Greece

Greece is a country in Southern Europe with Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, Lybian Sea, and Mediterranean Sea coasts. Its surrounding countries are Albania, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north and Turkey to the east.

Greece has an ancient culture that has had a significant influence on western society. The country has a number of famous archeological sites with contemporary documented histories. It is also the birthplace of the Olympic games.

Regions

• Attica
• Central Greece
• Crete
• *Heraklion
• *Hania
• *Rethymno
• *Agios Nikolaos
• Epirus
• Ionian Islands
• *Corfu
• *Kefallinia
• *Levkas
• *Zakynthos
• Macedonia
• *Central Macedonia
• **Chalkidiki
• ***Mount Athos (Ayio Oros)
• ***Kassandra
• ***Major Chalkidiki
• ***Sithonia
• **Imathia
• **Kilkis
• **Pella
• **Pieria
• **Thessaloniki
• *East Macedonia
• *West Macedonia
• North Aegean Islands
• *Chios
• *Lesvos
• *Limnos
• Peloponese (incl. Napfplion)
• Saronic Gulf Islands
• *Aegina
• *Angistri
• *Hydra
• *Moni
• *Poros
• *Spetses
• South Aegean Islands
• *Cyclades (incl. Santorini)
• *Dodecanese (incl. Rhodes)
• Thrace
• *Alexandropolis
• Thessaly
• West Greece

Cities

Major cities include:

• Athens - the capital city
• Heraklion - the capital of the island of Crete
• Nafplion
• Patra
• Thessaloniki - the second biggest city after Athens
• Volos

Other destinations

On Peloponese you'll find ancient Olympia, Epidarus, Mykene, Corinth, Mystra.

North of the gulf of Korinth ancient Delphi can be found.

In Central Greece you can visit the monasteries of Meteora, Volos (ancient Iolkos, beginning of the Argonautic Expedition) and the mountain villages in Pelion (Land of the Centaurs, popular greek summer and winter tourist resort).

From Alexandropolis you can go to the beautiful Island of Samothraki.

Understand

The Greek National Tourism Organization is Greece's official government tourism authority.

History

Greece achieved its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821. During the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, it gradually added neighboring islands and territories with Greek-speaking populations. Following the defeat of communist rebels in 1949, Greece joined NATO in 1952. A military dictatorship, which in 1967 suspended many political liberties and forced the king to flee the country, lasted seven years. Democratic elections in 1974 and a referendum created a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy. Greece joined the European Community or EC in 1981 (which became the EU in 1992). the

Climate

Greece enjoys a warm Mediterranean climate.

The latest weather and climatic information for Greece can be accessed via the Hellenic National Meteorological Service website.

Get in

As Greece is a member of the European Union, most European and North American nationals do not need a visa. Citizens of the European Union may also enter with a valid identity card. Entering via ferryboat from Italy or by air from countries that are members of the Schengen Agreement, too, you won't need to show any document of identity under normal circumstances.

Prior to Cyprus's accession to the European Union persons carrying a passport with a stamp from the internationally not recognised Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus were denied entry. After Cyprus formally in full became part of the European Union such a denial of entry is according to European Union officials not to be expected any more.

By plane

In summer charter flights to most islands arrive weekly from many European cities. Scheduled flights all the year round fly to Athens, Thessaloniki and Crete, with Athens being the main destination. The national airline is Olympic Airlines; domestic flights are also operated by Aegean.

By train

The typical train journey from Western Europe involves a train to Venice or Brindisi in Italy, followed by a ferry to Patra. Trains from Sofia and Istanbul arrive in Thessaloniki daily.

By car

Driving to Greece from Western Europe usually involves driving to Venice or Brindisi and catching a ferry. Routes via the former Yugoslavia aren't dangerous any more if you keep away from Kosovo, but condition of roads can be worse than you're used to. On the other hand, driving through the Balkans is still a kind of adventure as you have to show your passport quite often which has become unusual in Western and Central Europe. You will also face another culture and another kind of living as for example Serbia and Montenegro's standard of living is still not as high as Western European countries'.

By bus

???? -- ????? ?????? ????????? ??????????: Confederation of Motorbus Operators -- is the principal inter-urban bus service of Greece. Tickets may be purchased at their website, or at bus stations in Greece. If you can't find the bus station, just ask ??? ????? ? ??????? ????; : Poo EE-nay o stath-MOS KTEL?

By boat

Ferries to Igominitsa and Patra leave throughout the year from the Italian ports of Venice, Trieste, Ancona, Bari and Brindisi. For the Ferry form Ancona to partra you will pay for a single person about 40€ winter/ 60€ summer. See also http://www.greekferries.gr/. There are also ferries from Egypt and Cyprus.

From Turkey there are ferries from Marmaris to Rhodes and from Kusadasi to Samos.

Get around

Trains are an inexpensive way to get around. To get to the islands you will mostly have to take a ferry. In some cases, domestic flights (operated by Aegean and Olympic) are both a cheaper, faster, and more comfortable alternative (eg. Santorini).

See also Continental Greece in ten days

Aegean Airlines E-tickets

E-ticket is a ticket purchased online. It only exists as an e-mail or a web page with booking confirmation. It should be provided printed at check-in desk at the airport (no need to visit airline office). Photocopies or notebook with a email in it may be not accepted, be careful.

By thumb

Crete is good for hitchhiking, specially in village area, there you can take the first coming car sometimes, but traffic isn´t so busy. On the National Highway is it worse, but hitchhiking is also possible. No paying for it. My experience is that mainly tourist are taking, because Greek people are afraid of some problems. You can hitchhike directly on the National Highways, it isn´t forbiden.

Talk

While Greeks are very proud of their Greek language, English and French are widely spoken. Basic knowledge of English can be expected from most personnel in cafes and hotels; exceptions happen only in distant villages.

Buy

Since 2001, Greece's official currency has been the euro (€). Euro notes and coins were introduced in 2002. Although Greece is in the EU you will hardly find any ATMs excepting EC carts (except Athens). Visa- an Mastercard is widely excepted.

Eat

Popular local dishes

Every region has different cuisine, with southern Greece for example having dishes more simmilar to Italian ones and Northern Greece being closer to Turkish cooking.

Try the traditional fast-food gyros (?????) and souvlaki (????????), similar to doner and sish kebab and the Greek dipps such as tzatziki (????????) which is made of strained (the so-called Greek type) yoghurt olive oil, garlic and finely chopped vegetables (like cucumbers and dill), and skordhalia (?????????), which is a garlic mashed potato dipp that's usually served cold (but very good, particularly with deep fried salted cod).

Greek salad (called locally as country salad is a mix of tomatoes, cucumber, feta cheese and onion, all sliced -- plus some olives).

Also consider: moussaka, pastitsio (variety of ), souvlaki -- meat grilled on skewer, bekri meze - small pieces of pork in tomato sauce; spetzofai -- grilled sausage with onion and pepper; saganaki -- fried semi-hard cheese. For desert, ask baklava; other pastries are also worth tasting. Another must-try is yoghurt with honey: yoghurts in greek are really different from what you used to see at Danone stores.

Same name, different taste

Most of the local dishes are cooked somewhat differently in different places. Tarama salad, tzatziki and some others vary much from place to place, even within one town.

Cover fee

It's common to charge cover fee in cafes, like €0.4 to €1.5 per person.

Just-in-time

For things like bread and fresh orange juice, just-in-time principle is used: bread or oranges is bought right after the first order is taken. So don't be surprised if your waiter returns to cafe with a bag of oranges after accepting your order. And this is how fresh bread is guaranteed in most places.

Drink

Alcohol

Wines

Greece produces a rich variety of local wines, including table and fortified varieties. Greek wines are not known well on international market, as production costs are higher in Greece due to mountaneous relief.

With regard to alcohol, Greeks principally drink wine (oinos: ?????) and traditional spirits like ouzo, tsipouro, raki and tsikoudia (produced in Crete and is simmilar to the Italian grappa). Retsina is a 'resinated wine' with a unique, strong taste that can take some getting used to.... The flavour comes from pine resin, which was once employed as a sealant for wine flasks and bottles. Most well-known and cheap'n'dirty is "Kourtaki Retsina".

Local producers include:

• Boutari (regions: Peloponnese, Crete, Goumenissa, Santorini, Naoussa). http://www.boutari.gr
• Skouras (region of Peloponnese). http://www.skouraswines.com
• Gentilini (region of Crete). http://www.gentilini.gr. Recommended by Dorling Kindesley's Eyewitness Travel Guides: Greek Islands, 2001;
• region of Santorini:
• *Volcan Wines. http://greekproducts.com/volcanwines/. Also, a Volcan Wine Museum.
• *Santo Wines. http://www.santowines.gr

See also:

Beer

Beer (bira: ?????) is less popular as a drink, but excellent local varieties like Mythos and Alpha, as well as Western European producing their own beer in Greece like Heineken and Amstel, are readily available mostly everywhere (North American beers generally are not).

Liquors

Liquor is known generically as oinopnevma (??????????), from the ancient Greek words for "wine" and "spirit."

Spirits

Imported cotches, bourbons, gins, etc. are usually available in bars and kapheneia, especially in urban areas or places frequented by tourists. A speciality is ouzo (????) an anise-flavoured spirit; another is Metaxa (??????), a variety of brandy. The quality of Metaxa is rated with stars, and as with hotels and restaurants, "you get what you pay for". Metaxa Ephta (seven stars) is considered superb. Other spirits include the Cretian tsikoudia (or Raki). The Greek name for your favorite spirit is often close to its native name: ?????? is whiskey.

Coffee

Coffee (kafes: ?????) is an important part of Greek culture. Kafeneia (coffee houses) are ubiquitous, found even in the smallest village (where they traditionally served a function similar to that of the village pub in Ireland). There are also many cafes that offer coffee, beer, wine, spirits - at night most of them function as bars. Coffee is prepared in the traditional manner with the grounds left in - but don't dare call this coffee 'Turkish' unless you want to start a heated political discussion! It is also made espresso-style, French press (mainly at hotels), and with modern filter technology (the latter is sometimes known as ????????: Gallikos - French - which can lead to some confusion with the press method. It is best to ask for ???????: filtrou, which refers unambiguously to filter coffee).

In the summer especially, most people (Greeks and foreigners) consume Frappe: Iced Greek Coffee (?????) =>. Recently in the summer Espresso or cappuccino freddo are also very popular =>. Espresso Fredo is simply espresso + ice (no milk or foam); Cappuccino Fredo may be served from mousse containers, not prepared just-in-time -- be careful to check it.

Iced tea

In mass-sector taverns and cafe, iced tea typically mean NesTea or something similar. Ask twice if you prefer manually prepared ice tea.

Water

A glass of water is normally served with any drink you order; one glass for each drink. Some cafes charge extra fee for water, especially if it's served in a bottle--even if you didn't ask for it. This is not included into cover fee, which normally goes a separate line.

Sleep

If you enjoy the local traditions and charm, unhurried rhythm of living: small, family-run pensions are the best way to enrich your experience. Owners and personnel there are friendly and open-minded, compared to stand-offs you normally meet in large hotels.

Learn

Students from countries constituting the European Union may enter many sites for free. Students from other countries have their entrance fees reduced. So take your International Student Identity Card with you.

Stay safe

• It is strictly forbidden to take photos of military installations or other strategic locations. The Greek military will take violations quite seriously, and the unwary tourist can get into a lot of trouble.
• According to car rentals in Athens, you can safely leave luggage and other stuff in a car anywhere in continental Greece. Same applies to a car radio.
• Greece is considered to be one of the safest nations in Europe as both crime and theft rates are very low. However it is always advisable for foreign tourists to exercise basic precautionary measures.

Respect

When ordering food at a counter, don't mind being nice. Just tell the clerk what you want, no need to even say "please". Greeks rate politeness with person's behaviour and and not with words. Sometimes over-emphasizing politeness in spoken language, will only make the person dealing with you think your are pretensious.

Expect cab drivers to try and rip you off, if you flagrantly look like a tourist. If you're concerned about this, just take the bus. Athens has a great urban transport system, including trams, a metro, and an affordable bus system.

Greeks smoke tremendously, and they see cigarettes as a birth right. Don't EVER complain about people smoking around you; you must accept second hand smoke as a reality, or Greece isn't for you. The whole idea of anti-smoking has not caught on in Greece and probably never will.

Contact

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