Of Beelzebub and Mania
Our editor, Catherine Lenderi, on travelling and phobias. Let us know in the comments below if a funny incident happened to you during your travels.
Sikinos Island
(The port area on the left and the beach mentioned in the article on your right.)
Of Beelzebub and Mania
Being a person who works a lot of hours, I appreciate every opportunity I get to travel and relax. I enjoy visiting the small islands near my home, and over the years, I have visited some really picturesque places. All have been engraved in my heart… for different reasons. This one is a horror story!
The island of Sikinos is a wonderful place to visit, but the events below are to do with a phobia that crops up from time to time. And, just for the record, I totally blame my mum for it all, but that’s a different story altogether (sorry Mum).
You see, I am terrified of cockroaches...
A group of friends were in need of a quick getaway, and we decided that Sikinos had to be the simplest destination for us. If you Google it, you’ll see it is only a small island, but I promise you that you will find there some of the clearest and cleanest waters in Greece.
We found it had only about 500 inhabitants. For us living in the ‘metropolis’, it was a mild cultural shock, to be in such a remote place, but it was exactly what we had agreed we needed: total silence, peace of mind, and not a souvlaki shop in sight.
We found accommodation only a few meters from the port. That was convenient, and it was also cheap, in comparison to other islands we’ve been before. Our rooms were, in fact, like small apartments, and the one I was staying with my brother had two separate rooms, a fully equipped kitchen, and all sorts of amenities. It was big enough to house a whole family, and we were only paying 25 euros a night for it. (That was years ago, so again I doubt you’ll find a price like that now). The rooms were very clean and cozy, and we were delighted with the excellent service.
So what’s the problem you’ll say? Bear with, bear with; I’ll get to that in a minute.
Once we settled, and spread out more luggage that the average commune could take for a month, we left the port area to visit the main town. This charming megalopolis is at the top of a hill, quite a way from the port. They used to build them up there to keep out pirates, mosquitos, and other types of fatal threats. Despite that, we enjoyed a cold beer watching the sunset, one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen, with the open sea rippling gently below.
The beer settled, and we decided to explore the town. Ten minutes later, job done, we headed back to the port area, where the bars were... supposedly. Actually, there was only one place open, and this was a combination of pizza restaurant, bar, café and presumably, hardware store, shoe shop and undertaker. Of course, us being Greek, in summer, we are accustomed to being out celebrating, all night, and going to a bar at 10 is like popping out for an afternoon drink. In Sikinos, things were different. We simply asked for a pizza and more beer, which was duly provided, but at eleven, the owner started turning off the lights in that not-so-subtle way of getting rid of us. Obviously, our spending had not met his targets, and he was lining up for a busy day on the morrow. With polite complaints and death-threats to him, his family and anyone who had met him in the last five years… whispered so that we didn’t offend him, we departed, but there was still an itch, not scratched by our night outing so far. We decided to continue with the evening revelries at home, invited our friends over to the room and sat on the balcony, to enjoy more beer, and the fresh night air.
We were chatting and laughing happily, as you do after a certain level of imbibing, when one of our more eagle-eyed crew spotted something flying by. It was one of the biggest cockroaches I have ever seen, presumably drawn by the smells coming from the restaurant below.
Once Mr. Eagle kindly pointed it out to me (I wouldn’t have noticed otherwise), my screams shattered the silence of the night, and presumably awoke the restaurant owner who had thrown us out earlier—that’ll teach him to want an early night when there are thirsty tourists needing to be accommodated. Anyway, my brother, who is my personal bug stamper, took the assignment to find and kill the poor creature (he was never one for ecology—I thought afterwards, it might be one of the last of its species, with a family of little ones, now orphans, busily devouring the main structure of the town hall, unaware that their dad had been crunched in some foreign hotel).
Sadly for me, the despicable creature from hell was nowhere to be found (that’s the cockroach, not my brother, or the poor, now insomniac, man from the restaurant). To calm me down, the others insisted it had left the building, and poor fool me, I believed them. We called it a night, the crew departed, and Bruv and I went to our separate billets for sleep. After all, it was well into tomorrow, which oddly was now called ‘today’. Time for bed.
I was in the room right by the balcony, and after I made Bruv do a complete sweep for bugs (we are now in a spy story. Does my versatility know no bounds?), he gave me full clearance and I finally accepted the flying nightmare had indeed gone, and I could sink into peaceful sleep.
Of course, once my brother was safely in his own room, and I was alone and vulnerable, Beelzebub made his appearance on the ceiling. Here I was then, opening my eyes, sensing the intruder (or hearing his diabolical laughter) and seeing something above me. DO I NEED TO REMIND YOU OF MY SCREAM?
The neighbors certainly heard me.
My brother charged in to the rescue (one day a brave knight will come and rescue me from these torments… one day), while I quivered in the hallway. There was a series of bangs, one or two crunches, the sound of breaking ornaments, and the flushing of the toilet. I feared the worst and wondered if I was now an only child, and would actually be able to get some air time on the internet while the football was on, but he came out, smiling, and assuring me the danger was over. Well, okay for him! Despite the horrors, he seems able to sleep undisturbed, even though he snores, and any amount of lifeforms with exoskeletons could be investigating his tonsils while his mouth is open. I could not (sleep that is, not… well you know what I mean), and jumped out of bed every five minutes, believing that something was crawling on me.
We were to take the ferry back at around midday the next day, which again oddly, was still today, so I gave up trying to sleep. Our apartment was right opposite the beach. I took a deep breath, changed into my swimwear, and left the room and its imaginary inhabitants for the next visitors. There I was at 6 a.m. swimming, and not worrying at all about arthropods, despite the fact the sea is full of them—lobsters, crabs, starfish and seahorses (sweet) included.
I can honestly tell you that it was the best dip of my life so far. The water was cool, but being July, was perfect, and so peaceful that I relaxed and totally forgot my nighttime ordeal.
Wrapping up, I should say that it wasn’t the first time I had had such an encounter during my travels, and I am fairly sure it won’t be the last. I seem to draw them to me.
I should clarify that it has nothing to do with the places I stayed, which were very clean. I wouldn’t want you to think that Greece is full of cockroaches. In fact, it isn’t, because they are all following me around—I am the Pied Piper of Hermoupolis, the City of Hermes, and I don’t even need a flute (except filled with champagne).
Catherine Lenderi is a former English teacher. After teaching English to Greek students for twenty years, she decided to take her passion for books to the next level and focus entirely on her editing career, which she had started in 2012, alongside with teaching. She enjoys reading, taking care of her cat and riding her motorcycle. She also drinks a lot of coffee while editing.
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