Tourist Police in Greece

Though I have never actually seen one, the Tourism Police are an integral part of the Hellenic Police (ELAS), consisting of men and women especially trained and competent to offer tourists information and help, whenever they have any problems. They are also competent to solve minor differences between tourists and entreprises. They all speak foreign languages. You can recognise them by the shoulder flash Tourism Police on their uniforms. Tourism Police operate an emergency telephone line on a 24 hour basis (just dial 171 any day, any time, from all over Greece).

One way the tourist police could be more valuable would be to hire Greek-Americans and Greek-English people to pose as tourists and wander around Athens allowing themselves to become prey, and catch people in the act of ripping off tourists instead of coming late and being the judge of a he-said she-said contest over whether someone has been overcharged for a set of komboloi or a plate of mousaka.

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