Ródos

I know I said I'd see you in Crete but I had a whole day here so I went to see the Grand Palace. If anyone remembers my Europe blog you know it was dominated by Cathedrals and Castles. Well I'm back at it!

Today was the Grand Palace of Rhodes. First you visit the Museum of Rhodes where you learn about the history of Rhodes. I'll give you the short version: it's really old (24 centuries) and everyone fought over it from Rome to Turkey in the old days to Italy, Germany and Turkey again in modern times. Each time Greece said get lost. Rhodes is in a strategic location near Turkey, Asian Minor and South Africa. Therefore, it was very important to different countries.

Okay, let's get to the good stuff! The first set of building is the Knights Hospital. I guess all that turmoil means lots of injuries. I personally just drool over the vastness and archetechure of these buildings. Each hospital room is bigger then most bedrooms and comes with their own fireplaces. The ceilings are really tall (6-7 meters), probably to allow for the heat of the summer. They were all situated around a central square. There were some beautiful flower gardens and water features around the grounds.

The Palace is impressive! First you have to walk up a road called The Knights Road. All up hill and moderately steep. Then you get to the Palace. I'm a little disappointed that there are no gates or moat or anything. I guess invades are stopped before the get to the Palace. The center square and fountain (Not currently working) are impressive. The turrets and building itself are beautiful. They look like they are made from sandstone. Not sure though. They currently have an exhibit about the floor mosaics. They don't have much about the different rulers or time periods. Of course that leaves more to the imagination. There are plenty of rooms and the are massive and small. Some look like they are used for administration of the island and some have views of the sea.

I have stopped for lunch at the first place I ate at a few days ago. Thought I would get a little decadent with the dessert. Eat your heart out people, I've already made 7000 steps and it is not even 2:00 PM.

My flight from Rhodes to Crete was quick, just an hour. I got here late though and felt bad that the hosts had to wait around for me. Since I got here after sundown, I couldn’t check out the water. It is very calm tonight so I can’t hear it either. The girls (Laura & Nicole) have headed to the airport for their flight and they should come in tonight around 6:00 PM Greece time.
The apartment has two bedrooms, a small but functional kitchen, smallish bathroom but that’s okay. We have two terraces. One off my bedroom which is street side. Basically, used for hanging laundry. The other one off the living room where the water is. I’ll explore more tomorrow.Lue lisää