Day Fifteen (Saturday)

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I fell asleep rather quickly last night. The gentle rolling of the boat actually felt relaxing. I think if I had had a few more beers it might not have proven very therapeutic because the seas felt rather rough. At about 2:00 am I was awoken by a loud part going on somewhere near our cabin. What had been such a quiet area during my daytime snooze was now sounding like a convention was going on next door. It sounded like a bunch of kids sitting around BS'ing. There wasn't piercing music or the sounds of dancing, but they would talk quietly for maybe a minute or two then erupt in loud laughter. I couldn't understand what they were saying and never could determine if they were speaking English. They were just annoying. I finally stuffed my foam earplugs in my ears and returned to sleep at about 3:30.

According to our printed ship's itinerary we were supposed to arrive at our next stop, the isle of Rhodes, at 6:30 am. There were all kinds of excursions available to the passengers and all of them cost extra money. We figured we'd find our own way around the island.

I was up at about 7:00. The ship was no longer rolling and things were totally quiet. Mike wasn't up yet so I took a quick shower then decided to walk the few steps from our cabin to the observation deck. When I walked out the door into another fierce Grecian wind I felt like I was in a dream. Down below the ship and stretching almost to the opposite end of this part of the island was a huge fortress wall. There were turrets every few feet and the whole thing looked like some kind of fairy-tale castle. By the time I returned to the room Mike was up and showering. I woke up Gail and her Mom indicating I needed breakfast. Almost an hour later we were all ready to hit the breakfast buffet. Although not as exciting as our breakfast back at the Oscar Hotel in Athens, this was still very satisfying. Bacon, eggs, orange juice, fruit , cereals and hard rolls.

Tyler wouldn't be joining us today because he was taking the scuba diving excursion. Mike and a few others from our group were also going. After breakfast Gen, Gail, her Mom and I climbed down about 7 flights of stairs to the departure ramp. As soon as we left the dockyard parking lot we were walking alongside a narrow sandy beach. Even at 9:30 in the morning the sun was beating down on us. I could tell it was going to be another hot day in the Med.

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Photos

My amazing early morning dream
After I woke up then walked out to the observation deck I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw this Medieval city spread out below our docked ship. Although you don't see them in this picture there were three tall minarets rising up above the city walls.

Rhodes harbour
As soon as we left the ship it felt like we were entering a different world. Not knowing anything about the place we landed we just walked out of the parking lot at the dockyard and followed the shoreline. Every direction we turned we saw stone walls.

And just a few degrees to my right
Just to the right of the main anchorage we could see this fort guarding the entrance into the harbor. To the immediate left those three round buildings with red roofs are windmills that are being reconstructed.

I'm not an environmentalist wacko but this really bothered me
As we continued our stroll alongside the docks and beach we came upon a parking lot full of souvenirs aimed at the tourists coming off the cruise ships. Hopefully most of the American tourists coming off the ships would be smart enough to realize that none of this stuff harvested from the sea was going to get through customs and more importantly, I hope they know enough not to support the pillaging of the Mediteranean's dwindling natural resources. I've seen enough National Geographic and Jacques Cousteau documentaries to know that what was once a bountiful sea has become a virtual aquatic desert due to over-harvesting and pollution. These clowns were selling shells, sponges, coral and slowly dieing fish that had been plucked from the local waters. They probably have to throw away half of what they don't sell every night. Wasteful.

One of the many gates leading to the Old City
We walked about a mile along the quayside. To our right was the water and on our left, across the street, were the walls of the fortified city. Most of the battlements were built in the Middle Ages by European Crusaders. Like most things in this part of the world, over the succeeding years new conquerers came in and built on top of the older structures.

Turrets Syndrome
Because the are we walked through was part of a large well-protected natural harbor, the builders of the fortifications understood the necessity of protecting this most vital asset. Any enemy trying to conquer Rhodes would prefer to utilize the harbor when landing their troops. As a result. this was where the walls of the town were the highest and thickest. Also, a large number of these rounded turrets were extended out from the main walls giving the defenders the ability to rain havoc on any attackers from a number of different angles.

Further along the shoreline
We continued our walk along the crescent-shaped shoreline. As we neared the farthest end of the curve our way was blocked by the entrance to this fort. The entire fortification system is so big and encompasses so much of the town that something as cool as this warrants no signs or security. Amazingly, we didn't see any grafitti on the miles and miles of walls we passed.

The best way to keep cool in Rhodes
Despite a nice breeze the day was getting warmer and warmer as we walked. Fortunately there was a lot of shade. I could tell that by mid-day it was going to be a scorcher. I would be in need of more than one Mythos today. These people found a nice way to keep cool. There was too much coral and rock here for me to even consider this option.

Sometimes it pays to have a map with you
After I bought a bag of delicious pistachios from a street vendor and after the ladies looked at more jewelry and scarves being sold by the quayside, we decided we should enter the city. We could have turned around and entered any one of about five entrances we had already passed, but I hate to reverse field. I led us onward as we walked along the city walls searching for a gate. The farther we walked the higher the walls seemed to get.

How did they get up there?
We kept walking with our backs to the blistering sun. Every time we came to a turn on the path around the walls I expected to see a gate. Instead it seemed we were walking deeper and deeper into what was once a moat surrounding the fortifications. Finally the moat widened and we could see other people in the distance walking between two towers into the city. As we got closer we realized that they were above us on this bridge. I was about to suggest we turn around when out of the corner of my eye I saw a small stairway leading up to the entrance gate.

Inside the city walls...finally
As soon as we walked inside the walls I knew I was in trouble. There were shops everywhere. And most of them were full of colorful merchandise which immediately caught Gail's eye. It's like waving a sirloin steak in front of a hungry wolf. She was now in her element. As she ducked into shop after shop I wandered between shade trees checking out the sights and sounds of this city. I also found much that interested me only I preferred to stay outside and photograph it. I had had enough of shopping and souvenirs. I watched a group of tourists climb about a million steps to get to the top of this church tower which I suppose offered great views over the city.

Everything for the tourists
Gail was still bopping in and out of every shop as we very deliberately made our way along the "High Street". I assume it was called that because as walked walked further we gradually descended farther downhill. As the day went on we realized that the shops in this part of town had the cheapest prices, maybe because it was the furthest point from the cruise ships and because it required a climb uphill. So far Gail hadn't bought anything despite perusing ten or more stores. She was storing info for her second and third passes later on.

One of the many Mosques in Rhodes
Rhodes is only a stone's throw from Turkey and the whole Middle East. Hence the presence of Islamic Mosques and Minarets throughout the city. It certainly didn't feel Middle Eastern to me. We felt perfectly safe and experienced no culture shock. All the locals we dealt with this day were friendly and helpful. They are quite happy to take our Euros and dollars. Allah knows what they say about us as soon as the cruise ships pull up anchor.

Now it gets really charming
We decided to get off the beaten track for a bit. Somehow we veered off the main shopping avenue and ambled down the very narrow side streets. The roads were made of very knobby cobbles which I kept tripping and slipping on. This particular street corner was covered by a canopy of grapevines. Against the wall you'll see the preferred mode of travel in Rhodes. As we peered and gawked at the varied colors and textures of Rhodes, all along these confining alleyways we were subjected to an endless litany of whimpy hornblasts from motorscooters attempting to get by us. I started to get a little irritated after pressing myself up against the white-washed walls for the twentieth time. I was thinking that the city should ban those stupid things, but then I recognized that the scooters were the only way to bring supplies into many of these narrow streets.

You can't get away from tourism in Rhodes
I thought I was being so clever getting off the main drag and exploring the side streets. But no matter how many twists and turns we took along the way, we continued to pass shops catering to the tourists. At this point I thought we finally reached the end of the commercial zone and were about to see something "intersting" but at the next street corner...

Behold! More shopping!
Just when I thought it was safe to put away my wallet and here we are back in the shopping zone. Even Gen is starting to look bored. Those arches over the alley are kind of interesting however.

Dunkin Donuts (Rhodes version)
Meandering around these skinny side streets we were actually well-protected from the sun. We passed some interesting hotels and pensions, lots of parked motorscooters, an Orthodox priest and did I mention, a lot of shops. Every tiny little building seemd to be home to some sort of store. As we passed what I initially thought was someone's home, I peeked in the open window only to see a lady frying up some donuts. Gail's Mom couldn't resist and ordered one right from the lady's front door.

Those crazy Rhodesians
I always get perverse amusement from foreigners' attempts to use English. Maybe they should have tried "draft" beer instead.

Time to give in
Finally even my sales resistance waned. We passed a tiny little shopfront that was selling designer colognes for 3 Euro. No doubt they were knock-offs but how could I go wrong for 3 Euro. And believe it or not, when I got the stuff home and opened it, it actually smelled like the genuine article. The drawback is that the scent only lasts about an hour or two.
And there's those intersting arches again.

Back on Main Street
I have no idea how we did it because I was trying to lead us Eastward, but somehow we doubled back Westward on to the main shopping street. Now that it was just after noon things were getting rather busy on this Saturday afternoon. We worked our way back uphill stopping in a number of shops on the way. At least in this part of town there were a few knife and weapons shops as well as a couple of booze stores that I visited while the girls looked at still more shoes and jewelry. In one of the liquor stores I bought a small bottle of cherry ambrosia (Schnapps) to bring home. The salesman then poured me a generous sample of locally produced Ouzo. It was pretty potent but I didn't feel like lugging a bottle of it around with me the rest of the day so I passed. When we got to the top of the street, back where we had first entered the old city, we found an outdoor cafe where I had a nice big Gyro and another Mythos.

Is this Disneyworld?
We decided to head back downhill on the main street. The path widened as we progressed. While the girls were in another souvenir shop, I peered into a small military arms shop. I could have spent the day there looking at all the swords, knives, helmets and toy soldiers. Once again I gave considerable thought to buying a big old replica helmet, but opted for wind chimes and a little bronze chariot instead. Proceeding further down the street I found a shirt shop advertising close-out prices. I got my father a nice Ferrari shirt for 10 Euro. Eventually we came to this open plaza that looked like a movie set. It was almost too charming. Judging from this picture it must be the central assembly spot for lost tourists.

Restaurant row
At the very end of the hill the street opened up into another plaza full of all these sidewalk restaurants. I bought another Ferrari shirt while Gail got herself a Rhodes t-shirt.

Escape
Ok, by now I was totally shopped-out. Gail and her mother were making noises about going out on the beach. No thanks. It was getting pretty hot out in this open part of the market so I was all for returning back to the air conditioned ship. We exited through this arch which took put us close to the middle of the crescent-shaped beach.

The rest of the day
Once we returned to the ship it was nap time for me. While Gail and her mother went to the beach I took a nice two hour sleep. When I woke up finding that Mike and Tyler had still not returned from scuba-diving I called Gail's room. They were still at the beach. I then took a walk around the ship looking for something to do. Once again, nothing on board was the least bit appealing. I returned to my room and read.
At around 4:00 Mike and tYler returned. Gail and her mother changed back into their clothes and wanted to show the boys some of the stuff we had seen during our day. We sprint-walked though most of the same places we had spent half the day lingering over. We had less than an hour before the ship was scheduled to leave so we virtually ran through Rhodes. The boys told us about their diving exploits and both vowed to work on getting certified so that next time they did it they could stay underwater longer.
We ate dinner as group again, only this time we dined in the other dining room. I went a little crazy ordering both a soup and an appetizer. I also got two desserts. After dinner we spent some time in the bar before I walked off to one of the conference rooms where the World Cup Final was televised on a big screen set. I went to bed early as the boring game was putting me asleep anyway.