Things to Know Before Traveling to Greece
- 3 years ago
Things to Know Before Traveling to Greece
https://art.tn/view/2460/en/things_to_know_before_traveling_to_greece/
If you are finally getting around to visiting Greece then I have no doubt that you are in for a treat.
Whether you have been planning this trip for ages and are considering every possible way to make the most of your holidays, calculating budgets and scouting the perfect destinations or just simply grabbed a flight and thought you’d figure the rest out later, this is a country many fall deeply in love with. What’s not to love? The laid back friendliness of the people?
Or the amazing Mediterranean diet that is also incredibly healthy? Now that you are probably expecting! The following list of things to know before you are travelling to Greece, however, you don’t.
Large Meals and Salads
In the Greece, the quality of the food and the main ingredients which are fresh, seasonal, local and home cooked. During meal times, apart from eating the vegetables or meat on your own plate, there are always a lot of communal items in the middle and at least one massive salad that everyone can grab from with their fork. So, if you are eating a lovely plate of green beans and potatoes or “fasolakia” then you will have a plate with lots of feta in the middle, a salad or two, and maybe a dip. Same principle applies for most other dishes.
Flushing The Toilet
One of the most regularly talked about topics for foreigners travelling to Greece is the toilet situation. Some travelers fear they might single-handedly bring about a plumbing catastrophe. When travelling to Greece, any loo paper you use for number 2s will have to go into a basket, otherwise it risks clogging the toilet and creating a very unpleasant situation for everybody. There will often be signs in most public bathrooms, Airbnb’s, hotel rooms and airports, that toilet paper should not make its way down the toilet. That is because the pipe system is usually older and narrower and it can barely accommodate naturally occurring oblong shaped obstructions.
Water From Fountains
If you travel in mainland Greece, you may start noticing mountain springs in village squares and along roads. These are flowing with pure, clean and extremely cold water coming from the mountains and have been a source of water for the local population for hundreds of years. You may notice people filling up water bottles, splashing their faces on a hot summer’s day or simply drinking with the old, cupped-hand method. There is no reason to avoid drinking water from such springs, since locals have been using them for a very long time.
The Way You Pay
Due to tax regulations and laws, anytime you order something, whether that is in a cafe, restaurant or other kind of shop, a receipt needs to be given with it. So, when you order coffee a small piece of paper will discreetly be placed inside a shot glass. If you order more, another one will come to join the first one. The same is true for most restaurants and when it doesn’t happen, well it should! It is within your right to demand a receipt to be given every time you hand over your money. However, it is considered rude is for a shop owner or server to deliver the final bill without you having asked for it. Payment is almost always done at your table, whether you are paying by card or cash.
Way to Order Coffee
What is happening when you walk through a Greek coffee shop and attempt to buy your morning cup of bliss. Greeks order coffee through a short and choreographed dialogue that gets as much information across as soon as possible. Maybe that’s because we are all so grumpy before that first cup! If you omit some of this valuable information, then there are too many words involved and the server is forced to ask you more questions! What a tragedy!
Closed on a Sunday
Okay, not quite everything. But this might still be a surprise depending on what country you are visiting from. Sunday is usually a day for rest, church and family and is also one of the only days off some may get. This is why all shops are closed. That includes bakeries, so get your bread a day early, any shopping outlets, most museums, gas stations and all public services. Coffee shops and restaurants tend to remain open so you can still be out and about. There is also at least one gas station available within a certain region.
https://art.tn/view/2460/en/things_to_know_before_traveling_to_greece/
If you are finally getting around to visiting Greece then I have no doubt that you are in for a treat.
Whether you have been planning this trip for ages and are considering every possible way to make the most of your holidays, calculating budgets and scouting the perfect destinations or just simply grabbed a flight and thought you’d figure the rest out later, this is a country many fall deeply in love with. What’s not to love? The laid back friendliness of the people?
Or the amazing Mediterranean diet that is also incredibly healthy? Now that you are probably expecting! The following list of things to know before you are travelling to Greece, however, you don’t.
Large Meals and Salads
In the Greece, the quality of the food and the main ingredients which are fresh, seasonal, local and home cooked. During meal times, apart from eating the vegetables or meat on your own plate, there are always a lot of communal items in the middle and at least one massive salad that everyone can grab from with their fork. So, if you are eating a lovely plate of green beans and potatoes or “fasolakia” then you will have a plate with lots of feta in the middle, a salad or two, and maybe a dip. Same principle applies for most other dishes.
Flushing The Toilet
One of the most regularly talked about topics for foreigners travelling to Greece is the toilet situation. Some travelers fear they might single-handedly bring about a plumbing catastrophe. When travelling to Greece, any loo paper you use for number 2s will have to go into a basket, otherwise it risks clogging the toilet and creating a very unpleasant situation for everybody. There will often be signs in most public bathrooms, Airbnb’s, hotel rooms and airports, that toilet paper should not make its way down the toilet. That is because the pipe system is usually older and narrower and it can barely accommodate naturally occurring oblong shaped obstructions.
Water From Fountains
If you travel in mainland Greece, you may start noticing mountain springs in village squares and along roads. These are flowing with pure, clean and extremely cold water coming from the mountains and have been a source of water for the local population for hundreds of years. You may notice people filling up water bottles, splashing their faces on a hot summer’s day or simply drinking with the old, cupped-hand method. There is no reason to avoid drinking water from such springs, since locals have been using them for a very long time.
The Way You Pay
Due to tax regulations and laws, anytime you order something, whether that is in a cafe, restaurant or other kind of shop, a receipt needs to be given with it. So, when you order coffee a small piece of paper will discreetly be placed inside a shot glass. If you order more, another one will come to join the first one. The same is true for most restaurants and when it doesn’t happen, well it should! It is within your right to demand a receipt to be given every time you hand over your money. However, it is considered rude is for a shop owner or server to deliver the final bill without you having asked for it. Payment is almost always done at your table, whether you are paying by card or cash.
Way to Order Coffee
What is happening when you walk through a Greek coffee shop and attempt to buy your morning cup of bliss. Greeks order coffee through a short and choreographed dialogue that gets as much information across as soon as possible. Maybe that’s because we are all so grumpy before that first cup! If you omit some of this valuable information, then there are too many words involved and the server is forced to ask you more questions! What a tragedy!
Closed on a Sunday
Okay, not quite everything. But this might still be a surprise depending on what country you are visiting from. Sunday is usually a day for rest, church and family and is also one of the only days off some may get. This is why all shops are closed. That includes bakeries, so get your bread a day early, any shopping outlets, most museums, gas stations and all public services. Coffee shops and restaurants tend to remain open so you can still be out and about. There is also at least one gas station available within a certain region.