Greece is a nation in South Eastern Europe with thousands of islands scattered between the Aegean and the Ionian Seas. Given its extreme importance in antiquity, it is considered the cradle of western civilization. In Athens, the capital, there are monuments dating back to the fifth century BC, including the Acropolis, the citadel that includes the Parthenon temple. Greece also owes its fame to the beaches, from the black sand beaches of Santorini to the fashionable villages of Mykonos.