Living in Greece

hello,just to tell you that most Greeks speak English very well wherever you go,even tiny 2 year olds,but of course its good to speak the native language which you will soon pick up,providing you mix with Greeks not just expats.There are many volunteer groups,Kefalonia has charity shops for raising money for stray animals,there are volunteers needed in donkey sanctuaries,or for turtles so you should decide what kind of thing you are wanting then research it as to where in Greece.You must remember that you will need private health cover and that many Islands dont have good health facilities and have poor emergency health services.Some neighbors of mine just came back from Naxos and said it was fabulous,very green,Kefalonia is also fab they say.Life is generally safe here and Greece is still a great place to live.

Hi, thank you very much for the response. I think Crete would be the best to start with - 6 months in Greece and 6 months in South Africa. Our focus with regards to charities will be humanitarian.

hello Invester,Im not sure how much humanitarian volunteer work you would find on Crete,I think they have holding centers there for undocumented migrants and they really are just,like holding places where once in they cannot get out and actually they are more like prisons for animals,very unpleasant.And I read that America may have a top security prison-holding center for suspected terrorists and political activists there.The most need for volunteer work is in Athens,which is where you dont want,there is some great work going on here,there is a priest in a run down suburb who runs his Arch day center for the local children and teenagers who have not so good home life,getting them off the streets for some hours.There is much social care voluntary work here in Athens and obviously a lot to do,there are so many problems here,the list is long.Someone from Crete may be able to speak for Crete,but I wish you all the best.Just to tell you that non Europeans can have visa for 5 years if they buy a property for minimum of 250.000 euro,renewable on-going if they continue to own the property.

What you say makes a lot of sense. I thought living in Athens will dump me back into a "rat race" life stile. I lived in Johannesburg and Cape Town for many years and eventually moved to Somerset West, (South Africa) which is a much smaller place than last mentioned cities. (I do not know how familiar you are with South Africa) I am involved in charity projects here. The only reason for considering an alternative country is because of my concern about the government in South Africa.
I suppose one would find suburbs in Athens that would give one an "out of town" environment? Please advice. On the other hand I need and want to be involved where I may be able to add value. Potential in Athens will obviously provide more opportunities. I've noticed that domestic property prices in Greece are in general lower than where I currently live. I am aware of the visa (citizenship?) offer.

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There are some very nice out of town areas to live,they do require a higher rent such as...Kifisias...Glyfarda-this is very popular with expats,the metro lines have improved and expanded greatly with the monthly metro ticket coming down to 35 in september,I think one can use that for buses as well.They are lovely tree lined,wide roads,with gardens,without trouble.Athens has some great places to go for the evenings,around Plaka and Monasteraki,under from the Acropolis,I love to walk there when the weather is not too hot,summer has great cultural arts festivals and of course Marathon races for your wife and for you only one hour and half to the west of Athens where we have a house there is fantastic mountain biking possibilities,I met a couple of guys the other week,one English living in Loutraki and the other Greek,they were out with their bikes,serious mountain bikers and a while before that I met a couple of university teachers out with bikes in the village near my house,they were going high up on the mountains to find an ancient site which they had a photo copy of a map from an old book written by an explorer,interesting.You will see on Utube this area around Loutraki,Perahora,Pissia and Schinos where I have a house,its descibed on the net as an area of outstanding beauty.We drink the mountain water and buy milk straight from the cow here.We dont live in the center of Athens,in a suburb outside,but you would like Glyfarda and Kiffisias,it just depends on your budget.Feel free to ask for any more information,perhaps a little trip here might be good,well, a long distance trip.Property prices sure are down so bargains can be found,My husband is Greek so if you need help let me know.