Considering All Things When Visiting Greece.

Greece is near and dear to my heart. In fact, it is the only place I have ever been to in Europe, and I have a great love for it. Right now, times seem tougher than ever with the latest hard times there.

As I am sure many others have thought, is it safe to travel now in Greece? Would it be totally unwise to go there during all this upheaval? That is a very tough question to answer, and my heart answers one way, and my head or mind, another.

Updates From Friends that Live in Greece

We have some friends that live in Athens area in Greece. Sometimes they travel to some nearby islands, and are there to help people in the area, especially the poor and refugees that have nothing. They help to provide meals and needed supplies to make it in Greece.

We all hear updates on occasion with the news, but what I pay most attention to is our friends that report first hand what it is like there. They have small children, and are trying to keep them educated and safe while they all survive there.

From what we heard several weeks ago, it was not uncommon to open their window only to soon after have smoke coming in from fires and riots in the streets. Lighting fires inside of trashcans and other things in the streets. It broke my heart to hear this, because I know it has to be a very scary time for all.

The latest I heard a couple was that there were people protesting more than ever, some more violent than others. What was so sad to hear, is that the building where they do a lot of their work with the poor in the area, which also has a lot of shops in it, has been robbed and broken into again and again. When we were there, they had neat little stores in this larger building, with a neat old little elevator. You could walk to the Acropolis from there, along the citrus tree lined streets. Everything has changed quite a bit from a couple of years ago.

Evidently, many people are just up and leaving Greece. These are people that live and work there, but they just feel the need to go. The ones that are staying are getting robbed and broken into, which is just a side thing from all the demonstrations going on.

My heart goes out to Greece during this difficult time, and I cringe to think of some business shop owners that are trying to hang on and hope for the best. If I could, I would go there and visit and shop like I did before, and hope that everything would get better soon. Truth is however, it likely isn't a good idea, not even if the rates are very good.

In Conclusion

I am not trying to tell people what to do, and that would be unwise when we just don't know what to expect. I worry for Greece's travel industry that counts on its tourists every year. The islands are still so beautiful I am sure, as is Corinth, Athens, etc. My only recommendation is to really study up on everything before you go, if you are even remotely considering a trip there. Even if I wanted to go, I know what my husband has said. No need to risk personal injury or getting caught up in some kind of crazy riot or demonstration.

I am wishing the very best for the people of Greece and that amazing land. I don't wish it's struggles on any country, but it is hard to see it happen in a country that I have come to love like I love Greece.

If you have any personal thoughts on the condition of Greece or travel there, please share below in a comment. It might sound odd to some, but I am going to pray for Greece and its people. It's a lovely country, and I hope to go back to visit before too much more time goes by. My older son, really wants to go back again sometime as well.

We miss Greece, and hope that things get better there as soon as they can. There are so many amazing treasures there, and if you have never been, its a great place to visit sometime in the future. Hopefully it will be safer very soon.

This article is about Greece in particular, but the idea behind it could apply to so many countries around the world really. Since the time of my writing this, some things are a little bit better now, in fairness to Greece. I know that I would go back in a heartbeat! My love of travel, and really anyone's love of travel, can be a blinding factor when considering all the possible cons of traveling to any country.

So even if Greece is now stable, what about other countries? I would consider all kinds of possible scenarios playing out in a foreign country, and ask yourself if you would feel comfortable for such a thing to happen in the country you are considering, while you are visiting? If not, it may be time to come back to the idea later on. It just seems a smart thing to do, and you can always reconsider later on.