Greek People
For thousands of years now the Greeks have been known for their hospitality. Being a seafaring nation the Greek people do not suffer from 'xenophobia' which, ironically although a Greek word, doesn't apply to them! they are always friendly and will go out of their way to help you - so don't hesitate to ask for their assistance if you need to.
The majority of Greeks speak English or another European language such as Italian, French or German and, indeed, many speak several of these! Being of a Mediterranean temperament, the Greeks like to talk loud, using extravagant body language. Many times in cafes or restaurants the non-Greek may misunderstand this and think they are fighting. No way! It's just Greeks having a friendly discussion.
Filoxenia' ("friend to foreigners"), is an important point of pride for Greeks, and is something rooted in ancient times and in mythology. In the latter, Zeus was said to have disguised himself as a poor man, dressing himself in rags, so that he could visit the homes of Greeks and see how they treated strangers, revealing himself at a certain point as the god he really was, the point of the story being that it's a good idea to treat strangers/foreigners well, because they could turn out to be gods.
The Greek word 'xenos/ xeni' (masculine/ feminine) means 'foreigner' or 'stranger'; making filoxenia/hospitality 'love or friendliness for the foreigner/stranger', who is, in turn, the guest (filoxenoumenos).
In villages, it is not uncommon for villagers to show up at the door of a resident foreigner (or even a temporary visitor renting a room) with a sack full of fresh tomatoes, or even a bottle of local olive oil.
On the other hand, many Greek villagers keep to themselves, with an invisible, but palpable, barrier between their extended families and outsiders. Again, one cannot generalize, and people act differently, too, from place to place. Especially in Greece you can find different mentalities in different locations that will share the same roots but will differ in due to the way of living others closer to the mountains and others closer to the sea.
It is true that Greeks share a big history that is going back thousands of years. Most of the young people tend to forget the history however this is a phenomenon that happes everywhere in the world. In general Greeks have a very nice relationship with their past however in real life this holds them back in a way since they concetrate more to their past rather than the present. For a visitor this might be interesting because he will see and feel an older era and a more traditional way of living.
There is a very big difference from people you may meet in the cities and people you will meet in the villages. The city has a more European atmoshere and like all European city centers everybody lives in a global world of technology and information keeping at the same time their tradition and spirit which is well known for their idividuality.