On the island of Hydra in front of the statue of Andreas Miaoulis, one of the heroes of the Greek revolution. •• Tomorrow, March 25, is Greece’s Independence Day - this year is extra special because we are celebrating 200 years of independence from the Ottoman Empire, after nearly 400 years of occupation. •• Most people know about Greece because of Mykonos, Santorini and great beaches. But there is much more to my homeland. •• I am immensely proud of where I come from. Greece has been through a lot since its independence. Famine, war, invasions, genocide, forced displacements. •• My grandparents lived through the famine and violence of WWII. My parents, through a military coup. •• My generation has weathered the upheavals and challenges of a deep economic crisis that left 50% of them - young Greeks - unemployed, hopeless and anxious about the future. •• Now, if there’s one thing Greeks love, it’s bitching about Greece: the society, the government, the people, etc. Some is merited. But at the end of the day, things get thrown at us constantly, large powers either actively damage us or ignore us, a small, rocky nation that has had to restart again and again after repeated destruction, and yet still managed to rise out of dire poverty just (barely) a couple of generations ago after being decimated once again. We always overcome, keeping our culture alive every time after 3000 years. •• We have much to be proud of, including a diaspora that carries 🇬🇷 in their hearts and heads everywhere they go in this world. Happy March 25th! . . . . . #greekislands #discovergreece #independenceday #200years #200yearsgreekindependence #hydra #hydraisland #ilovegreece #gltlove #travelstoke #bbctravel #dametraveler #ελλαδα #ελλάδα #2021 #πατριδα #greekpride #proudtobegreek #greeceislands #greece🇬🇷