What a Racket

After all the recent activity of my move from my home and personal office of over five years to a smaller city centre location, combined with the a new working environment in the beautiful Hampshire countryside, I decided a short break top sunny Cyprus would be just the order for a few days before the final push. Checking the internet for the cheapest price seemed the best alternative particularly as it was such a late decision. So what we thought was a cheap Thomson holiday was duly booked and organised within a few days. No need for a suitcase for four days, hand luggage being plenty we headed for the airport. The taxi cost had risen by 10% since my last trip a couple of months ago, fair enough 10% is a big jump but everything is going up. So we get dropped at the wrong terminal which wakes us up with a brisk hike followed by a charge of £32 each for hand luggage because they are heavier than a pathetic 5kgs.

Had this been made clear to us, bearing in mind there were four in the party, we could have packed everything in one case and paid £32 for the lot, as it was we had to pay four time over being £128 and then when it comes time to pay they then charge us commission on the credit card. Oh how these annoying expenses test our patience. On the plane for nearly five hours there is no entertainment as apparently Thomson won’t pay for a licence to entertain their customers We make our own fun instead. Anything you want to eat or drink costs extra on top of course. Perhaps next time I’ll take sandwiches.

Anyway the beautiful weather in Pathos made it all better when we got to enjoy the sunshine. That wasn’t the only reason for going though. I have an apartment there that’s been losing money since the day I bought it. Being part of Greece its value plummeted following the credit crunch. The management company went into liquidation within months and the rental managers absconded, with my money of course. There have been a series of problems caused by the distance and communication, not least of all someone stealing a large quantity of water – an expensive commodity in a hot country. Eventually I want to spend four months of the year enjoying the glories of the island but until then it has to pay for itself, so organising people who could effectively rent the place was critical. It’s taken now for July and August but a more regular arrangement is needed with weekly rentals and that’s going to need a website with booking facilities as well as good management on the ground.

Another reason for being over there was to make links with developers who can provide quality properties to my discerning clients. Everywhere across the world there are dodgy people in the property business. Sorting the wheat from the chaff is not recommended with your life savings so having an agent who you can trust makes all the difference. Were now working with the biggest property company in Cyprus, they didn’t get that way by doing things wrong. The variety of properties they offer is vast, the build quality is excellent. Their after sales standards are good and their prices are fair. I’d only want to recommend companies whose ethos fits with my own thinking. I’m only sorry I didn’t purchased from them myself but we get older and wiser to rackets.

My sister requested that on the way home buy some cigarettes for her friend. As an ex-smoker of over twenty years I know what a filthy habit it is and the complete rip off of tax that surrounds smoking. The Governments wouldn’t really want everyone to give up, they would live longer and couldn’t raise nearly so much money by any other means. Anyway I succumbed to the request and then was faced by the dual pricing system for EU customers and non EU buyers being nearly a third cheaper. Again it’s nothing but a scam by Governments to get more than they deserve. I wouldn’t even mind if they only spent it wisely but giving it to bankers is just another racket to make my blood boil – don’t get me started.

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