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Background: Greece achieved its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1829. During the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, it gradually added neighboring islands and territories, most with Greek-speaking populations. In World War II, Greece was first invaded by Italy (1940) and subsequently occupied by Germany (1941-44); fighting endured in a protracted civil war between royalist supporters of the king and communist rebels. Following the latter's defeat in 1949, Greece was able to join NATO in 1952. A military dictatorship, which in 1967 suspended many political liberties and forced the king to flee the country, lasted seven years. The 1974 democratic elections and a referendum created a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy. Greece joined the European Community or EC in 1981 (which became the EU in 1992); it became the 12th member of the euro zone in 2001.

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By Alex and Kerry
May 23rd 2008

hungover in Ios

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Ios

Hello! so, we are now into our final week, and the thought of coming home is not a pleasant one! obviously it will be nice to see everyone, but a british summer is not an appealing thought. anyway, what have been up to since i last added to this. Well we are now on Ios, which is certainly a lot more lively than folegandros, which, as great it was to see an fairly untouched island, didnt have a lot going on. Ios, on the other hand, has everything going on. we are staying at a b and b called hermes (although [View Full Entry]

By monoclaw
May 21st 2008

rhodes-nisyros-rhodes-patmos.

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Rhodes

I'm at the third item in the title. We have an afternoon-long stopover here in Rhodes town, so it's a good opportunity to hit the post office, laundromat, internet cafe, etc. So on Monday evening we arrived in Nisyros and I gotta say that I misrepresented it in my earlier posting; It's not an apocalyptic rock spire jutting out of the sea with a measly peasantry ekeing out an existence on seaweed and goat-milk/meat, which is kind of what I'd pictured in my head, the only pictures I'd seen being those of the volcano proper, which I will get to. So [View Full Entry]

By samandcharlie
May 21st 2008

Paros

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Paros

Antiparos from the boat

We've been in Paros for about 4 days now, but to be honest, we haven't been that impressed! We got over here on an early boat and thankfully found acc easy from a recommendation, then spent the rest of the day on the beach which was fine. But apart from that, there isn't much else to do! We had read that it was a bit of a party island but Llandudno seems busy in comparison to here. It's pretty quiet. We've tried exploring some of the beaches that were supposed to be amazing, but really were not that great - although [View Full Entry]

By Alex and Kerry
May 19th 2008

Outnumbered by goats

Europe » Greece » South Aegean

Hi all, so, found a computer after 2 days on the little island of Folegandros, on which we have a good few days. we are kind of winding down now, just taking it easy (although none of it has been strenuous!) and are just happy to explore the little islands around us, where there are few tourists, and so can experience a bit of real greece. first, let me fill you in on the last 4 days or so. On thursday, still on santorini, we got the bus from the main town where we were staying, to a smaller village on [View Full Entry]

By monoclaw
May 19th 2008

The Walls of Rhodes.

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Rhodes

I thought I'd detail another aspect of Rhodes. The old town of Rhodes is encircled by these tall, thick stone walls built to repel any kind of siege. The old town is like a fortress. Kathleena and I were walking and I happened to see a short row of square holes through the wall. I could see vegetation through the holes and they were big enough for me to crawl through without any squirming or fuss. So I did, and found myself in an arched little space close to the ground. I stuck my head out and, seeing no video cameras, [View Full Entry]

By Greece Adventure Tales from Darlene and Jessica
May 18th 2008

A visit to Old Town Rhodes and the town of Lindos

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Rhodes

Rhodes was definately a little different than I expected. In Athens we were two tourists surrounded by Athenians, in Rhodes we were two Canadian tourists surrounded by tons of German and British tourists. I was expecting this island to be less touristy than Athens but it is actually more so. We have been busy since we last wrote. On Friday we explored the Old Town of Rhodes. The town is surrounded by medieval fortress walls that are still pretty intact. The center of town contains the Palace of the Grand Masters, the clock tower, bridges, many gates (entrances to the town), [View Full Entry]

By monoclaw
May 18th 2008

rhodes town day three

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Rhodes

So here I am in the old town of Rhodes, which is the biggest, most well-preserved medieval town currently inhabited in Europe. It is incredible. Narrow streets paved with small round stones standing up very close together; storefronts that look exactly like a house; Byzantine, Greek, and Turkish architecture everywhere. We arrived here late on Thursday night after a wavey ferry ride and got lost for an hour in the labyrinthine Old Town. Our pension owner was kind enough to wait up for us, and as the two-bed room with a shared bathroom we'd reserved was out of comission, we got [View Full Entry]

By samandcharlie
May 17th 2008

Naxos

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Naxos

Apollo's Archway

After a few much nicer days in Ios, we have moved onto Naxos and have been here about 4 days now. It's a really nice island, quite different to Ios as it has much more of a family feel - lots more places to eat but far fewer bars! The weather wasn't so good on the first day so we explored the town which has quite a lot of history linked to it. We visited the castle that dominates the old town of Naxos and was built by the Venitians under their rule from about 13th century onwards. Unfortunately, due to [View Full Entry]

By Zpet
May 17th 2008

Santorini - Day 5

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Santorini

Thirassia Port
View of the port on Thirassia island as we were pulling in for lunch.

We walked down to the old port to board our boat for the tour. What a climb down! I was dreading climbing back up after the tour. The boat was like a small tow-0master schooner, but they used engines instead. We sailed out to the volcano's island cone. Apparently the cone has changed at least two or three times since the initial eruption in 15,000BC, with the last eruption in 1950. We hiked up and over the island to see the two cones. One is still live, with steam coming out of serveral vents. After walking back down, we boarded a [View Full Entry]

By Zpet
May 17th 2008

Santorini Last Day - Crete

Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Santorini

Restaurant The Greeks
The restaurant where we ate our last meal on Santorini. Excellent plate.

After packing and leaving our luggage in the office, we walked up to Fira for our last chance to shop and see the view. We ate lunch at Restaurant The Greeks, having a Santorini Special Plate consisting of mashed fava beans, feta cheese, fried tomato balls, potato omelet, and a tomato and cheese spread. It was getting close to our 2:30pm trip to the new port to catch our catamarn to Crete, so we headed back to the hotel to wait. Again, Villa Manos was a great place to stay...very clean, friendly staff, and a great price. The ride down to [View Full Entry]

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