Greece, which is also known as Hellas (more officially as the Hellenic Republic) is a country based in the south east of Europe. Located to the south of the Balkan Peninsula, Greece borders its land northerly with Albania, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia, and easterly with Turkey. To the south of the Greece mainland lies the Mediterranean Sea, the Ionian Sea to the west and the Aegean Sea situated to the east. With the tenth longest coastline in the world at 14,880 kilometres (9,246 miles), Greece has a large number (in the region of 1400) of islands, of which 227 are inhabited. These islands, to name but a few, include Crete, the Dodecanese, the Cyclades, and the Ionian Islands.
The heredity of modern day Greece traces back to the civilisation of ancient Greece, commonly regarded as the cradle of Western civilisation. As part of the country’s legacy, the following all originate from Greece:
Democracy
Western philosophy
The Olympic Games
Western literature and historiography
Political science
Major scientific and mathematical principles
Western drama including both tragedy and comedy
Greece has been a member the European Union since 1981 and the eurozone since 2001. The country has also been a member of NATO since 1952 and the European Space Agency since 2005. It is also a founding member of the United Nations, the OECD, and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organisation. The capital of Greece is Athens, which is also the country’s largest city. Other major cities located in the country include Thessaloniki, Larissa, Volos, Patras, Heraklion and Ioannina.
Millions of people visit Greece every year. The number of visitors to this ancient country is estimated to be in the region of 16.5 million – this is actually more than the population of the country itself! Compared with most other countries, Greece has more airports which tourists find very convenient as they are able to easily visit any part of the country.
Greece is well known for its export of olives and is thought to be the third largest producer of olives in the world.