The first philosopher is considered to be Thales of Miletus (c. 624 – 425 B.C.). He is credited as giving the first explanation for the origin of the world that was not mythological.

Crete, Greece’s largest island and birthplace of the Minoan Civilisation, is the most southern one, except for the little island of Gavdos!

Feta, which is made from goat’s milk, is Greece’s national cheese. It dates back to the Homeric ages, and the average per-capita consumption of feta cheese in Greece is the highest in the world!

Alexander the Great, one of history’s greatest warriors and leaders of all time, was Greek. Alexander the Great conquered land all the way from Greece to Asia. His achievements and conquests gave rise to the later Hellenistic period (323 BC - 31 BC).

Greece has historically engaged in wine making. Take for example Dionysus, the son of Zeus, the God of the grape-harvest, winemaking and wine. His face is seen today on the sommelier’s pin which is a symbol of respect to wine’s contribution throughout history.

Greece's national drink is ouzo. Ouzo is a dry anise-flavoured aperitif. Cheers, "stin igia mas" in Greek!

Greece' s official name is Hellenic Republic. However Greeks call their country Hellas or Hellada.

700 plant species of Greece are endemic, meaning that they may be found only in Greece; approximately 20% of those are aromatic or medicinal plants.

Olympus (2,917m), the mountain of Gods and Muses is the highest mountain of Greece and the 2nd in the Balkans.

The species and subspecies of the native plants in Greece are about 6,000, almost as much as 50% of the native plants of Europe! Greece covers as much as 6% of the Mediterranean Peninsula but has 26% of the Mediterranean Flora!

Did you know that Greece has around 6,000 islands, islets and rocky islets? 2,000 of them are islands and only 107 of them are inhabited!

In Greece, people celebrate the “name day” of the saint that bears their name in a similar way to their own birthday.

Greece has one of the richest varieties of wildlife in Europe, including 116 species of mammals, 18 of amphibians, 59 of reptiles, 240 of birds, and 107 of fishes.

Crete's history as well as the inhabitants' personality were affected by the island's mountainous landscape.

Continuously inhabited for over 7,000 years, Athens is one of the oldest cities in Europe.

No part of Greece is more than 137km from the sea.

Did you know that Greece hosts 50% of the brown bear population in western & southern Europe.

Did you know that Greece has the biggest EU consumption of olive oil per capita, with around 12 kg per person per year?

Greece is a leading producer of sea sponges.

Greece is the place where democracy was born. But democracy in ancient Athens was significantly different from modern democracies. It was both more participatory and exclusive, and there were no political parties in Athenian democracy.