Greece is situated in Southeastern Europe, with an area of 131,957 sq.km. and a population of 10,964,020.

Athens is the capital of Greece with a population of 3,192,606.

Local time is GMT +2 hours.

The Hellenic Republic is a Presidential Parliamentary Democracy

President of the Hellenic Republic: Mr Karolos Papoulias.

Prime Minister: Mr Constantinos Karamanlis

Parliament: Three hundred elected members with elections held every four years

Greece is a member state of E.U. since 1981.

The currency is euro.

The Greek economy adopts the principles of free enterprise and is bound by the regulations of international organisations such as ECOFIN and WTO, of which it is a member.

Electric Current
The standard in Greece is 230V AC (50Hz). Appliances from North America require a transformer and British ones an adaptor.

Time
Greek time is G ΜΤ +2 hours

Public Holidays
1 January: New Year's Day
6 January: Epiphany
19 February : Ash Monday
25 March: National Holiday
8 and 9 April : Easter
1 May : May Day
28 May : Whit Monday ( Holiday only for public sector)
15 August: Dormition (Assumption) of The Virgin
28 October: National Holiday
25 and 26 December: Christmas

Shopping

Greece is the ideal destination to shop for a wide variety of products, catering to everybody's tastes and wishes. Prices are very reasonable in relation to product quality and visitors will be able to find something for every budget. Shops are open Monday through Friday from 09.00 till 14.30 and on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday also from 17.30 through 20.30. On Saturday shops open from 09.00 till 15.00, while they are closed on Sunday. Supermarkets and kiosks may stay open till 22.00. More specifically, in the centre of large urban areas as well as in tourist areas, tourist shops and kiosks are open from early in the morning till late at night, seven days a week.

Climate - Weather Greece has a Mediterranean climate with plenty of sunshine, mild temperatures and a limited amount of rainfall. Due to the country's geographical position, its rugged relief and its distribution between the mainland and the sea, there is great variation in Greece's climate. In summer, the dry hot days are cooled by seasonal winds called the meltemi, while mountainous regions have generally lower temperatures. The winters are mild in lowland areas, with a minimum amount of snow and ice, yet, mountains are usually snow-covered. Moreover, a common phenomenon is the occurrence of different climactic conditions during the same season (for instance, mild heat in coastal areas and cool temperatures in mountainous regions).