To Park or Not to Park?

 I've never been much of an easy-going driver, especially in Cyprus where danger lurks in every corner of road and pavement and parking these days seems to be my nightmare. It's not enough that we don't have enough parking and I think it is safe to say this is the case in all towns, there are the traffic wardens to deal with, who have no understanding of the stress that an average driver has to deal with in their efforts to find parking. Traffic wardens relish  in dishing out fines to the whole line of cars clandestinely positioned in and around town.

The weekend is a battle, especially in the summer when everyone is out and about. As far as I'm concerned you've got to plan where you will park and if you are Cypriot you will try and find the nearest possible parking, because quite frankly we don't like to walk. You will see cars parked on pavements, some haphazardly parked in a diagonal fashion as there wasn't enough space to fit the car properly. If there is a designated parking area it will be jam packed and judging from the prices you wouldn't want to put it there anyway because you have to pay a higher price, but you give in because there is no other choice. Parking attendants grab this opportunity to up their price, playing with local desperation.

In Limassol the castle area is always hectic, especially at the weekend. I just wonder what chaos will fall upon us when the Limassol Marina is finished. Logically there will be enough parking. It remains to be seen. I always think what a difference it would make if people used public transport more and with that I mean the buses. Bus services have become a regular thing now with stops in and around town. Cypriots never really use buses, preferring their cars. You will only see Sri-Lankan maids using the buses or old pensioners with no other means of transport. If only Cyprus could be like other European countries where people take buses to work where all the echelons of the population have something in common. God forbid a Cypriot gives up his or her air-conditioned luxury and door-to-door convenience. A Cypriot on a bus? Not in this lifetime. I really think the mayors of the main towns should make more effort to promote the buses. It's a shame they are not reaching their full potential.

In the meantime you just have to deal with the problem of too many cars looking for a space to park, most of which are also looking for the nearest place to park, even if it means creating havoc and congestion in the centre of town. On a Saturday night I often find myself driving around in frustration with all the other poor souls in a similar situation. It's so frustrating at times that I start to wonder, do I keep looking or do I go home and call it an evening?