Rhodes, Greece is the largest and most popular island of Dodecanese. It has 300 days of sunshine per year and probably 300,000 cats. Lying just 12 miles off the coast of Turkey, the island straddles the sea-lanes linking Egypt, Southern Europe and the Holy Land.

Rhodes Town, the capital of Rhodes island, bears witness to that long history.  It has been inhabited for more than 2,400 years.  A city was first built in 408 BC.  When the Knights of St. John arrived in 1309 they built their citadel over the ancient remains.  The old town, which dates back to the Crusades, is among the best-preserved medieval towns of Europe, with strong walls, an impressive castle, paved paths, elegant stone mansions, a classical stadium and the ruins of the Temple of Apollo. The new town was constructed when the inhabitants living inside the walls of the Old City built new settlements outside the walls, after the siege of Suleiman the Magnificent (1522) and is a mecca of luxury resorts lining the island's picturesque Mandaraki Harbor.  The Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, is reputed to have once stood guard over the harbor. Today, the bronze statues of a stag and doe top the two columns marking the harbor entrance. Rhodes Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the best historical and cultural monument complexes in the world. It is a jaw dropping place. You can actually imagine the way life was in medieval times.

The imposing Palace of the Grand Master, the building of the Colloquium, the beautiful hospital of the Knights, the beautiful inns that were used by the Knights, and the Gothic churches, along with the narrow stone-paved alleyways, the stone arches and apses, the Palace of the Castellan, the various mosques, the plethora of Byzantine churches and the traditional Rhodian houses and the mansions influenced by Venetian and Arab architecture form a magical and unique image.
And there there are thousands of cats everywhere.

Among all those architectural marvels, some palm trees and exquisite fountains add even more beauty and originality to this amazing Old City of Rhodes. Most of the buildings in this part of the city date from the Italian rule, which adorned the town according to the Neogothic and Venetian architectural style. This has created a charming character to the city, particularly in the area of the port of Rhodes. Careful planning, numerous parks and squares and wide streets complete the beautiful aspect of the New City of Rhodes where all the tourist, commercial and cultural activities are gathered.
 
We decided to take the Hop On Hop Off bus to get our bearings. After an hour on the bus, we hopped off and walked through the Old Town enjoying the ancient buildings and lively stores and tavernas. We walked on the Street of Knights (Odis Ippoton), one of the oldest existing streets in Rhodes - since 408 B.C. It is lined by the Inns of the Tongues, or nationalities of the order of St John. The inns were used as meeting places for the Knights and were built in the 14th century. The street goes from the harbour to the Palace of the Grand Masters. The knights would muster here in times of attack. Founded in he 11th century by merchants from Amalie, the Order of Hospitallers of the Knights of St. John guarded the Holy Sepulchre and tended Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem. They became a military order after the First Crusade (1096-9), but had to take refuge in Cyprus when Jerusalem fell in 1291. They bought Rhodes from the Genoese pirate Admiral Vignoli in 1306, and eventually conquered the Rhodians in 1309. A Grand Master was elected for life to govern the Order, which (as I said before) was divided into 7 tongues, or nationalities - France, Italy, England, Germany, Provence, Spain, and Auvergne. Each tongue protected an area of city wall known as a Curtain. The Knights fortified the Dodecanese with around 30 castles, and their defences are some of the finest examples of medieval military architecture. Unfortunately, the Palace is closed on Mondays but we walked all around it. Its fortress was built in the 14th century to dominate the harbor and town. It was destroyed in 1856 and rebuilt in 1939. Today this impressive palace is still imposing in its majesty. The palace is home to an unrivaled collection of ancient mosaics from the neighbouring island of Kos, which we obviously didn't get to see. But we did see an unrivalled collection of cats!!!

We stopped for lunch and quickly became very popular with the feral cats. At one point there were 6 of them just sitting watching us eat in a small taverna. They reminded me of dogs just waiting for a crumb to fall. A kitten came along and one of the older cats hissed, batted at it and scared it off. Vic decided that he was going to save a bite for this kitten and true to his word gave it a piece of his gyro. They certainly are not hungry, though. Locals put food out for them all over three place.

We then ventured to the old Mandraki harbour where the Colussus of Rhodes used to stand. This was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was a huge statue of Helios, the sun god, standing at 32-40 metres. It was built in 305 BC to celebrate Rhodian victory over Demetrius, the Macedonian besieger. It was sculpted by Charles of Lindos and took 12 years to build, using bronze from battle weapons and cost 9 tons of silver. It is usually pictured straddling Mandraki harbour. An earthquake in 227BC caused it to topple over. It's not known what became of it but it's thought that it was sold for scrap metal. Now a bronze stag and doe guard the harbour entrance where the Colossus was believed to have stood. Each foot of the Colossus is thought to have been planted where the pillars with the stag & doe stood. What a sight that would have been!

I have to say that Rhodes is very beautiful and awe inspiring. It is right up there as one of the best places I've visited.