Essay Sample about Greece
Greece is a colorful country full of brilliant history, with the official language spoken being Greek. Located in the Mediterranean, within Europe, Greece is surrounded by water except on its northern borders. Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Albania border Greece’s north side, with Turkey bordering its northeast. These countries have easy access to Greece, with several modes of transportation available to get there.
Whether it’s by a ferry, train, plane or car, Greece is readily accessible to the public. Greece, along with its numerous islands, are primarily encompassed by water: the Aegean Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and the Ionian Sea. This charming country has beautiful natural landforms, and the most prominent ones found in Greece include its grand mountains, picturesque hills, volcanoes, and lush islands. Greece is a gorgeous country full of life, as well as fascinating history, and it’s worth visiting at least once.
Breaking away completely from the Ottoman Empire, Greece became an independent country following the Greek War of Independence. Greece was officially recognized as an independent country by the Treaty of London in 1832, and the borders were ratified again later that year in the London Protocol (Chrysopoulos, 2022). However, before this, Greece had been prominent alone; existing well before that, populated by ancient civilizations. The remains of Ancient Greece have been long-lasting and available to tourists to visit even today; places like Mount Olympus and the Parthenon being open to the public.
A momentous event in history that occurred in Greece was the Bubonic Plague of Athens in 430-427 BCE. This occurred during the second year of the Peloponnesian War. The plague killed over ⅓ of the population (Horgan, 2016). “Disease changed the course of the war, and shaped the peace that came afterward, planting the seeds that would destroy Athenian democracy,” (Kelaidis, 2020). Furthermore, as stated in an article by Katherine Kelaidis, “...it was through the conquest of the Macedonian King Alexander (the Great, if you are curious), and Athens had provided him with his tutor, Aristotle, a man who had transmitted to his royal pupil his own anxieties around the excesses of democracy, particularly those born as a result of moral shortcomings among the people,” (Kelaidis, 2020). The end of the plague had led Greece into the end of its Golden Age, as well as Athenian democracy, marking it as a significant event within Greece’s history.
Greece has several historical figures, with the likes of Aristotle, Homer, and Alexander the Great. These significant people influenced history throughout the world, along with the entirety of their own country. The once king of Macedon, Alexander the Great, spread the ideas of Ancient Greece wherever he had conquered. This spread of ideas and culture, also known as Hellenism, opened up a world of modernist ideas to those who had been affected. The Hellenistic period, which lasted between 323 BCE to 30 BCE, had considerable improvements within it because of Alexander the Great’s conquest such as a better economy, modern sciences, war-tactics, and period-specific art. Even after his death, Alexander the Great remains a notable figure within Greek history to this very day (Ferguson, 2016).
The ancient Greeks wore thin clothing consisting of a tunic and a cloak (History of clothing, 2022). Modern Greek people tend to wear in-fashion European clothing, and stay moderately conservative in their clothing. (Sanders, 2013). The ancient Greeks followed many notable gods like Aphrodite and Zeus. Today in modern Greece, the majority of Greek people are Christian Orthodox, 90% to be exact. Less than 1% of the population within Greece is Muslim or Jewish (Greeka, 2022).
Experienced Greece travel writer, Matt Barrett (2022) tells about a fun holiday that’s celebrated in Greece: Apokreas. It’s a carnival season, similar to what’s celebrated in New Orleans, like Marti Gras. Every night consists of eating, drinking, and dancing; everyone is to have a good time with their loved ones. Music is incredibly important to Greek culture, especially in Ancient Greece, playing a huge role in everyday life of the people living there.
Once Ancient Greece fell, and with the evolution of the Byzantine Empire, it had brought eastern sounds to the people. The popular types of music currently in Greece are folk, Kantada, Nisiotika, Rebetiko, and modern popular genres. Kantada is a type of romantic-sounding music, originating from the Kefalonia island. Every island in Greece has a varied type of Nisiotika style music, with its own sound and dance to go along with it; typically, Nisiotika is heard during festivals (Greeka, 2022).
Greek people eat three meals a day, just like the United States. Breakfast in Greece has been westernized, along with the other meals, according to Nutritionist Elena Paravantes (2013).“Today breakfast is much more westernized and Greeks may eat cereal with milk, bread with jam or honey, yogurt with honey. Many Greeks just have coffee and grab something on their way to work or school such as a cheese pie, spinach pie, the popular sesame bagel-style “koulouri” or even a croissant” (Paravantes, 2013).
Greece has an interesting economy, with a recorded seven million tourists in 2020. This generated approximately six billion US dollars on tourism alone (WorldData.info). Popular cities to visit in this country are Thessaloniki, Pátrai, Piraeus, and Greece's capital: Athens. Tourism is an enormous market within Greece, accounting for 18% of people in the workforce. Other major occupations in Greece include agriculture and mining (Sawe, 2019). Greece is abundant with nickel, bauxite, forests, and farmland. Petroleum also is a leading market in Greece, refined petroleum being its top export (Kiprop, 2019). Along with eighteen other countries, Greece’s currency is the euro.
Greece has all four seasons, its climate being similar to the United States’. The general weather conditions in Greece consist of hot and dry summers, due to being in the Mediterranean. The winters in Greece are cold and wet with some snowfall. In addition to that, the islands of Greece tend to have a milder winter (WeatherOnline, 2022). Average yearly rainfall ranges from 20-48 inches in the north and 15-32 inches of rain in the south (Nations Encyclopedia, 2022). Average yearly range of temperature within Greece is 42 °F to 92 °F (Weather Spark, 2022). Greece has weather conditions similar to the United States’, due to being in the northern hemisphere. Although the difference lies with its placement also being in the eastern hemisphere, accounting for the milder weather conditions within the winter (Cheprasov, 2022).
The government in Greece is a Parliamentary Republic, with the current President Katerina Sakellaropoulou being the first female President of Greece since 2020 (Labropoulou, 2020). With the mention of government, democracy was founded within Greece by Athenian Leader Cleisthenes in 507 BCE (History, 2018). It states in an article written by Drew Desilver, “As of the end of 2017, 96 out of 167 countries with populations of at least 500,000 (57%) were democracies of some kind…” (Desilver, 2019). Despite being created during the rule of Ancient Greece, democracy is used all around the world still today.
Greece is full of beautiful wildlife; from squid to badgers, this country is full of incredible animals. The common dolphin is Greece’s national animal, and Greece is also home to three other species of dolphins. Other examples of animals native to Greece are brown bears, lynx, wolves, deer, martens, and boars (A-Z Animals, 2022). Now extinct, lions and mountain lions had once roamed Ancient Greece, previously being part of Greece’s native wildlife. (Carr, 2017).
Every country around the world has its own bizarre or outrageous laws, with Greece being no exception to that. Passed in 2002, the Greek Law 3037 prevents the public and private use of video games within its borders. Whether visiting or native, this rule applies to all; if it’s not followed, a hefty fine will be given to those who break it. “According to a report in the Greek newspaper Kathimerini, Greek police will be responsible for catching offenders, who will face fines of 5,000 to 75,000 euros (about $4,980 to $74,650) and imprisonment of one to 12 months” (Goodwins, 2002). This law includes games on arcade machines, personal computers, phones, along with hand-held devices like the Nintendo DS. The law was established to prevent illegal gambling and was promptly followed by waves of controversy (Goodwins, 2002). Despite the countless people who had protested against this law, it is still in place twenty years later.
Greece has many tourist destinations to offer and exciting historical sights to behold. Not only does Greece have plenty on its mainland, but its islands do as well. There’s so much to Greece that could interest people: the unique culture, extensive history, or even the weather. This country has notable, world-changing history behind it, dating back as far as a few thousand years. The remains of the once prevalent Ancient Greece civilizations are still available to visit today, making it a great place for people to learn just by walking through the ruins. Visiting Greece would be a fantastic learning opportunity, in addition to that, many of what is used in our modern-day society originates from there. This pleasant country holds a significant place within world history, and that’s not the only thing it has to show. Each island within Greece has its very own story to tell, with slightly differing cultures and practices in each. This delightful country has so much to offer, and visiting is more than worth it.
