
No part of Greece is more than 137km from the sea.
An old Greek legend says that when God created the world, he sifted all the soil onto the earth through a strainer. After every country had good soil, he tossed the stones left in the strainer over his shoulder and created Greece.
Continuously inhabited for over 7,000 years, Athens is one of the oldest cities in Europe.
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.
Did you know that most days of the year are sunny in Greece? 250, to be exact.
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!
Crete, Greece’s largest island and birthplace of the Minoan Civilisation, is the most southern one, except for the little island of Gavdos!
Did you know that Greece hosts 50% of the brown bear population in western & southern Europe.
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's national drink is ouzo. Ouzo is a dry anise-flavoured aperitif. Cheers, "stin igia mas" in Greek!
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!
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.
Greece has more archaeological museums than any other country in the world; in-fact they are around 196!
Did you know that Greece is the third largest producer of olive oil in the world? Greeks have cultivated olive trees since antiquity. Some of the olive trees that are still producing olives date back to the thirteenth century.
Greek is one of the oldest spoken languages in Europe since it has been spoken for more than 3.000 years.
Did you know that Greece is the 4th largest cheese producer worldwide. Greeks eat 28 kg per capita per year. And guess what, mostly feta cheese!
Crete's history as well as the inhabitants' personality were affected by the island's mountainous landscape.
Feta, which is made from sheep and 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!
Did you know that in Greece, 47 mountains are over 2000m., 105 mountains between 2000 and 1500m., 155 mountains are between 1500m. and 1000m. The number of mountains under 1000m. have yet not been recorded.