Ancient Greece

What would you encounter in ancient Greece? You might be on the northern or southern tip of Greece. Would it be hot or cold? It would be cold in the winter, but warm in the summer. What would you eat? May I suggest some bread, cake, porridge, fruits, and vegetables? Maybe you?ll go to the Agora, and talk with some friends. Or, you might go to a drinking party right next door. You could go to fun religious festivals, and of course the Olympics. You might see Athens and Sparta fight in the Peloponnesian War. Or, you?ll see government slowly change, to give you a say in the government. And finally, you might see the amazing sculptors and amazing buildings, they built back in ancient Greece.

Geography: Location

Imagine being in a grocery store. Everything?s convenient right? Greece was just like that because of its location. It was near several seas. The Mediterranean Sea was to the south, the Ionian and Aegean were branches of the Mediterranean. Also, Greek had a long coastline, and many places were less than 100 miles from the coast. Most of the cities were built directly on harbors, and this made it easy to get lots of different kinds of food. Doesn’t that sound like your local grocery store?

Geography: Land

Have you ever felt insulated? That?s what it felt like in ancient Greece. Ancient Greece didn?t have any rivers big enough to travel. Also, 70 to 80 percent of Greece is covered in mountains, which also made it hard to travel around inside Greece. In addition, the mountains made it hard for farming. As a result of these mountains, farmers had to have a workaround for this. As their workaround, farmers grew grain on the few open plains. Olive trees grew on the sides of these plains. On lower slopes of hills, they planted grapevines. On land that was too rocky or didn?t have fertile soil, sheep and goats grazed on the land. The people of ancient Greece made the best of what they had on their land.

Geography: Climate

Ancient Greece?s climate was different at different time periods. In the summer, the weather was warm and sunny. The highest temperatures in ancient Greece during the summer months were around 33 degrees Celsius. During the winter, high temperatures were between 13 and 15 degrees Celsius. Greece?s rainfall also varied during time periods. In the months of December and January rainfalls total 65 mm, while in the months of July and August rainfall totals are only 6 mm. Ancient Greece weather varied, just like their landscapes.