Grecia

Greece is a country located at the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula in southeastern Europe. It is a developed country with advanced economy with high income, a high index of human development and consistently high quality of life.

Population is significantly distributed in urban centers, in Athens, which hosts half the country’s population, followed by Thessaloniki and the surrounding areas. Rural areas are sparsely populated and the north and central Peloponnesus remain as traditional places of emigration.

Besides the official language, the Greek, there is also the minority languages as: Albanian, Aromanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian and Turkish (in Thrace). Also, besides religion recognized by Greece’s constitution as the predominant (97% of Greek citizens said they are Greek Orthodox) and Muslim minority (mostly located in Thrace) plus Albanian immigrants (which most are associated with the Muslim religion or belong to any religious orientation), Judaism is another religion with a length of over 2,000 years in Greece and spread to Thessaloniki, Corfu and Rhodes followed by the Roman Catholic church with 50,000 members and the Independent Pentecostal Church ( with over 120 churches in Greece with about 20,000 followers) , Jehovah’s Witnesses with 28,243 active members and also 651 Mormons, 501 Seventh-day Adventist and 30 free Methodist.

I. Stereotypes

- Greeks are talkative

Even if they tend to look lazy, Greeks are very talkative and always engage in discussions, as well as corruption. Mindful of their impressive culture, Greeks boast of their oratorical skills, and therefore tend to lose track of time when they talk.

- They care about their families

Greeks are by nature a traditionalist nation protective of family and tradition. The family is the social structure. It offers its members support both financially and emotionally, but is expected to offer help in times of need also to distant relatives, even by assisting them to find a job because the family relations is reported in business .

- Meeting Etiquette

Greeks are hospitable and warm. When they meet someone for the first time, they shake hands firmly, smile , and maintain eye contact. Good friends often embrace and may also kiss on the cheek .

- Gift Giving Etiquette

Greeks generally offer gifts to friends for 'namedays' and exchange gifts with friends and family for Christmas. Some Greeks celebrate birthdays, but in general, celebrating namedays is more likely.

II. DO’s & DONT’s

• Greeks doesn’t expect you, as a tourist, to dress like them but they will frown on worn out shoes, torn jeans and old-fashioned clothes.

• To enter the church, men must wear long trousers and women must have dresses. If you don’t have adequate clothing you can buy from the church gate, otherwise you will be accused of disrespect.

• In Mykonos tourists will not shock anyone if they wear shorts or bathing suits in public places but in small villages in Epirus or Crete it would be foolish.

• Although Greece is the paradise of photographers, taking pictures at random is not recommended.

• Inform yourself of the payment methods because most hotels and restaurants or shops accept credit cards but average peninsulas or tavern do not.