Greece & the Greek Isles
Greece, the southernmost of the countries of the Balkan Peninsula. Geography has greatly influenced the country’s development. Mountains have historically restricted internal communications, but the sea has opened up wider horizons. The total land area of Greece (one-fifth of which is made up of the Greek islands) is comparable in size to England or the U.S. state of Alabama.
Greece has more than 2,000 islands, of which about 170 are inhabited; some of the easternmost Aegean islands lie just a few miles off the Turkish coast. The country’s capital is Athens, which expanded rapidly in the second half of the 20th century. Attikí (ancient Greek: Attica), the area around the capital, is now home to about one-third of the country’s entire population.
Piraeus is the port city for Athens and has been Athens' port of entry for over two millennia. Having been inhabited since the Neolithic age, Athens is considered Europe’s historical capital. Today, it offers visitors a unique experience. A “journey” in its 6,000-year history, including the chance to see renowned monuments and masterpieces of art of the antiquity and the Middle Ages, and the architectural heritage of the 19th and 20th centuries.
