Athens Escorts

A central Athens brothel was buzzing with clients on a recent hot July afternoon, and its Venezuelan workers were relieved to have the business.

"I tried to sleep as much as possible in order to forget my hunger during these three months," said Bella, who has a child, as another woman cleaned and ventilated her room for the next client.

A list of strict hygiene and safety rules were announced by the Greek authorities to protect clients and the workers, who are more exposed to the risk of infection than those in almost any other profession.

Under a new set of government health and safety regulations, brothels must now implement new protective measures to prevent coronavirus infections.

They require sex workers to wear masks, keep their heads a distance from customers and take on appointments of no more than 15 minutes, all measures the industry has agreed to.

However, orders to register clients' names and contact numbers, as well as to keep them in orderly lines outside brothels, have prostitutes balking, saying the measures strike at the very foundation of their service: anonymity.

"Keeping records of clients, their names and contacts may be right," Alevridou said. "It assists health authorities in tracking and tracing potential cases." Sex workers, though, she said, cannot play the role of police officers. The sex trade is a different business altogether, she said.

Cashless payments, now required, are also proving a problem.

Regulations which came into force on June 15 urge sex workers to keep names and contact numbers of customers, who will lose the anonymity they previously sought.

“What client is going to give us their personal information? I tell you, people are going to go hungry,” said Anna Kouroupou, a trans-woman who heads Red Umbrella, a support group.

As brothels across the country reopened on Monday, the rules dictate the use of masks, partners keeping their heads apart, bed linen changed after each encounter, cashless payments and clients leaving a name and contact number.