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| Stay calm and think of Kefalos |
Buying a car in Greece can be just as formal an
affair as anywhere when it comes to paperwork. We’d been hiring cars for years
and going back to teaching meant school holidays and high prices. Even Mates
rates gave little respite and after years and years of hiring, our Greek
friends were getting embarrassed about having to charge us especially as we
were Family. So then Gianni’s persuaded us to buy and Stephanos knew someone
who knew someone who wanted to sell his car.
So we agreed to purchase the Ford Focus and
shook hands on the price and agreed to go ahead. We rendezvoused informally at
a coffee shop, had the usual discussion about how old we were. Where we came
from, how many children, do we work, how much money we earn, do we have our own
house etc. You know the sort of chat you have in Greece during the first five
minutes, followed by our Greek car owner giving us his life history and future
plans and so we agreed to meet at the Car Tax Office.
Second day rendezvous at the office meant we
required another office and another form. So third day rendezvous turned out to be the
Police Station in Kos Town (go to Antimachea it’s far easier). We were told to
wait in a queue right next to the open / grilled jail. Unhappy prisoners
talking to us through the bars all hot and bothered like us. So we waited and
waited, getting close to lunchtime put us in a bit of a panic as that usually
meant come back tomorrow. Anyway time passed and we reached the front of the
queue. “Why are you here? You don’t need to come here when you’ve already got a
tax number and residents permit. Doesn’t the man in the Car tax office know
what he’s doing? Too late it’s lunchtime.
Fourth Day rendezvous back at the car tax
office. Everything is going ok until Mr Car Tax man says to our seller Michalis
you need form blah blah blah “It’s at
home he says”. With our will to live rapidly diminishing, Mr Car Tax man says “No
worries just give it to me tonight, your sisters cooking and we’ve got Mousaka”.
So formalities meet Greek family members and
suddenly Michalis is Car Tax man’s brother in law and all is well. What can you
do?
