My first day in Rapsani is slowly coming to an end, but I have one more meeting, online this time, with the Souroukia of Rapsani. A group that can ignite a new flame that will spell out inertia and blind faith in growth that comes from above and outside the community. This flame of revival in the area starts with community and collaborative sparks joining forces with the aim of sustaining a resilient flame. Besides, as one member noted, “Souroukia does not want to substitute the work of any of the associations or the community; we are trying to interconnect all these forces and unite them under a common purpose.”
Souroukia does not want to substitute the work of any of the associations or the community; we are trying to interconnect all these forces and unite them under a common purpose
The members of this newly formed group either come from Rapsani or work there and reside there most of the time. At first glance, these people’s profiles are quite diverse, but during our communal discussion, it became apparent that their shared values and aspirations for the revival of their place formed the basis for the establishment of this as yet informal group. By the time our discussion took place, they had co-organized an event entitled “The historical transition from agrarian to industrial societies: The case of the Greek highlands”, while they were also planning two events on agricultural partnerships and new areas of activity in mountainous areas, focusing on remote work and conference tourism.
The origin of the name
The Souroukia of Rapsani took their name from the homonymous practice, which is described on the facebook page of the Cultural Association of Rapsani as follows:
“The Souroukia of Rapsani is nothing more than the lighting of fire on the last Sunday of Halloween, the Sunday of Tirin, when it is customary to burn the Carnival King. A custom that is found almost everywhere in Greece. But why does this happen?
The lighting of the fire and the burning of the Carnival King are used to exorcise the spirits, and it is believed that passions, hatred, malice, and enmity are burned amongst people. According to folklore, the lighting of the fire during Halloween is based on the fire’s magical power and is related to the transition from winter to spring.
Fire, as it was once believed, drove away harmful spirits and thus served as a kind of catharsis before the new productive season, as Halloween coincides with winter’s end and spring’s beginning, when nature is revived and resurrected. Even the jumping over the fire by the gathered people had a symbolic nature. The ancients believed that all evil and unpleasant things, burned by fire, would disappear and give way to other pleasant events.
The Carnival King, his burning, and its symbolism follow us throughout modern history, and a folklore reference is inevitable. Nothing, therefore, is what it seems. And it may be that on Sunday a number of Greek towns and villages reach the peak of their carnival events with parades, parties, and other rituals—with a small dose of forced fun—but the origin of the events is lost in the centuries. Not only that, of course. Customs were transformed. They incorporated new elements from each era. But they kept their core and their content. In a sense, Halloween, Carnival King, and his burning ritual are the ultimate deconstruction of stereotypes and the bitterest insight into our collective lives.”.
The familiar idea of remote work
Starting our conversation around remote work, the Souroukia share their own experiences and those of others. Several examples are mentioned: an acquaintance who works for an overseas company and lives in Larissa with his family; a technical office in Munich that offers its employees the possibility to work in a shared space in Croatia for two weeks per year; a researcher and an English teacher who spent much of last year in Rapsani working online. Two members of the team, who themselves work remotely from their village, admit that this arrangement has helped them combine work with short breaks in nature. Nevertheless, they encountered problems with the internet connection and had to work from Larissa on some days. This brings our discussion to the necessary conditions for remote working and possible ways in which these could be met through community initiatives in cooperation with local authorities.
Internet and building reserves
A reliable and fast internet connection was identified as the first and main prerequisite for remote working. Although free internet access is provided in the village square through the Wifi4EU project, this access does not meet the technical requirements needed for a person to be able to do telework, as I discovered myself when I tried to use it one of the following days. According to Souroukia, this is an important point where local authorities at the municipal or community level could help. In fact, in the wider region, there is the Sarantaporo example in Elassona, which has created the infrastructure for a community-based wireless network.
Besides the internet, though, space is needed for both hosting and remote working. In the last part of this communal discussion, then, we focus on Rapsani’s building infrastructure and the ways in which it could facilitate the flourishing of remote work. On the one hand, there are several empty houses that the owners do not have available for rent, although they only visit a few days per year, mostly in the summer months. Thus, it is difficult for someone who comes to settle down to find a house. In particular, members of the group who are not originally from but live in Rapsani were forced to spend a long time looking for accommodation and ended up finding one only with the help of the locals. On the other hand, Rapsani is a shrinking population area with more and more unused non-private buildings. A typical example is the resort of the National Bank’s Staff Health Fund, which used to be one of the major employers in the area but has been inactive for over ten years. Another example are schools: the gymnasium is being prepared to host Rapsani’s folklore museum, while there is no plan for the utilisation of the primary school. As a result, even before our meeting, Souroukia found themselves thinking about how they could use the primary school as a community centre that would offer, among other things, all the necessary amenities for remote work, together with an active community of people who would maintain the place and welcome the guests. But even such an initiative does not solve the housing challenge, whether it is for a few weeks or a few months. So, in our discussion, the question of how to attract people who do not have a house in Rapsani and are looking for an affordable place to live, other than a tourist lodge, remains open. Furthermore, while I was thinking that such a lodge would mainly target digital nomads and people working in the knowledge economy sector, Souroukia also told me about the problem of a lack of working hands that a winegrower friend of theirs is facing.
A short breath of reflection
Trying to think of what I gained from this meeting, I would rather not dwell on the data collection regarding Rapsani’s remote working infrastructure. Instead, I’d like to focus on Souroukia and what it would mean for every shrinking region of the country to have at least one such group. A group that combines its members’ knowledge and skills to tackle local challenges. A group that is willing to experiment and think outside the box and move off the beaten track. A team that can only thrive by working in tandem with other ventures and with local authorities. Certainly, when interviewed in mid-2021, Souroukia were in their early stages, but they served as an inspiration to individuals who often think about contributing to the regeneration of their local area but don’t know where or how to start. Unfortunately, these efforts could not be sustained over time. The challenge of community effort and collaboration with local actors that Souroukia shared with us back then is certainly something worth trying, always adapted to local characteristics, histories, relationships, and experiences.