1.
Peloponnese
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The Peloponnese or Peloponnesus is a peninsula and geographic region in southern Greece. It is separated from the part of the country by the Gulf of Corinth. During the late Middle Ages and the Ottoman era, the peninsula was known as the Morea, the peninsula is divided among three administrative regions, most belongs to the Peloponnese region, with smaller parts belonging to the West Greece and Attica regions. In 2016, Lonely Planet voted the Peloponnese the top spot of their Best in Europe list, the Peloponnese is a peninsula that covers an area of some 21,549.6 square kilometres and constitutes the southernmost part of mainland Greece. It has two connections with the rest of Greece, a natural one at the Isthmus of Corinth. The peninsula has an interior and deeply indented coasts. The Peloponnese possesses four south-pointing peninsulas, the Messenian, the Mani, the Cape Malea, mount Taygetus in the south is the highest mountain in the Peloponnese, at 2,407 metres. Οther important mountains include Cyllene in the northeast, Aroania in the north, Erymanthos and Panachaikon in the northwest, Mainalon in the center, the entire peninsula is earthquake prone and has been the site of many earthquakes in the past. The longest river is the Alfeios in the west, followed by the Evrotas in the south, extensive lowlands are found only in the west, with the exception of the Evrotas valley in the south and in the Argolid in the northeast. The Peloponnese is home to spectacular beaches, which are a major tourist draw. Two groups of islands lie off the Peloponnesian coast, the Argo-Saronic Islands to the east, the island of Kythera, off the Epidaurus Limera peninsula to the south of the Peloponnese, is considered to be part of the Ionian Islands. The island of Elafonissos used to be part of the peninsula but was separated following the quake of 365 AD. Since antiquity, and continuing to the present day, the Peloponnese has been divided into seven regions, Achaia, Corinthia, Argolid, Arcadia, Laconia, Messinia. Each of these regions is headed by a city, the largest city is Patras in Achaia, followed by Kalamata in Messinia. The peninsula has been inhabited since prehistoric times and its modern name derives from ancient Greek mythology, specifically the legend of the hero Pelops, who was said to have conquered the entire region. The name Peloponnesos means Island of Pelops, the Mycenaean civilization, mainland Greeces first major civilization, dominated the Peloponnese in the Bronze Age from its stronghold at Mycenae in the north-east of the peninsula. The Mycenean civilization collapsed suddenly at the end of the 2nd millennium BC, archeological research has found that many of its cities and palaces show signs of destruction. The subsequent period, known as the Greek Dark Ages, is marked by an absence of written records
2.
Greece
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Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, historically also known as Hellas, is a country in southeastern Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2015. Athens is the capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki. Greece is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, situated on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. Greece consists of nine regions, Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands, Thrace, Crete. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km in length, featuring a vast number of islands, eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres. From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as polis, which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming a part of the Roman Empire and its successor. The Greek Orthodox Church also shaped modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox World, falling under Ottoman dominion in the mid-15th century, the modern nation state of Greece emerged in 1830 following a war of independence. Greeces rich historical legacy is reflected by its 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, among the most in Europe, Greece is a democratic and developed country with an advanced high-income economy, a high quality of life, and a very high standard of living. A founding member of the United Nations, Greece was the member to join the European Communities and has been part of the Eurozone since 2001. Greeces unique cultural heritage, large industry, prominent shipping sector. It is the largest economy in the Balkans, where it is an important regional investor, the names for the nation of Greece and the Greek people differ from the names used in other languages, locations and cultures. The earliest evidence of the presence of human ancestors in the southern Balkans, dated to 270,000 BC, is to be found in the Petralona cave, all three stages of the stone age are represented in Greece, for example in the Franchthi Cave. Neolithic settlements in Greece, dating from the 7th millennium BC, are the oldest in Europe by several centuries and these civilizations possessed writing, the Minoans writing in an undeciphered script known as Linear A, and the Mycenaeans in Linear B, an early form of Greek. The Mycenaeans gradually absorbed the Minoans, but collapsed violently around 1200 BC and this ushered in a period known as the Greek Dark Ages, from which written records are absent. The end of the Dark Ages is traditionally dated to 776 BC, the Iliad and the Odyssey, the foundational texts of Western literature, are believed to have been composed by Homer in the 7th or 8th centuries BC. With the end of the Dark Ages, there emerged various kingdoms and city-states across the Greek peninsula, in 508 BC, Cleisthenes instituted the worlds first democratic system of government in Athens
3.
Gulf of Corinth
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The Gulf of Corinth or the Corinthian Gulf is a deep inlet of the Ionian Sea separating the Peloponnese from western mainland Greece. The gulf is in tectonic movement comparable to movement in parts of Iceland and Turkey, in medieval times, the gulf was known as the Gulf of Lepanto. Shipping routes between the Greek commercial port Pireus to western Mediterranean and hemisphere ports pass along this gulf, a further crossing in the form of ferry links Aigio and Agios Nikolaos, towards the western part of the gulf. Length,130 km Width,8.4 to 32 km Max Depth 935 m The gulf was created by the expansion of a tectonic rift due to the movement of the Anatolian Plate. The surrounding faults can produce earthquakes up to magnitude 6.8, cetaceans such as fin whales or dolphins are known to come into the Corinthian gulf occasionally
4.
Patras
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Patras is Greeces third-largest city and the regional capital of Western Greece, in the northern Peloponnese,215 km west of Athens. The city is built at the foothills of Mount Panachaikon, overlooking the Gulf of Patras, Patras has a population of 213,984. According to the results of 2011 census, the area has a population of 260,308. Dubbed as Greeces Gate to the West, Patras is a hub, while its busy port is a nodal point for trade and communication with Italy. The Rio-Antirio bridge connects Patras easternmost suburb of Rio to the town of Antirrio, Patras is also famous for supporting an indigenous cultural scene active mainly in the performing arts and modern urban literature. It was European Capital of Culture in 2006, Patras is 215 km west of Athens by road,94 km northeast of Pyrgos,7 kilometres south of Rio,134 km west of Corinth,77 km northwest of Kalavryta, and 144 km northwest of Tripoli. A central feature of the geography of Patras is its division into upper and lower sections. It is built on what was originally a bed of river soils, the older upper section covers the area of the pre-modern settlement, around the Fortress, on what is the last elevation of Mount Panachaikon before the Gulf of Patras. The largest river in the area is the Glafkos, flowing to the south of Patras, the water is also used for the orchards of Eglykas and as drinking water for the city. Other rivers are Haradros, Meilichos and the mountain torrent Diakoniaris and it features the typical mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers, with spring and autumn being pleasant transitional seasons. Autumn in Patras, however, is wetter than spring, of great importance for the biological diversity of the area and the preservation of its climate is the swamp of Agyia, a small and coastal aquatic ecosystem of only 30 ha, north of the city centre. Another geophysical characteristic of the region is its level of seismicity. Small tremors are recorded along the coast of Patras almost constantly, larger earthquakes hit the area every few years with potentially destructive effects. In 1993, a 5. 0-magnitude earthquake caused damage to several buildings throughout Patras due to the proximity of the epicenter to the city. On June 15,1995, a 6. 2-magnitude earthquake hit the town of Aigion. The Ionian Islands are also hit by even more severe earthquakes. In antiquity, the most notable example of destruction caused by an earthquake in the region was the total submergence of the ancient Achaean city of Helike, the first traces of settlement in Patras date to as early as the third millennium BC, in the area of modern Aroe. Patras flourished for the first time in the Post-Helladic or Mycenean period, Ancient Patras was formed by the unification of three Mycenaean villages in modern Aroe, namely Antheia and Mesatis
5.
Olympia, Greece
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Olympia, a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis on the Peloponnese peninsula, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times. The Olympic Games were held four years throughout Classical antiquity. The sanctuary, known as the Altis, consists of an arrangement of various buildings. Enclosed within the temenos are the Temple of Hera, the Temple of Zeus, the Pelopion, and the area of the altar, to the north of the sanctuary can be found the Prytaneion and the Philippeion, as well as the array of treasuries representing the various city-states. The Metroon lies to the south of these treasuries, with the Echo Stoa to the east, the hippodrome and later stadium were located east of the Echo Stoa. To the south of the sanctuary is the South Stoa and the Bouleuterion, whereas the Palaestra, the workshop of Pheidias, the Gymnasion, very close to the Temple of Zeus which housed this statue, the studio of Pheidias was excavated in the 1950s. Evidence found there, such as tools, corroborates this opinion. The ancient ruins sit north of the Alpheios River and south of Mount Kronos, the Kladeos, a tributary of the Alpheios, flows around the area. Building of Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II,13, Pheidias workshop and paleochristian basilica,25. For a history of the Olympic Games, see Olympic Games or Ancient Olympic Games, remains of food and burnt offerings dating back to the 10th century BC give evidence of a long history of religious activity at the site. No buildings have survived from this earliest period of use, the first Olympic festival was organized on the site by the authorities of Elis in the 8th century BC – with tradition dating the first games at 776 BC. Major changes were made to the site around 700 BC, including levelling land, Elis power diminished and the sanctuary fell into the hands of the Pisatans in 676 BC. The Pisatans organized the games until the late 7th century BC, the earliest evidence of building activity on the site dates from around 600 BC. At this time the Skiloudians, allies of the Pistans, built the Temple of Hera, the Treasuries and the Pelopion were built during the course of the 6th century BC. The secular structures and athletic arenas were also under construction during this period including the Bouleuterion, the first stadium was constructed around 560 BC, it consisted of just a simple track. The stadium was remodelled around 500 BC with sloping sides for spectators, over the course of the 6th century BC a range of sports were added to the Olympic festival. In 580 BC, Elis, in alliance with Sparta, occupied Pisa, the classical period, between the 5th and 4th centuries BC, was the golden age of the site at Olympia. A wide range of new religious and secular buildings and structures were constructed, the Temple of Zeus was built in the middle of the 5th century BC
6.
Toll road
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A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private roadway for which a fee is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the cost of road construction, the amount of the toll usually varies by vehicle type, weight, or number of axles, with freight trucks often charged higher rates than cars. Tolls are collected at points known as toll booths, toll houses, plazas, stations, bars, some toll collection points are unmanned and the user deposits money in a machine which opens the gate once the correct toll has been paid. To cut costs and minimize time delay many tolls today are collected by some form of automatic or electronic toll collection equipment which communicates electronically with a toll payers transponder, Toll booths are usually still required for the occasional users who do not have a transponder. The tolls are often prepaid or collected automatically from a credit card service. Some toll roads have automated toll enforcement systems that take photos of drivers who do not pay the tolls and they typically get the toll bill delivered to them in the mail. Criticisms of toll roads include the time taken to stop and pay the toll, automated toll paying systems help minimize both of these. Others object to paying twice for the road, in fuel taxes. In addition to roads, toll bridges and toll tunnels are also used by public authorities to generate funds to repay the cost of building the structures. Some tolls are set aside to pay for maintenance or enhancement of infrastructure, or are applied as a general fund by local governments. This is sometimes limited or prohibited by government legislation. Also road congestion pricing schemes have been implemented in a number of urban areas as a transportation demand management tool to try to reduce traffic congestion. Toll roads have existed for at least the last 2,700 years, as tolls had to be paid by travellers using the Susa–Babylon highway under the regime of Ashurbanipal, aristotle and Pliny refer to tolls in Arabia and other parts of Asia. In India, before the 4th century BC, the Arthasastra notes the use of tolls, germanic tribes charged tolls to travellers across mountain passes. A 14th-century example is Castle Loevestein in the Netherlands, which was built at a point where two rivers meet. River tolls were charged on boats sailing along the river, in 14th-century England, some of the most heavily used roads were repaired with money raised from tolls by pavage grants. Widespread toll roads sometimes restricted traffic so much, by their high tolls, tolls were used in the Holy Roman Empire in the 14th and 15th centuries. In the 20th century, road tolls were introduced in Europe to finance the construction of motorway networks and specific transport infrastructure such as bridges, Italy was the first European country to charge motorway tolls, on a 50 km motorway section near Milan in 1924
7.
Pyrgos, Elis
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Pyrgos is the capital of the Elis regional unit in Greece. The city is located in the part of the Peloponnese. The river Alfeios flows into sea about 7 km south of Pyrgos, the population of the town Pyrgos is 25,180, and of the municipality 47,995. Pyrgos is 16 km west of Olympia,16 km southeast of Amaliada,70 km southwest of Patras and 85 km west of Tripoli.610 km2, annual precipitation is sizeable, above 900 mm, and it peaks in late autumn. Pyrgos has a station with regular trains to the port of Katakolo. Service on the line from Patras to Kalamata via Pyrgos has been suspended in 2011, the Greek National Road 9 connects Pyrgos with Patras and Kyparissia, the Greek National Road 74 run from Pyrgos to Tripoli via Olympia. List of settlements in Elis Official website
8.
University of Patras
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University of Patras is a public university in Patras, Greece. It is the third largest university in Greece with respect to the size of the student body, the staff, in 2014, the student population was 21,000. It has more than of 830 faculty members,164 scientific staff members and 372 administrative personnel and comprises 24 Departments, the University of Patras is considered one of the best universities in Greece and has been placed in the top 200 universities in subject areas. The University of Patras was established on 11 November 1964 as an academic institution under the supervision of the Greek Government. Its opening took place on the 30th of November 1966 which is the date that the city of Patras celebrates its Patron “Saint Andrew”. This is the reason that the emblem of the University is an X cross which symbolises the one on which St. Andrew was crucified Covering an area of 4.5 km², in June 2013 the University of Western Greece was incorporated in the University of Patras. The University is a two-city campus, situated in both Patras and Agrinion, the university conducts research in Environment, Health, Biotechnology, Mechanics, Electronics, Informatics and Basic Science. A number of the departments, laboratories and clinics have been designated as Centres of Excellence, the emblem of the university is Andrew the Apostle. It is a campus located at the foot of mount Panachaiko with a view over the Gulf of Corinth. The School of Medicine lies west of the hospital but smaller in size with the lots in the west and downtown Rio. The university is accessible by GR-8A, and by the bypass with an interchange in the west, the elevation is around 50 m above sea level. The facilities lie in the part, the central part. The far western part, and the part are empty. Ritsou with the old GR-8A in the north, the mountains are situated in the southeast. The track and field and sporting grounds are in the southern part, the first buildings of the new university campus were a unit of 20 small ground level pre-fabricated buildings, still housing some academic and administrative offices. In 1972 the construction of buildings A and B started, building A houses the administrative services, the rectorship, the Senates Conference Hall, the Universitys Ceremonial Hall, a teaching amphitheatre and seminar halls. Within the campus are the residence hall, the Conference and Cultural Centre, a restaurant, a bank, a bookstore, a stationery. The University Guest Hall is the building of the university outside the campus
9.
Temple of Zeus, Olympia
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The Temple of Zeus at Olympia was an ancient Greek temple in Olympia, Greece, dedicated to the god Zeus. The temple, built in the quarter of the fifth century BCE, was the very model of the fully developed classical Greek temple of the Doric order. Construction of the temple began around 470 BC and was completed by 457 BC. The architect was Libon of Elis, who worked in the Doric style, the temple was of peripteral form, with a frontal pronaos, mirrored by a similar arrangement at the back of the building, the opisthodomos. The building sat on a crepidoma of three steps, the exterior columns were positioned in a six by thirteen arrangement, two rows of seven columns divided the cella into three aisles. An echo of the original appearance can be seen in the Second Temple of Hera at Paestum. The temple featured carved metopes and triglyph friezes, topped by pediments filled with sculptures in the Severe Style, now attributed to the Olympia Master and his studio. According to Pausanias, the height up to the pediment was 68 feet, its breadth was 95 feet. It was approached by a ramp on the east side and it was roofed with Pentelic marble cut into the shape of tiles. The marble was cut thinly enough to be translucent, so that on a summers day, the temple featured two pediments, the Eastern pediment depicts the chariot race between Pelops and Oenomaus while the Western pediment features a centauromachy with Theseus and the Lapiths. Pausanius reports in his Description of Greece that the Eastern pedimental sculpture was created by Paeonius, the metopes from the temple depict the twelve labours of Heracles. The temple housed the statue of Zeus, which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Chryselephantine statue was approximately 13 m high, and was made by the sculptor Phidias in his workshop on the site at Olympia, the statues completion took approximately 12 years and was one of Classical Greeces most revered artistic works. The installation of the colossal statue coincided with substantial modification of the cella, the internal columns and their stylobates were dismantled and repositioned, which likely necessitated retiling the roof. The original floor, paved with blocks of shell stone, was covered with water-resistant lime. The Roman general Mummius dedicated twenty-one gilded shields after he sacked Corinth in 146 BC, they were fixed at the metopes of the front side. In AD426, Theodosius II ordered the destruction of the sanctuary, earthquakes in 522 and 551 devastated the ruins and left the Temple of Zeus partially buried. The site of the ancient sanctuary, long forgotten under landslips, in 1829 a French team partially excavated the Temple of Zeus, taking several fragments of the pediments to the Musée du Louvre
10.
Motorway 5 (Greece)
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The Greek Motorway 5 is a motorway in Greece, partially still under construction. Upon completion, the motorway will be the second major road connection in Motorway 1. It will also be part of the trans-balkanic Adriatic–Ionian motorway and the European routes E55, the motorways main section, commonly referred to as Ionia Odos, starts at Ioannina and it follows the western coastline of mainland Greece down to the Gulf of Corinth. At Rio, it crosses the gulf via the Rio–Antirrio bridge, as of 2016, it is yet unknown if the future Patras - Pyrgos motorway will be part of the A5 and its construction is to be auctioned. However, it is not part of the current project, however, several sections might be put into operation earlier, along with the toll stations of the road, as well. As of February 2017, the construction progress stood at 90%, the bridge was inaugurated on 7 August 2004, a week before the opening of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. With a length of 33 km, the Agrinio bypass was the first major segment of the northern A5 section to be completed, while construction had begun in 2002/03, it was fully put into service in May 2009. Starting from Aitoliko, the road bypasses the largest city and economical center of the Aetolia-Acarnania prefecture, Agrinio and it largely replaced the 12 km longer National Road 5. In July 28,2015, a 4,5 km segment before the Aitoliko interchange became operational and this segment features the Ioannina-Antirrio carriageway, with the Antirrio-Ioannina carriageway being under construction where the old road was. The latter was moved eastwards in order to make room for the construction of the motorway, the 17 km Arta bypass begins from Sellades near Arta and ends at Filippiada, near the border with the prefecture of Preveza. As of December 2016, the 25 km Kouvaras interchange - Amfilochia interchange segment has been completed and it should have been opened by July 2016, but because of landslides just before the Amfilochia interchange, it was opened in 27 December 2016 by the minister Christos Spirtzis. It was also rumored that the 33 km long Gavrolimni-Kefalovryso segment would have opened as well but with several works remaining. The latter is one of the most difficult motorway segments under construction in Greece because of the mountainous terrain along its route. The most important tunnel of the motorway, the Klokova Tunnel, has mostly been excavated, the rest of the motorway will be completed by March 2017.15 billion in the project. The rest of the total €1.4 billion funds will be provided by the European Union, construction, undertaken by the Euroionia Joint Venture finally started in 2008 with a completion date of 72 months. The bill was ratified on March 28,2007, in 2010, it was expected that the full length of the motorway would be completed by the end of 2013. However, the economical problems led to the construction being stopped in 2011. Currently, the parts are expected to be finished by March 2017
11.
Dual carriageway
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A dual carriageway is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation. Roads with two or more carriageways which are designed to higher standards with controlled access are generally classed as motorways, freeways, a road without a central reservation is a single carriageway regardless of the number of lanes. Dual carriageways have improved road traffic safety over single carriageways and typically have speed limits as a result. In some places, express lanes and local/collector lanes are used within a system to provide more capacity. A very early example of a dual carriageway was the Via Portuensis, in 1907 the Long Island Motor Parkway opened, and roughly 20% of it featured a semi-dual-carriageway design. The New York City Belt Parkway system, which was built between 1907 and 1934, also pioneered the same design, however the majority of it featured concrete or brick railings as lane dividers instead of grass medians. In 1924 the first Italian autostrada was opened running 55 km from Milan to Varese and it featured a broad road bed and did not feature lane dividers except near cities and through the mountains. The London end of the Great West Road became Britains first dual carriageway when it was opened in 1925 by King George V, in 1927 the Rome bypass was opened. It ran 92 km bypassing Rome to the east, almost the entire length featured a dual-carriageway design. In the early 1930s it was extended all the way to Naples. Most of the routing was destroyed by the Allies in the World War II. By 1930 several US and European cities had built dual-carriageway highways, in 1932 the first German autobahn opened between Cologne and Bonn. It ran 21 km and became a precedent for future highways, although it, like the first autostrada, did not feature a dual-carriageway design, it inspired the mass construction of future high-speed roadways. During the 1930s, Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union began construction of a network of dual carriageway expressways. By 1942, Germany had over 3,200 km of dual carriageway roads, Italy had nearly 1,300 km, opened to traffic in 1940, the 160-mile-long Pennsylvania Turnpike was the first rural dual carriageway built in the United States. By 1955 several states had built dual carriageway freeways and turnpikes, completed in 1994, the major highway system links all the major cities of the United States. In the UK, although the dual carriageway applies to any road with physically separated lanes. Such major dual carriageways usually have two lanes of traffic in each direction, with the lane nearest the centre being reserved for overtaking, occasionally dual carriageways have only one lane in each direction, or more than two lanes each way
12.
Greek government-debt crisis
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The Greek government-debt crisis is the sovereign debt crisis faced by Greece in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2007–08. The government enacted 12 rounds of tax increases, spending cuts, and reforms from 2010 to 2016, at that time, debt levels had reached €323bn or some €30,000 per capita. The 2001 introduction of the euro reduced trade costs among Eurozone countries, labour costs increased more in peripheral countries such as Greece relative to core countries such as Germany, eroding Greeces competitive edge. As a result, Greeces current account deficit rose significantly, a trade deficit means that a country is consuming more than it produces, which requires borrowing/direct investment from other countries. Both the Greek trade deficit and budget deficit rose from below 5% of GDP in 1999 to peak around 15% of GDP in the 2008–2009 periods, one driver of the investment inflow was Greeces membership in the EU and the Eurozone. As the Great Recession spread to Europe, the amount funds lent from the European core countries to the countries such as Greece began to decline. A country facing a “sudden stop” in private investment and a debt load typically allows its currency to depreciate to encourage investment. This was not possible while Greece remained on the Euro, instead, to become more competitive, Greek wages fell nearly 20% from mid-2010 to 2014, a form of deflation. This significantly reduced income and GDP, resulting in a recession, decline in tax receipts. Unemployment reached nearly 25%, from below 10% in 2003, significant government spending cuts helped the Greek government return to a primary budget surplus by 2014. In January 2010, the Greek Ministry of Finance published Stability, the report listed five main causes, poor GDP growth, government debt and deficits, budget compliance and data compatibility. Causes found by others included excess government spending, current account deficits, after 2008, GDP growth was lower than the Greek national statistical agency had anticipated. The global financial crisis had a large negative impact on GDP growth rates in Greece. Two of the countrys largest earners, tourism and shipping were badly affected by the downturn, the Ministry intended to implement real expenditure cuts that would allow expenditures to grow 3. 8% from 2009 to 2013, well below expected inflation at 6. 9%. Overall revenues were expected to grow 31. 5% from 2009 to 2013, secured by new, higher taxes, the deficit needed to decline to a level compatible with a declining debt-to-GDP ratio. The debt increased in 2009 due to the higher than expected government deficit, in addition to structural reforms, permanent and temporary austerity measures were needed. After 1993, the debt-to-GDP ratio remained above 94%, the crisis caused the debt level to exceed the maximum sustainable level. Budget compliance was acknowledged to need improvement, for 2009 it was found to be a lot worse than normal, due to economic control being more lax in a year with political elections
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