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♫ It's time to learn Geography! ♫
NOW!
Hey everybody, I am your host, Barby.
Greece is sometimes seen as kind of the cradle and birthplace of European civilization and thought.
SO much of everything your see today has some kind of correlation to Greece.
Pretty heavy for a relatively small country in the Balkans, eh?
Let's find out how it all went down.
(POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY)
So, let's just jump into it.
Greece is located in the southernmost part of the Balkan peninsula
that stretches into the Ionian, Mediterranean, and Aegean Seas,
bordered by 4 countries in the north and east.
The country is divided into 13 regions, with 1 autonomous state that we'll talk about later,
and the capital of Athens, one of the oldest capitals in the world,
where nearly 40% of the entire population lives.
Now, despite the administrative makeup,
Greece is generally divided into 9 geographic regions.
Thrace, Macedonia,
(not to be confused with this place that we already talked about)
Thessaly, Peloponnese, Epirus, Central Greece, Ionian Islands, the Aegean Islands, and Crete.
As you can probably tell from it's makeup,
Greece is one of, if not the most, seafaring marine emphasized countries in the world.
I mean, they do have the world's largest merchant marine fleet after Japan.
And at any given point in Greece, you are at no point more than 85 miles, or 137 km, from the sea.
Greece has about 2000 island, in which only about 220 are inhabited,
and about 4,000 extra islets, keys, and sea rocks.
Even the ones that are, like, right off the coast of Turkey.
In fact, the only 2 significant islands belonging to Turkey
in the Aegean are Imbros (or Çanakkale)
and Tenedos (or Bozcaada).
Now, keep in mind, the Peloponnesian Peninsula is not an island,
it's actually just BARELY connected by the Corinthian Isthmus,
in the city of Corinth, which has a huge canal going through it.
After independence from the Ottoman times,
Greece was VERY intent on making sure they kept everything in the Aegean.
This has historically led to some controversy with Turkey, in regards to things like
the limitation of territorial waters, airspace, the executive economic zones, and the militarization of the islands.
Nonetheless, they've been able to work stuff out...
...kind of...
but some things are still left in a gray zone,
with the only land disputes being over these 2 small scraps of land,
the Imia/Kardak islands.
Finally, let's talk about the one autonomous state.
See this little guy right here?
The third finger on the weird monster claw-looking peninsula?
Well, that peninsula is called Halkidiki, and the third finger is Mt. Athos.
With a population of only about 2,000,
Mt. Athos, or "Holy Mountain" is interesting because it's an isolated monastic state,
completely run by monks and priests.
Getting in is a little tough.
The number of daily visitors is restricted, you must have a special permit,
and you have to be a dude. No women allowed.
Although, historically, some women have accidentally or intentionally got in,
including this former Greek beauty pageant winner, who dressed up as a man and snuck in.
The three largest cities are, of course,
Athens, the capital,
Thessaloniki,
and Patras.
However, the 3 largest and busiest airports are
Athens Int.,
Herakilon Int., on Crete,
and then Thessaloniki Int. coming in at 3rd.
Speaking of Crete, each inhabitant island in Greece kind of has its own charm.
Of course, there are too many things to list,
but a few to consider might be things like:
Corfu, being the most family-friendly island.
Delos, known for being the legendary birthplace of Apollo.
Skyros and Hydra are kind of like the quiet islands, where more people use mules than cars.
Rhodes once held the Colossus, one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world.
Ikaria once tried to become its own country at one point in time.
Naxos and Paros are known for kind of being the windy islands, great for sailing in water sports.
Santorini, with its ridiculously picturesque white marble villas,
and Patmos, the incredibly significant religious sight
in which Jesus's disciple, John, was exiled and wrote the Book of Revelations.
Speaking of which, Greece has the most archaeological sites per capita than any other country in the world,
only ranking behind a few other countries like Turkey and Mexico, in terms of overall sites.
Now, we all know Greece is a a tourist hotspot,
and like France, more tourists than the entire population of Greece visit Greece every single year.
Now, we all know about the Acropolis and the Parthenon,
but other cool sites that stick out include:
The Meteora Pillar Cliff Monasteries,
the Necromanteion of Ephyra,
the Oracle of Delphi,
St. Theodora's Chapel, with 17 oak trees sprouting with no visible evidence of roots,
the sculpted face on the shore of Nisi,
the Chios, former Leper Colony Building,
the Place of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes,
and of course, hundreds and hundreds of other sights,
there are too many to list,
and if you know of any, please write them down in the comments below and share.
In the meantime, we gotta get down to the foundations of the country.
The land.
(PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY)
Now, there's an old Greek saying.
When God made the world, he took the leftover rocks, threw it over his shoulder, and that's how Greece was made.
I-I kind of paraphrased that a little bit, don't quote me on it.
Brandon: Too late, it's a quote now.
*barby has the crushing realization that he, in fact, has a quote now*
Now, Greece is funny because land-wise, they don't exactly score high on the soil performance index,
and overland transportation has always been an issue.
But when you pretty much dominate the maritime trading sector,
you can kind of turn a semi-arid rock zone into a flourishing agrarian hub.
Just wait until we get to the Israel episode.
They've done quite an interesting-
*israel episode live preview*
First of all,
the country is about 80% mountainous, on both the mainland Balkan region and the islands.
2 main mountain chains form among the Balkan mainland,
the Pindus in the west and the Rhodopes in the northeast Macedonia/Thrace regions.
Right around the area where Thessily meets Macedonia,
you will find Mt. Olympus, the tallest mountain in Greece,
notable for being the legendary home of the ancient Greek gods.
Now, with the small exception of small boats and canoes,
almost all the rivers in Greece are non-navigable, as they are too shallow.
Nonetheless, the largest river, the Aliákmonas River,
flows through the Pindus range and eventually ends into the Thermaic Gulf, right along the monster claw.
Also, Trichonida, the largest lake, can be found in the south-central Greek regions.
Beautiful, right?
Well, it comes at a cost.
Greece is one of the most seismically active countries in the world,
as it lies on 2 major tectonic plate zones,
the North Anatolian Fault,
and the Hellenic Trench.
This means that although frequent,
earthquakes in Greece are relatively mild because they usually have epicenters that are in the sea.
Or, you know, Turkey kind of takes all the biggest hits.
Greece gets about 250 days of pure sunshine a year,
and 7% of the world's marble mines are found in Greece.
They're also the third largest olive oil producer.
Speaking of which, if you've never had Greek food,
you are not allowed to DIE until you do.
Popular dishes like moussaka,
spanakopita,
the classic Greek salad,
pita with yeeros,
(the real kind, not that cheap sleazy stuff down on 14th streets where half the meat is made of cornmeal).
Nonetheless, agriculture only makes up about 4% of their economic output.
Most of the revenue, at over 80%, comes from tourism and service jobs.
Otherwise, some notable spots in nature would be places like:
the Vikos Gorge,
the Sami Cave in Cephalonia,
the Syri Blue-Eyed Spring,
the Volcanic Rocks of Lemnos,
Neda Waterfalls,
Pozar Hot Springs,
AND-SO-MUCH-MORE.
In a nutshell, Greece is kind of a rocky, rugged, seafaring realm of merchant ships and olives.
Could've said that 3 minutes ago and skipped this whole segment.
Welp, on to the next.
(DEMOGRAPHICS)
Winston Churchill once said,
"Greeks don't fight like heroes, heroes fight like Greeks."
Turkey: Tsk. Okay.
First of all,
Greece has about 11 million people
and has one of the most highest aging populations in Europe.
The vast majority of the country, at about 93%, are made up of ethnic Greeks,
and the remaining 7% are mostly made up of other groups like Albanians, Gypsies, and Turks.
They use the Type C and F plug outlets,
they use the Euro(€) as their currency,
although prior to the Euro, they used the Drachma,
which was the oldest consistently used currency in the world,
and they drive on the right side of the road.
Now, pretty much anyone that has been to school at age 12
will know how much Greek history has played a role in the Western world.
The history is too long to explain in detail, but in the quickest way I can put this,
Minoans, Mycenaeans, tribes and city-states, fighting against Persians at Thermopylae,
which was where Gerard Butler came in and did this,
Alexander the Great, ushered in the Macedonian Empire,
Macedonia: Ahem-ahem.
*argument about whether alexander the great was macedonian or greek*
-then there was classical Greece,
Roman Greece,
Byzantine Greece,
Ottoman Greece,
and finally, a revolution led by this guy in 1821 that started the modern version of Greece we have today.
Thanks to Alexander the Great, multiple regions on 3 continents
experienced some form of Hellenization,
or the influence of Greek culture and language,
and it went all the way down into the Byzantine era.
This means, at one point in time, even black Africans were speaking Greek,
or at least the ancient Koine-Greek language.
It became so widespread, that today, almost every language in Europe
invokes some sort of Greek origin and certain vocabulary.
For example, in English, we have "academy", "telephone", "grammar", and even "geography".
Not only that, but Greek has, in one way or another,
been spoken for 3,000 years, making it possibly
the oldest/written consistently spoken language in the world.
Ehhh, the Shang Dynasty...
Eh, moving on.
We could go on and on talking about Greece's explosively fascinating, ancient history,
enshrined with legend, myth, wars, warriors, trade, alliances, gods, beasts, Sparta, sculpture, arts,
leaders, philosophers, games,
and interesting clothing options...
but that'll take too long, and we gotta get through this episode.
About 90% of people in Greece adhere to Christianity, mostly in the Eastern Orthodox Branch,
just like many other countries in the Slavic world.
If you've ever met a Greek person, you'll know that most of them definitely have a unique way of carrying themselves.
Many of you Greek Geograpeeps, or as I like to call you, "Geogra-Greeks,"
have told me that the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"
is actually kind of a pretty accurate representation of a typical Greek family upbringing.
A little exaggerated, but nonetheless, not far off.
Big families with strong, opinionated parents you do NOT talk back to,
there's always a weird grandma mumbling something about the Turks,
and one of the cousins is probably lighting something on fire, as your brother is getting into a fight.
But when Grandma brings in the souvlaki and moussaka,
everyone sits down and it's like a beautiful, warm, Norman Rockwell painting.
Or is it the beautiful picture you Geogra-Greeks have painted me, how was that, was that in the ball-park?
So anyway, in Greece, voting is required by law,
as is conscription for men, ages 16...
(yeah, that's right, 16, they get them while they're young)
...up to 45, for a minimum of 9 months in service.
Many people celebrate Name Day instead of their birthdays,
in which they have a party on the day that pertains to the
patron saint that they got their name from.
Land is kind of limited, so to save space,
many of the dead have their bodies exhumed after 5 years of being buried,
and then the bones are washed in wine and placed in an ossuary.
Retirement homes are incredibly rare,
as most Greek grandparents typically end up living in their children's homes.
Traditional music can be found everywhere,
you'll probably hear a lot of lutes, mandolins, and tambourines.
Traditional dances are also alive and well,
they all usually incorporate some kind of group number,
with fast-paced movements and jumpy actions.
Oh, and old guys smoking while playing backgammon.
There's ALWAYS old guys smoking and playing backgammon.
Avoid the offensive mountza hands,
and just like we studied in the Estonia episode,
Greece has an massive influx of women, like a LOT.
Somewhere around 60-65% of the population is female.
This may or may not be the reason of why Greece is the world's most...
...how can I put this in non-crude and vulgar phrasing for children viewers?
Umm...
...Greece is the most "HEY-HEY" active country in the world.
They even beat Brazil. BRAZIL!
Interestingly enough, Greece also has the lowest divorce rate in the EU as well.
Speaking of that, okay, let's talk about about some numbers,
brutal, brutal, sometimes-image-tarnishing numbers.
Let's just address the elephant in the room and get it over with, okay?
Yes, Greece is in a little bit of an economic pickle right now.
Basically, in a nutshell...
Back in 2001, Greece joined the EU.
Long story short, they misrepresented their financial statements,
they entered an IMF and ECB memorandum,
and now the current generation is paying for the fiscally irresponsible actions that the previous one made,
with things like heightened taxes, as well as salary and pension cuts.
You know, son, back in my day-
Yeah, back in YOUR day, you ruined MY day!
Greece also has the highest unemployment rate in the EU,
as well with nearly a quarter of the population seeking jobs.
Nonetheless, as depressing as that sounds,
Greece actually, interestingly enough has the lowest suicide rate in the EU.
Now, before we move on, here's some rapid-fire contributions Greece has made to the world.
Inventions like...
the watermill,
alarm clocks,
lighthouses,
the crane,
construction levers,
catapults,
a crude steam engine,
central heating,
and technically, the first robot,
concepts like citizenship,
early democracy,
atom theory,
various fields of mathematics like geometry,
advancements in disease study and medicine,
philosophy,
theater,
dynamics in sculpture and art,
written history,
trial by jury,
and of course, the Olympics.
Notable Greeks would probably include:
and also...
Macedonia/FYROM: Don't say it, don't say it...
Greece: Alexander the Great...
*more argument about whether alexander was from greece or macedonia*
Modern contemporaries include Konstantinos Karatheodori, who taught Einstein,
singer Nana Mouskouri,
the Duke of Edinborough, Prince Phillip,
(yep, he's actually half greek)
Tommy Lee,
Yanni,
soccer players Giorgos Samaras,
Giorgos Karagounis,
Konstantinos Mitroglou,
this crazy guy who ran, like, a 1000 miles in 11 days,
Queen Sofia of Spain, and of course,
America's Greek sweetheart, Jon Stamos.
Don't even TRY to get on this list.
OKAY! Friend time.
(FRIENDZONE)
Greece is really old. Like, WHOA, really old.
They've planted so many shifting diplomatic ties throughout the millennia
that it's RIDICULOUS.
In a nutshell, though,
They generally get along pretty well with other Orthodox countries,
mostly in Eastern Europe, as theology and doctrine have always tied them in one way or another,
and of those Orthodox countries,
Serbia is probably hands-down the closest childhood friend.
Serbians are like next-door neighbors that they grew up with, asking if they could come and play ball.
Nonetheless, you don't have to be Orthodox to roll with Greeks.
Greeks love both the Spanish and Italians, ALMOST as much.
Each country shares a similar Mediterranean, seafaring culture
that has historically tied them for thousands of years,
although each claim that they have the best olive oil.
Greeks has even adopted certain Italian words in their vernacular, like
"Una faccia, una razza" or "One face, one race".
And as mentioned before, Armenia is kinda like the exotic, apostolic girlfriend
they've been dating since 3rd century AD.
Turkey is kinda like the whole Japan-South Korea thing,
in which historically, they've been through some drama
because, you know...Ottoman Times...
but they love to visit and piggyback off each other's cultures.
Today, there is virtually no tension between everyday citizens,
they've moved on, mostly,
and sometimes, it's even hard to distinguish a Greek person from a Turk, just by looking at them.
But make sure you do NOT make the mistake of mislabeling them.
That's a HUGE no-no.
When it comes to their best friend, though,
almost EVERY Geogra-Greek told me: Cyprus.
Many Greeks don't even really see Cyprus as a separate country,
but rather just an extension of Greece.
They love their little brothers with funny accents, and would do anything for them.
In conclusion, modern-day Greece may only take up about 132,000 square kilometers,
but it has been a standard source of inspiration for so much of the Western world.
The fact is, that today you can go look around and see how much of modern society
has been in some way, shape or form, molded by something Greek.
Kudos to you, Greece.
By the way, "kudos" is a Greek word.
Stay tuned! Grenada is coming up next!
♫ ♫ ♫