That is certainly true. But in most cases, Greeks will speak English more warmly -and sometimes, even more fluently- if you try greeting them in the Hellenic tongue. It can enhance your trip in many areas - and may save you money, time, and frustration along the way.
Here are a few helpful phrases to master, written phonetically. Accent the syllable in CAPITAL letters:
KaleeMEra - Good morning
KaleeSPERa - Good evening
YahSU - Hello
EfcareeSTO - Thank you
ParakaLOH - Please, also heard as "you're welcome"
KAthika - I am lost
Big warning: In Greek, the word for "No" can sound like "Okay" - OH-kee, as in "Okey-dokey". Others pronounce it "Oh-shee". Remember, if it sounds like "Okay" it means "No way!" And the word for "Yes" sounds like "No" - NEH! It may help to think it sounds like "Now", as in "Let's do it right now."
I wonder how many travel problems are the result of this misunderstanding?
While the phrases above are fun to use, I don't recommend trying to make travel arrangements in Greek unless you are truly comfortable in the language, or there is no other alternative available, which, for the casual tourist, almost never happens in Greece.
Otherwise, you may end up with a situation like this: "Yes, honey, the taxi driver just said it's okay, he'll drive us all the way to Mount Olympus from Athens! But when I asked him to just take us over to the Acropolis, he said "Nah. Funny guy." Even if you know OHkee means "No" in Greek, and "Neh" means yes, your brain may still tell you the opposite.
Travel does do strange things to the mind; I once chose to go on foot to an appointment on Mykonos, thinking it was an easy walk away. Unfortunately, at that moment my brain inexplicably chose to convert kilometers to miles as if they were Chinese li, a much shorter unit of measure left swirling in my synapses from a journey to Asia. Oops. I arrived at my appointment much more tired and sweatier than I had intended, but fortunately, since this was laid-back Greece, I still arrived ahead of my host!
Here are some other resources to help you learn traveler's Greek:
Greek Alphabet
From Little Greek 101, this is a great quick introduction to reading and writing the Greek alphabet. Pronunciations are Erasmian rather than Modern, but it's a place to start.
Greek Lessons
Very basic lessons, including audio files.
