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 It had long occurred to me that Aquaworld should have its own signs in the Hersonissos area. After all, the Natural History Museum, Lychnostasis Museum and various other places of interest to the tourist, including the new CretAquarium in Gournes, were clearly signposted – so why not my little aquarium?
I began my quest at town hall. After a lengthy, stressful and harrowing experience, I was finally told that it would be "illegal" to post signs. Why, since there were so many other signs erected? The answer was that catchall word which explains so many things on Crete: politics.
I was advised to "Go Cretan" and put up my signs, regardless, but I decided to play by the book and be content with my one and only sign, which has been standing at the corner of the aquarium road at Main Street for several years. Wrong! Suddenly, there appeared a construction crew, levelling that spot for a parking area for a new supermarket, and my sign was about to be "forcibly removed."
I salvaged it just in time, and went in search of another location, which I found thanks to the local kafenio owner. Throwing caution to the wind, I decided to put up two others signs, as well. I drove around every morning checking that all three were still there and finally, after a couple of weeks, breathed a sigh of relief and decided that life was not so bad after all. Wrong!
It was a fateful Friday morning when I was informed that all my signs, even the original one, were to be removed because the "other" aquarium complained that it was causing confusion. With my assurance that I would sort it out personally, town officials agreed there would be no problem if Aquaworld and CretAquarium agreed on an amicable solution.
 Visions of David and Goliath flashed through my mind as I prepared to take on that huge complex of the Marine Research Institute, which is the parent company of the CretAquarium. I telephoned and asked, somewhat tersely, to speak to the aquarium manager, Mr Papadakis. I was informed by the secretary that he was in a meeting and unavailable. I left my name and number, the nature of the problem, and asked that he contact me as soon as possible.
An hour and a half later, I phoned again and got the same secretary. I was told this time that Mrs Polychronaki, not Mr Papadakis, would be contacting me, but that she hadn’t had time to do so, as yet.
Determined to resolve this issue as quickly as possible, I asked the young lady to let her know that, if she hadn’t phoned me before then, as soon as Aquaworld closed, I would drive to CretAquarium to see her. This caused a little consternation and I was asked at what time that would be.
“Well, I close at 6.00pm, so I’ll be there by 6.30 or so.”
“She won’t be here then,” I was told.
“Excuse me, but CretAquarium is open until 9.00 pm. Are you telling me there are no members of management on duty after 6.30?” I asked in some disbelief.
“Yes” was the answer.
 I leave you to decide on that point, but Mrs. Polychronaki did indeed phone me an hour or so later. She stressed several times that no “official” complaint about my signs had ever been lodged, but noted that there had been some discussion over “confusion” between the two aquaria (who said what to whom will always, I suppose, remain a mystery), but we agreed to cooperate in any way we thought appropriate to reduce such confusion and this positive message was relayed back to a thankful town council.
Foreign visitors very rarely have any difficulty, in fact. They can tell the difference between Aquaworld and CretAquarium. The main problem seems to be with Greek folks who only see the word “enythreio” (my best approximation of the Greek for “aquarium”) on a sign and assume what they will. The fact that Aquaworld has existed for over eleven years often, but not always, goes unnoticed.
We may be smaller than the mammoth CretAquarium in Gournes, but, like David, we stood up to the Goliath down the road, and won. However, unlike the fable, no one was "killed" – in this little tale we both live happily ever after. (www.aquaworld-crete.com)
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