesvos:

Copyright © Smitaki 2008

Jealousy

You know that most of the time I write hymns of praise for the island. And that most of the time I love its inhabitants. However this week I will write about a nasty character trait that many Greeks have: professional jealousy. Greeks are easygoing people, except when one has too much success. Then they start teasing, complaining and in the worst case they send the authorities to investigate.

In Greece not only the foreigners need a nightmare of papers. The Greeks themselves hardly know what papers they need for a business. Mostly they settle their papers using a friend and whenever possible they try to avoid taxes and neglect laws. This is fine until somebody thinks that somebody else earns too much money. Then he will send the police to find out if this money making person has all the required papers, if he pays his taxes and if there might be illegal workers.

There are supermarkets that complain about people selling vegetables from a truck. Good businesses are boycotted because the owner isn't local, popular bars are said to be a nuisance for their loud music. Greek people don't like seeing their neigbours earning good money.

Last week air traffic controllers went on strike because they were unhappy. Travellers from Holland had to catch the boat in Athens to come to the island and Dutch vacationers leaving the island had to travel through Turkey to catch their plane in Izmir. On Lesvos some state guides were also unhappy. They did not strike, but they threatened to go to the police because they lose revenue thanks to the fact that less and less tourists will come with them. The guides enviously watch jeeps full of tourists being led by a non guide, or groups of walkers accompanied by a non guide through the gardens of Molyvos.

As long as there is tourism in Greece, state guides are trained to tell of the glorious past of this land of the Gods. When for example on Lesvos you go on an excursion to the Petrified Forest, there has to be a state guide. This is also obligatory when visiting a monastery or a village that has historical value like Molyvos, Skala Sykaminia or Agiasos.

However bus trips are not that popular anymore with tourists. They prefer tearing through the island in jeeps or taking walks. These excursions are very popular and mean that the number of people going to the Petrified Forest or Agiasios decrease, creating less work for the state guides. So they are angry.

They don't ask themselves why the public wants other excursions, they don't find out what excursions they want. They prefer to threaten via the authorities to accuse the guides of being illegal. Well, luckily enough you are allowed to accompany tourists, as long as you don't tell them anything about Greek history.

For example Dolf during his city tour accompanies you through Molyvos. He gives directions, leads you through the centuries old streets, shows you the way to the castle and makes sure that you can find the harbour.

Sigrid takes you along on her two day jeep safari. She drives in front, she indicates when you should change gear, she points out woods and rivers, she leads you up and down mount Olympus, she tells you where you can swim and eat and she makes sure that you have a night to remember at the Hot Springs of Lisvori.

Then there is Jan who accompanies the excursion Lesvos Specialities, usually called: walking with Jan. He points out what grows and what flowers, he tells stories about what is done with the plants, he shows you where you can buy regional products and he takes you to Perikles, where his wife supervises you making your own lunch.

Then there is the newest excursion: snap shot. This is for advanced walkers interested in photography. Jan (from walking with Jan) accompanies you on the Alexander walk up above Lafionas and he will make sure that you take beautiful pictures of the breathtaking views you will pass and how to take close ups of flowers.

It is clear that state guides are not educated to climb up and down small streets, that they will not bite the dust and race over mountains in jeeps and neither will they be educated to tell everything about what grows on the island and neither are they skilled to help with photography. So when these state guides are smart, they will realise what tourists want and improve excursions instead of complaining.

This means that on these new excursions there will be no guide but an accompanist. And whenever this person makes a slip of the tongue about Greek history, never mention this or the new excursions will be banned and the only thing left will be bus trips again.

However, I must underline that it is definitely worth going on an excursion to the Petrified Forest. Because not only will you see something very unique, but the bus trip travels through an impressive part of the island, so you can also see this excursion as an island tour. Dutch travellers may be happy to find besides a state guide the accompanist Dolf, the best bus trip entertainer you will find on the island.

If you do not speak Dutch, it's a pity. Because Dolf, Jan and Sigrid are at their best speaking their mother language. In this case I advise you to do like the Greeks: demand that your tour operator finds you an accompanist who speaks your language and who is able to accompany and entertain you on jeep tours and walking tours.

Copyright © Smitaki 2007