Like working hours, most Greek schools have regular schedules as most children attend
school from about 8:00 am to about 2:00 pm. Summer vacation lasts from about mid-June
to mid-September, at which time many families like to get away for at least a couple
weeks.
Although education is important to the Greeks, as is making the money to enjoy life,
the Greeks live for their happiness and well-being above all else, so many aspects
of other cultures are deemed less than important in Greece. Working and earning
additional money always come second to what that that money is actually earned for:
enjoyment of life and a relaxed way of life. They Greeks work to get money which
can be used to vacation on the islands, eat out, and visit with family and friends
over wine. Everything in Greece is centered around family and this lifestyle.
Identity
The Greeks see themselves as being Greek and this is identified in a very specific,
yet historic way. To be Greek one has to be a native Greek speaker and live a Greek
lifestyle, no matter where he or she lives or what his or her ethnicity is. Due
to Greece's long history as both a powerful nation ruling over minorities as
well as being ruled over by foreigners, citizenship, government, and even ethnicity
to a degree are features that mean little to the people to be included in this identity.
The most important aspects to being Greek, both now and in the past, are to live
and speak as the Greeks do, whether that's in Greece
or abroad.
However, as few immigrants natively speak Greek, most of these people hold on to
the identity from their homeland, which is generally defined by ethnicity. Second
and third generation immigrants are easily included in the Greek identity so long
as they are fluent and live the local lifestyle.