Sunday, September 9, 2012

Thursday, August 30, 2012 – Rhodes, Greece – Sunny – 86F

Distance from Kusadasi to Rhodes: 190 Nautical Miles

Local Information: Rhodes, part of the Dodecanese Island Group, is the fourth largest Greek Island (540 square miles).  Rhodes is believed to be the sight of the Colossus of Rhodes – a 90 foot high statue – that stood at the entrance of the harbor.  Rhodes Town is the capital of the island and dates back to the year 1312 when the Knights of St. John, using funds taken from the Templar Knights, built the fortified city.  The Dodecanese Islands became part of Greece following WWII.

No tours today.  We have walked the Old Town a number of times and we have walked through the “left side” of the new town bordering the walled city.  Today, we are going to walk and explore the new town of Rhodes.  This requires going through the gate at the far upper side of the old town near the Grandmaster’s Palace.  We did make our way up the medieval streets of Old Town Rhodes to the Palace. The walls of the old city provide a good deal of critical shade.

Medieval street to the GMaster Palace (Small)

Street Leading to the Palace

Reaching the top of the hill, we were at the location of many of the Knights of St. John structures.

 Museum of the Hospitaliers (Small)

Hospitaliers Headquarters (now a museum)

The area is dominated by the Grandmaster’s Palace.  Untold number of rooms and wonderful gardens – paid for, I suspect, from Temple treasures (or so the legend says).

From this vantage point, you can also see the Mosque of Suleiman in the distance (below).

Mosque of Suleiman (Small)

Grandmasters Palace (Small)

Grandmasters Palace 1 (Small)  

Grandmaster’s Palace (above)

 Grandmasters Palace Yard (Small)

Palace Grounds

D'Amboise Gate GM Palace (Small)

D’Amboise Gate – Palace in Background

We left the Old City through the D’Amboise Gate and found ourselves in a totally different environment.  Cars, busses, and modern homes.  We found a nice park (below) and street after street of upscale shops and stores.

Park in New Town Rhodes (Small) Park in New Rhodes Town (Small)

Park in the New Town of Rhodes

We bought an ice cream cone and a milkshake at a McDonalds and were able to use their WiFi (with some optimization of location in the store) to catch up on things.

It was hot and shade became scarcer so we started to make our way back to the ship.  On the way, we did find a unique adult restaurant that looked like a kid park.  Couldn’t resist taking a picture of their animal statues.

 Adult Restaurant w animals (Small)

Adult Restaurant with Kid Theme

We followed the wall of the Old City to the Harbor, seeking shade when possible.  I crossed the main street to get a picture of the two deer that guard the Harbor.  This is thought to be the site of the Colossus of Rhodes.

 Colossus of Rhodes site (Small)

Did the Colossus Stand Here

Rhodes Harbor (Small)

Rhodes Harbor

The harbor area is populated by restaurants and vendors.  There are also some park like areas.  One such area contained a statue that I determined was Alexander the Great (I read the Greek inscription).

Alexander the Great (Small)

Alexander the Great

Although we thought we would never make it, we did get back to the ship – a little weary and drenched.  We rehydrated with lots of iced tea and had a snack leading to a nice recovery.

Dinner was in the Grand Cuvee.

The Sail Away was again terrific. 

I should note at this point, that we have yet to see any clouds during this trip.

Sail Away Rhodes (Small) Sail Away Rhodes 1 (Small) Sail Away Rhodes 2 (Small) Sail Away Rhodes 3 (Small)

Showtime tonight featured Martin John (British Comedian Magician).  We have seen many of these illusions before. 

Did quite a bit of walking today.

Pedometer: 7699 Steps; 3.65 miles; 377 calories

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