In the run-up to June's European elections, AFP focused on the economic situation in two European countries. In Greece, a surge in rents, fuelled by record-breaking tourist arrivals and rising foreign real estate investment has turned the search for affordable housing into an Odyssey for thousands of Greeks. In Romania, Alexandra Stanescu, a journalist and blogger from the capital Bucharest, assesses how the prices of food and other essentials have changed in recent years in the country. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES