Will our beaches fall victim to budget cuts?

"As a result, all hiring for the crewing of services has been frozen, and things like the purchasing of a police car, have been halted," he said. "If the country's economy does not work, it's obvious that the municipality's income is less.

"People won't be able to pay their dues, not even their water bills," he added. There are some who won't be able to pay what they owe in taxes etc. and, unfortunately, we are then forced to block their tax number."

Mr. Nikolakakis said, however, that there was still money in the budget for some ongoing programmes by municipal workers, such as the painting of the bus stops, but the problems with the street lighting in Kokkini Hani will have to wait.  

"Also, we still have not gotten paid from some of the people who had rented beaches from last year, and we must now take legal action against them," he pointed out. "The municipality since last year has lost 1.3 million euros due to the lowered tourism taxes, and it was money that the municipality had counted on for some of its projects."

In addition to the local officials, almost everyone throughout the circulation area of The Khronicles, from Alikarnassos to Aghios Nikolaos, had something to say about the crisis.

Nikos Karatzas, a private employee from Hersonissos, told us bluntly: “No one is to blame but us!"

He claims we began receiving hints of the impending crisis at least a decade ago.

"It all started when people here began playing the stock market, got credit cards irresponsibly, vacation loans, and Christmas loans and so on," he stated. "It resulted with banks becoming the most profitable enterprises causing an economic bloodsucking in the world. We didn't learn to be satisfied with the essentials but we wanted luxuries to boot. Now we have got to learn to survive with just the necessities. Greece will recover but it will take years."

Fotini Papadoyiannaki, a housewife from Gouves, said sadly: "I've never seen our country in such a sorry state. Everyone has money problems. Everything is going up except the salaries. What about our future? We shop frugally, and economize in electricity and telephone. What else can we do?"

Kostas Papadakis, a civil servant from Malia, claimed that there is no stability in the public or the private sector anymore.

"Our salaries have been cut and we don't know when or if we will be able to collect a pension," he said. "We try to live day by day without too many travelling expenses, cutting down on cigarettes and entertainment. In about three months from now we will have a better picture of the economic recession of our country, but I don't think we have seen the worst yet."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister George Papandreou, referring to the recent batch of austerity measures, was quoted as saying: "the Greek people's sacrifices will not be in vain. Our first order of business is saving our economy. It is the first and necessary step towards moving in to the future."

Gabriella Floraki of Kokkini Hani said it was too early yet for her to say anything, "but in a month or so we will have to think about how it is affecting us. At the moment it is the price of the petrol which is hurting everyone so soon we will have to think is our journey really necessary."