Official Name: Hellenic Republic
Religions: Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1%, other 1%
Capital: Athens (population 3.1 million)
Per Capita GDP: $11,305
Languages: Greek 99%
Currency: Greek Drachma
(~343 drachmas = $1.00 US)
Our Route:  We flew to Athens from Zurich on 26 June.  We stayed 3 nights in the old neighborhood of Plaka in Athens, then we flew directly to Santorini to begin a couple of weeks of island hopping.  After 5 nights on Santorini, we took ferries to the the Cyclades islands of Amorgos, Koufonisia, Naxos, Mykonos, Delos and Syros. From Syros, we took a long ferry ride back to Athens, where we hopped a late night bus to Kokoni, which is in the Peleponnese just west of Corinth. From Kokoni, we took a bus into the northern city of Ioannina. From Ioannina, we rented a car and drove north to the border of Albania (near Kozani on the map), where we stayed in the peaceful Prespa Lakes region. From there, we took a bus to Greece's "second city," Thessaloniki. From Thessaloniki, we took a bus to Alexandroupolis, near the Turkish border. We crossed into Turkey from the small border town of Kipi, near Alexandroupolis. We had quite an adventure in Greece, seeing a good portion of the country that many tourists never take the time to see.

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