A Tenerife bar representative has defended the reputation of British visitors to the Canary Islands in the wake of the crisis protests against overtourism and more supervision behavior of holidaymakers from Great Britain.
“The truth is that everyone here lives off tourists,” says 'Moroccan Mo', a familiar sight on the lively main street with bars and clubs in Playa de las Americas.
“If you don't have tourists in Spain, you have nothing. People talk nonsense and attack the English, Scots, Irish and Welsh. But they are the best customers.
“They are the best because they spend money, take care of people and live life. That's what we like.
“Different nationalities are not so generous. British people are very nice, when they go to the bar or the nightclub they give you tips, give you food and are nice to you. That is in their blood, they can never change it.”
A resident of the Canary Islands for more than 20 years, Mo was angry when he heard graffiti telling tourists to 'go home'.
“It's a shame they say 'go home', who pays your rent? Your food? Your toilet paper? The milk for your daughter or son? They are tourists,” he told the Express.
“If no tourists come, no one will come here. They have to remember it coronavirus [when] everywhere was empty and they said 'we need them'.”
When asked what he made of accusations that tourists had led to skyrocketing rents and the erasure of local culture, Mo shot back.
“This is a problem all over the world,” he added, “not just here. Hotels then cost €50 to €60 per night coronavirusnow they are over $300.”
Mo is something of a local legend beloved by tourists for his talent for precise accents and astonishing knowledge of far-flung locations.
In 2021, Mon went viral on Irish social media for spreading a string of Dublin slang that stunned an out-of-town visitor.
“What's the story of me, dude? What's crazy about you young one? What's crazy? The craic is 90,” he told the impressed tourist.
When asked by the Express how he developed the skill, Mo said he learned it by talking to visitors to Tenerife.
“Sometimes I can tell where they're coming from before they can even say anything. Newcastle, I see them and just say 'wey aye', Londoners, it's 'alright mate'.”
Mo added that on some occasions he could 'smell' where someone was coming from, but declined to comment on the differences between how different Britons smell.