The Location of Greece

Greece is on the European Continent on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula. Greece is also a peninsula. The capital of Greece is Athens, which is the largest city in the country and home of the first Olympics. Greece is one of the smallest European countries in regards to area. It is 50,942 square miles, just a little smaller than the State of Alabama. Though it is small, the population was estimated in July 2008 to be around 11 million people.

Greece is a country that is surrounded by many different things. It is actually the point where Europe, Africa and Asia all meet. The countries surrounding Greece are Albania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the north. Turkey borders on the eastern side as does the Aegean Sea. The Aegean Sea runs from the east to the south of the Greek mainland, and beneath the sea, Libya and Egypt lie to the south. To the west of the mainland is the Ionian Sea, with Italy west across it.

The Mediterranean basin contains a large number of Greek islands. The Sea of Crete and the Isle of Crete are in the Mediterranean Sea. Crete is the largest Greek Island. The beaches and the blue water Mediterranean are beautiful. Greece has 9,246 miles of coastline. The mountains in Greece are a continuation of the Balkan Mountain range. The highest mountain peak is Mt. Olympus, whose elevation is 9,570 feet.