03-02 Greece

Anyone who has visited Greece and Italy will never forget the experience. Both are places of spectacular beauty and history. And today their monster tourism industries are dead in the water. It is the world of Coronavirus fear and hibernation.
And, more than the tourist sites are empty. How about the Greek Orthodox churches during the Easter celebrations.
The differences between northern and southern Europe have always puzzled me. Visiting Italy and Greece, you find nations where obeying speed limits and no parking signs is of secondary importance. There seems to be both creative and rebellious genes in their DNA. In places like Holland and Germany, on the other hand, you notice a level of discipline and orderliness.
The surprise is how Greece, which has a record of mismanagement, has been Europe’s success story during the pandemic. And all credit is due to the leadership of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
He was the first in Europe to shut down the nation, and showed real smarts by putting his health officials and scientists front and centre, and staying in the background.
And what is so interesting is that after a decade of restraint, because of the financial crisis in Greece, the public has followed, with real discipline, the direction of the government on social distancing and stay at home orders.
And this is really funny. You cannot even take your dog out for a walk without informing a local government agency.
The Greek population learned from their Italian neighbours, who were late responding to the virus. The death rate in Italy was not lost on the Greeks.
And an interesting lesson for policy wonks is how the Greek government is using the pandemic to put through wide reaching reforms to improve the functioning of Greek society. Like ordering medications over the phone without written prescriptions from your doctor. About introducing online learning in the school system. Never waste a crisis is the fundamental rule in politics.
And, something I have noticed in researching other societies dealing with the virus. Clean and disinfect all public areas. Subway cars in New York and historic sites in Greece.
What makes tough early action pay off, is an early pandemic recovery that for Greece will bring its tourism industry back to life.