Ayia Napa - Fantasy Island -The replies?

Well we didn't have to wait long did we???...

Garage, Deep House, Soulful House and 2-Step Garage music is predicted to be the music for this year.

The party town of Ayia Napa, Cyprus that catered for UK Garage, and really did take off in the Summer of 1999....But not everybody was happy with it. An Article written by Mr.Andrew Charalambous ( London, England) for a weekly Cypriot Newspaper about the antics of clubbers in the town produce this response..

This original letter and the response to it came after a 8 week series on the life and times of what went on at Ayia Napa last summer, 1999 showing the antics of the clubbers ( and what they got up to), the music that was played there and then finally interviews of the club owners, the promoters and some of the people that actually live there! For those of you in England, its shown on Friday evenings on Channel 4- 11.10pm.

Here is the respone to Mr.Andrew Charalambous letter

The response came from...Mr.Solomon Malcom ( London, England)

Dear all,

"I don't know if the writer is jumping the gun or being too over sensitive so to speak.

Cyprus is history and has a very long one going back thousands of years. Anyone who visits the island will not fail to notice it. There are more quieter resorts around the island if you want to avoid the young clubbers and music and focus more on the history, culture and scenic beauty.

Ayia Napa from what I gather was geared for the clubbers and servicemen are banned from it due to that tragic incident a few years back. It is a genuine rival to Ibiza and something to be proud of.

I think it is better clubbing and musically as there is more variety and cheaper Clubs in Ibiza charge £30 entry and minimum of £5 for drinks. In Napa most clubs charge £5/6 entry and cheaper drinks.

The hedonistic culture which the writer condemns is typical of clubbing holiday resorts. That is what people go there for and the local economy thrives on it! Other resorts as mentioned above are totally different. Its a case of different strokes for different folks, i.e. take your pick or make your choice. In some cases the British act worse at home when on holiday.I did not see any mass brawls or violence when in Napa.

As for drugs the Police have clamp down on this as there is not much available, the penalties are too stiff if caught. I was fed up with being constantly pestered for drugs,(see the web site report) - www.garage-music.com/ayia.htm. In the said program they went into this. Guest workers from the UK as Pas handing out flyers require Work Permits which is strictly regulated.

The Police do regular spot checks as shown in the program. Many did not have permits, so in order to avoid deportation (which involves being jailed for a week and banned from visiting Napa for 7 years) they have to provide names/details of anyone selling, using drugs. One bloke in the program faced with this dilemma decided to leave, because he did not know anyone selling drugs and did not want to be an informer in any case.

I believe alcohol and drink driving is more of a problem (again see Website report -www.garage-music.com/ayia.htm). I gather there is no minimum drinking age like 18 in UK or 21 in Scandinavia. As a result some youngsters unaccustomed to alcohol come unstuck. also scooter hire is too easy. In the UK you need to pass a test to ride a motorcycle of moped. In Ayia Napa you don't and it is not the same as riding a bicycle. I saw loads of people bandaged up after accidents.

By the way did the writer speak to Cypriots who live and work in Ayia Napa and the tourist industry in general to seek their views?"

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