The Island of Rhodes
Our excursion today took us from the port in the fortress city of Rhodes to Kamiros, a hilltop ruin about a 30-minute drive outside of town. These islands are an enigma, outside of the port/tourist areas and capitol cities we see towns and houses that are either very beautiful with neat lawns or gardens (even the places where it is evident there is little money are swept and tidy) or you see house lots and storefronts that are abandoned and boarded up, or overgrown. The saving grace is that there are kilometers of oleander and rose bushes lining the roads, olive groves with their silvery-green leaves, cypress and fig trees, wild morning glories of the most gorgeous deep blue, bougainvillea, fruit trees (we saw lime and orange trees today), and a bush from the rosemary family that is planted as a border and grows to the size of a small Volkswagen. It is fragrant and a slightly lighter shade of green than the cooking herb. So I can deal with a bit of blight if it’s offset by good foliage. There is also a Valley of the Butterflies, Petaloudes, where one species of moth, calimorpha quadripunctaria lives from July through September clustered around the pungent storax plant. While we did not visit it would certainly be on my agenda if here at the right time.
…when I opened the curtains we were docked in one of the most beautiful marinas I’ve ever seen, filled with gorgeous sailboats.
Kamiros was a Doric city from the 15th century BC. An earthquake destroyed it and it was rebuilt in the 6th century BC. An earthquake got it one more time and the ruins there today are from the rebuilding done in the 2nd century BC. The Italians began the excavation in 1929 and it continues today. The acropolis, agora, and houses, along with the requisite temple to the prevailing god, existed in much the same way as Delos, though on a smaller scale. Kamiros was the first Rhodian city to cut its own coins. It exported olive oil, wine and figs, as Rhodes still does today. Because of their mountaintop location the Kamirans decided fortification was not a requirement, and their views of the Aegean were uninterrupted by walls, and quite spectacular.
Rhodes Town (the old part of the city) is quite spectacular because of their fortifications. Rhodes saw waves of settlement beginning in the 1st millennium BC. The Persians took over from the Dorian Greeks in at the end of the 6th century BC and forced Rhodians to provide ships and men for King Xerxes failed attack on the mainland in 480 BC. A league of city-states was established under Athenian leadership and the city of Rhodes was created on the site of the modern town. Its political organization became the model for the city of Alexandria, Egypt. Over many years the Romans and the Arabs and then the Romans again had control of the island and in 1309 AD the crusaders, The Knights of St. John, took the city from Rome, and its most important modern era began.
The Knights of St. John were Hospitalers, organized to protect and care for Christian pilgrims. And any time religious differences exist things eventually become militarized, and medieval looking fortresses were built and added to along with the hospitals, churches and inns. The inns, on the Street of the Knights, were international, and acted as both accommodation and embassy for foreign visitors. The town is now a World Heritage Site. Rodós town was also the home of the Great Colossus, a huge, 110 ‘ bronze statue of the sun god Helios, which straddled the Mandraki Harbor entrance. In 227 BC an earthquake razed the city, and the Oracle of Delphi advised the Rhodians to leave the statue where it was. What did she know… It was carted off to Syria by 900 camels in 654 AD and sold for scrap.
The city is beautiful and one could probably spend a solid week exploring the museums and ruins, and spend some time on the beach. I put my feet in the Aegean for the first time here in Rhodes. The beautiful crystal clear water was, well, chilly but refreshing!
The ship threw a “White Night”, where guests are treated to Greek food on the pool deck, with a Greek band complete with Bouzouki player and Greek dancers. They did a great job with both. Grilled dishes like sea bream with chimichurri sauce, a curry spiced chicken, moussaka, lamb and beef meatballs, calamari, pork gyro, and many other treats were offered. Desserts included baklava along with fresh fruit and tasty non-Greek additions like tiramisu and crème brulee. Live music and dancing followed. The ship has a very talented ensemble that had entertained us the night before with Broadway show tunes, from shows like Rent, Cabaret, Chicago, Company, and Hairspray, where Russ, the cruise director, dressed in drag in the role Divine played so fabulously. He commented after the show that he didn’t know how women did it, because he kept trying to adjust his boobs into proper position.
We’ve been meeting nightly for our pre-dinner cocktail in the Looking Glass, a lounge forward in the ship with great views and comfy seats. We hadn’t seen much of cousin George for a couple of days, and when his mom and dad found us they mentioned he was playing cards with “a blonde” on the other side of the lounge. Victoria and Shana, like two Meercats, rose up from their seats in slow unison and scanned the horizon for him. Not sure if it was sisterly concern for a potential cougar invasion or just curiosity. We never did get to see her. George did join us last night for the Greek buffet, so we know he is alive and well. Or at least she didn’t hurt him too badly.
When we returned from our Rhodes excursion we were beat, and took long naps in the afternoon. We looked at our excursion for Thursday, Mamaris, Turkey, (Mamaris is from the words Mamari As, or Hang the architect, probably not a lot to see), and Sedir Island, Cleopatra’s beach. There is a bus ride and a boat ride to get there, the Aegean is chilly, and we’re tired, so we’ve decided to take the day off. We slept a bit later, and when I opened the curtains we were docked in one of the most beautiful marinas I’ve ever seen, filled with gorgeous sailboats. I ran and got us lattes from the barista on deck 5, and we sat with binoculars on our veranda and ogled all the yachts. Steve, dressing faster than he has all week, was out into the marina in a flash. When I saw him from my shady spot on the pool deck he’d obviously stopped for another latte and was ogling the boats up close and personal. We’re in Turkey so I’m calling him Sultan Steve. I’m happily going for a massage at two, and taking a load off of my still rebellious ankles.