Greece
Flag
The color blue represents the blue sea and the white represents the sea foam of the restless waves. Adopted in 1978, the Greek flag was created with 9 stripes for the nine syllables in the phrase liberty or death and a cross to represent the national religion, Greek Orthodox.
Geography
Greece is located in Southern Europe on the coast of the Aegean, the Ionian, and the Mediterranean Seas. It has lots of mountains and thousands of islands. Greece's unique geography was the basis for the city states in Ancient Greece.
Popular Cities
Capital: Athens
Major Cities: Larissa, Piraeus, Patras, Thessaloniki
Previous Rulers of Greece
- Roman Empire 146-30 BCE
- Ottoman Empire 1458-1821 CE
- Germany 1941-1945 CE
Currency
Used the Drachma until 2002 when they switched to the Euro.
Government
Greece has a presidential parliamentary republican government. It joined the European Union in 1981.
Cool Places To Visit
- Acropolis: Ancient Greek city and is now the greatest and most beautiful sanctuary in Greece
- Delphi: believed to be the center of the universe by Ancient Greeks
- The ancient theater of Epidauris: beautiful amphitheater used in ancient times
- Parthenon: beautiful temple dedicated to the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena
Fun Facts
- There are about 120,000,000 olive trees in Greece
- Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world
- Everyone in Greece that is 18 or older is required to vote
Citations
- "Greece." CIA.gov. CIA, 18 Nov. 2015. Web. 4 Dec. 2015. <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gr.html>.
- "Greece." CultureGrams Online Edition. ProQuest, 2015. Web. 6 Dec. 2015.
- "The Greek Flag." The Greek Flag. N.p., 1996. Web. 06 Dec. 2015. <http://www.alexandros.org/grflag.html>.
- "Visit Greece." Visit Greece. Greece, 2014. Web. 6 Dec. 2015. <http://www.visitgreece.gr/en>.