The following is a personal report from Stuart Coull on his experience as part of the Stonehaven delegation attending the Susset Conference in Greece 10th -14th May 2006

One thing is clear - the Greeks are fiercely proud of their history.
From the minute we touched down in the land of gods, temples and ruins it was clear we were in a place where heritage plays a huge part. And they have every right to be proud of it
Greece is the home of democracy, the Olympics and mythology.

One of our trips was to the ancient city of Olympia and I have to say it took my breath away.
Strolling through the remains of a long abandoned empire has a majesty all of its own and it left a huge impression on me.

We visited the stadium where the very first Olympics were held at what seems like the beginning of time as we know it. I passed through a museum housing ancient statues of warriors and leaders. For me it was as imposing as it was magnificent to come face to face with such a formidable history. But I couldn't help feeling that perhaps all this history weighs heavy on the shoulders of Greeks today.

I'm no expert on the subject, but I am of the opinion that anyone who dwells on the past is, naturally, not spending as much time living in the present or looking to the future.
Perhaps modern Greece suffers a little in this regard.

With the Stonehaven delegation, I spent most of my visit in Pyrgos and at the sacred town of Messologhi. Together with the other SUSset delegates from Sweden and Poland we addressed the themes identified by the project so far to improve the function of small towns, so that they can thrive better.

Interestingly, I learned during one meeting that the Greeks were not keen on involving young people in planning for the future. My understanding is that they feel those sort of decisions should be left solely to the more experienced, without any input from the youth of these towns. Again I'm no expert, but the constant presence of graffitti in both places signalled to me an unhappiness with the present situation.

Perhaps young people have nothing better to do because the culture bars them from contributing until they are older. And perhaps graffitti is an indicator of wasted energy that could be better channeled towards more constructive causes.

But, remember, I'm certainly not an authority on any of this and it's always easy to be critical of others. Perhaps dwelling on the past is something that we, in Scotland, are also guilty of.
In the sacred town of Messologhi, apparently, there were two sieges involving the Turks. That is something still looms large in people's thinking there and nearly all our visits as tourists were in some way connected with it.

But are we, in Scotland, not also affected to some extent by our historical connections with our neighbours from the south? Is it not true that some of us still harbour a 'small-town' mentality and look with suspicion at 'in-aboot-comers' and the like?
To quote a famous dead guy: "Only when the plank in your own eye is removed will your sight be good enough to take the splinter out of your friend's eye."

And, for me, there-in lies the value of this Interreg IIIc project.
Experiencing other peoples cultures leads you to think critically about them. But in turn it forces you to take a good look at your own. And when you start thinking about your town from both an 'outsiders' and 'insiders' point of view, that's when good things start to happen.
That, I think, is the benefit we all received from our trip to Greece.

Stuart Coull
Reporter
Mearns Leader
12 Ann Street
Stonehaven