It seems no Greece this summer…

Demetrios Rhompotis

As of this moment, beginning of July, it’s still unclear if we are going to be able to visit Greece and Cyprus this summer. The U.S. is among the countries that didn’t meet the EU criteria during Phase II and the airlines cancelled the direct flights for July. When we started our summer Go to Greece and Cyprus campaign things were looking more promising and that’s why we went ahead with it. Let us hope that come August, the ban will be lifted and some of us will be able to visit the fatherlands not just of us Greeks, but of Western Civilization, as well. Strange times we live in! It used to be hard for Greeks to come here, now it’s hard for Americans to go to Greece!

For those of you with Greek passports, things are easier: you can go through Europe and there is no quarantine. It doesn’t help me, though, because both my passports have expired and it will probably take months before they are renewed. The State Department office opened for PHASE I in June, but there are hundreds of thousands of cases pending. Another passport that I hold from a third country I can’t use because it requires a visa to go to Greece! It seems I’m stuck here with you and the only salty Greek water that I would taste this summer will be the …feta brine!

Let us also hope that things will be better here as well in the midst of the pandemic. Uncertainty is the worst that can happen to a society, both in terms of public health and the economy. Some restaurants in New York with outside seating space have opened and work fairly well, although it doesn’t help when it rains. Phase II with restricted seating inside has been postponed. Other states have it better, but it’s still too early to contemplate returning to normalcy anytime soon.

Despite the difficulties, have a beautiful and healthy summer! Be careful, keep wearing your masks and avoid crowds. It’s a setback, but if you talk to older people and the things they went through, you can still say that we are lucky …

We, at NEO, are grateful for your support during the crisis. At this point you can do one more thing to help us: those of you who placed ads in the last three issues, including this one, please forward your checks ASAP because we are dry as the Las Vegas weather!