After seeing off Maria and Vangelis, we still had a few days left on Rhodos (and a flat to stay in!). We spent the Thursday doing pretty much the same thing as on the previous days – lying on the beach. I repeat what I wrote in my last entry – too damn hot to do anything else. This time we chose the main beach in Rhodes town. Like ae other beaches we'd been to, it was great - especially considering it's a city beach. I’ve got to say that the beaches of Rhodes are probably the best ones I’ve been to in Europe (not that I’m an expert or anything!).
We also spent a bit more time exploring the old town, and I think it’s fair to say we grew quite fond of it. It’s true that it’s extremely touristy, but like with a lot of places, you only need to walk a couple of blocks away from the main drag to see a bit of local life and colour. Actually, the medieval streets reminded me a bit of medinas in Arabic cities… We also checked out the acropolis of Rhodes town, located on a hill near the town centre. Not much remains, apart from a restored stadium and theatre, and a few pillars of an old temple. But the views are quite nice up there, and it was quite a relaxing place to wonder about (surprisingly few tourists about….)
We finished the relaxing day with another rather interesting restaurant. The concept is that they basically cook a load of food, really home style food. When you order, you basically go into the kitchen and select your dish(es) from the various pots. A great concept if you ask me, and at least that way you know you are getting real food and not some ready-made meal heated up in a microwave oven ;-).
For the next day, we’d booked tickets for the boat taking us to one of the small islands near Rhodes, Symi. The first stop of our cruise was at the Panormitis monastery, on the southern side of the island. It’s for sure a very picturesque little place, and the small church was rather impressively decorated, but the tourist hordes did ruin the experience a little bit, it has to be said. But, it’s true that it’s a beautiful place, and the setting (in a beautiful bay) is pretty cool…
From the monastery, we made our way to the main town, predictably called Symi town. Now Symi made a big impression in me – it’s just a ridiculously picturesque little town, with its colourful neo-classic houses (built by the Italians, who possessed these islands for a few decades), and its stunning setting.
OK, it’s also a very touristy place, but we were again quite happy to roast on the beach and swim in the amazingly transparent waters of the Mediterranean… After another little walk around town, it was time to take the boat back to the mainland… All in all, a day trip well worth the price, even if we felt a bit overwhelmed by the crowds at times.
For the next two days, we’d rented a car, to allow us to explore Rhodes a bit more. For the Saturday, the plan was to explore the east coast of the island. Our first stop on the way was Lindos, which is possibly the most popular tourist destination, after Rhodos town. The history of Lindos goes well back in time; it was founded by the Dorians during the 10th century BC. The main attraction is the Acropolis, which is rather dramatically situated on a hilltop, which overlooks the picturesque village with its white houses. Actually, not that much remains from the ancient Greek era, since a medieval castle was built on top of the medieval remains by the Knights of Saint-John. But the views from the castle/ruins are undeniably stunning.
The village itself looks quite picturesque from afar, but is a real tourist trap based on what we saw. I suppose there are parts that haven’t been overwhelmed by souvenir shops, bars and restaurants, but we didn’t find those… Basically the overwhelming heat “forced” us down to beach again. Not a bad beach, actually, with ancient Lindos looming above us, as we enjoyed the Chrystal-clear waters (and the shade offered by the parasol).
From Lindos, we carried on towards the southern side of the island. The views from the road were pretty stunning, and the further south we made it, the fewer tourists we saw, thankfully. We drove all the way to the southern tip of Rhodes, Prassonissi. Unsurprisingly, it’s basically a big beach, very popular with wind- and kitesurfers, thanks to the heavy winds that prevail there. It was also very windy when we were there, so we were treated to quite a spectacle
On the way back, we stopped by at an interesting place called Kallitheas spa. It’s a kind of fake-oriental spa, built by the Italians in the 1920’s (Rhodes was under Italian rule from 1912 to 1947 – apparently some of the old locals still speak Italian) – when Mussolini wanted to revive the “ancient times”. It was renovated a few years ago, and is now a combined beach, spa, bar, conference centre – very popular for weddings too, apparently. We stopped by for a drink at the snazzy bar, overlooking the picturesque bay. A nice aperitif, I would say ;-).
The next day, we decided to drive up the western coast of the island. The west side is a lot winder than the east side, and is therefore perhaps slightly less touristy, and has fewer beaches. But the scenery is magnificent… We started our day with a visit to Kameiros, which is one of the three oldest (one of the other one being Lindos) cities on the island. The ruins here are much more well-preserved than at Lindos, and there were a lot fewer tourists here as well, so we quite liked the place. The ruins give quite a good overview of the layout of a town from the ancient Greek era. And the surrounding scenery was pretty cool as well…
From there, we carried on towards the coastline, stopping by at a couple of medieval castles (Kastello and Monolithos). There wasn’t much to see, actually, at either of the castles, but the views from their hilltop sites are just amazing. We also found a nice little beach, where had a refreshing bath.
We had lunch in a nice mountain village called Embonas, which had been recommended to us by Maria. The food to have there is grilled meat, and we were indeed not disappointed. I had some grilled goat (something I believe I’d not tried before), and Mathilde had some grilled lamb. Simple, cheap and delicious. Good combination, that! After a bit more chilling out at a beach, we headed back towards Rhodes. For dinner, we headed back into Rhodes old town, where we found a nice fish restaurant, a bit hidden away from the worst tourist areas.
The last day in Rhodes was a pretty relaxed one. We walked around a bit in the modern part of town (I was again amazed by the number of Finns and Swedes crossed our path), and spent a couple of hours at the beach again. We also spent some more time in the old town, soaking in the atmosphere of the cobble-stoned medieval streets (with a souvenir shop here and there to bring us back to reality). For dinner, we decided upon one of the swankiest restaurants in Rhodes old town – Ta Kioupia. The restaurant used to be located in one of the villages near Rhodes until recently, and was apparently ranked as one of the world’s top 10 restaurants a few years ago by the Guardian newspaper. So expectations were high. And, it would be unfair to say we were disappointed, the food was indeed good (very Greek, but with a sophisticated touch, let’s say), and the service was equally good. But, at the same time, it wasn’t THAT special, and the bill was pretty salty compared to what we’d gotten used to on Rhodes. Still, a very nice way to end our holiday!
So the next day, it was time to catch our flight back to Bergamo then. All in all, it had been a very relaxing week indeed, just what the doctor ordered, so to speak. Not the sort of destination we would normally choose for our holidays, but I would say in the end we were both positively surprised. Sure, it’s extremely touristy, but with its gorgeous beaches, beautiful scenery, and friendly people, why wouldn’t it be? And at the end of the day, like at a lot of these places, if you make a bit of an effort, you can always avoid the tourists. And of course it was great to see Maria again – hopefully we will see her soon again. Perhaps in Kos? ;-)
We also spent a bit more time exploring the old town, and I think it’s fair to say we grew quite fond of it. It’s true that it’s extremely touristy, but like with a lot of places, you only need to walk a couple of blocks away from the main drag to see a bit of local life and colour. Actually, the medieval streets reminded me a bit of medinas in Arabic cities… We also checked out the acropolis of Rhodes town, located on a hill near the town centre. Not much remains, apart from a restored stadium and theatre, and a few pillars of an old temple. But the views are quite nice up there, and it was quite a relaxing place to wonder about (surprisingly few tourists about….)
We finished the relaxing day with another rather interesting restaurant. The concept is that they basically cook a load of food, really home style food. When you order, you basically go into the kitchen and select your dish(es) from the various pots. A great concept if you ask me, and at least that way you know you are getting real food and not some ready-made meal heated up in a microwave oven ;-).
For the next day, we’d booked tickets for the boat taking us to one of the small islands near Rhodes, Symi. The first stop of our cruise was at the Panormitis monastery, on the southern side of the island. It’s for sure a very picturesque little place, and the small church was rather impressively decorated, but the tourist hordes did ruin the experience a little bit, it has to be said. But, it’s true that it’s a beautiful place, and the setting (in a beautiful bay) is pretty cool…
From the monastery, we made our way to the main town, predictably called Symi town. Now Symi made a big impression in me – it’s just a ridiculously picturesque little town, with its colourful neo-classic houses (built by the Italians, who possessed these islands for a few decades), and its stunning setting.
OK, it’s also a very touristy place, but we were again quite happy to roast on the beach and swim in the amazingly transparent waters of the Mediterranean… After another little walk around town, it was time to take the boat back to the mainland… All in all, a day trip well worth the price, even if we felt a bit overwhelmed by the crowds at times.
For the next two days, we’d rented a car, to allow us to explore Rhodes a bit more. For the Saturday, the plan was to explore the east coast of the island. Our first stop on the way was Lindos, which is possibly the most popular tourist destination, after Rhodos town. The history of Lindos goes well back in time; it was founded by the Dorians during the 10th century BC. The main attraction is the Acropolis, which is rather dramatically situated on a hilltop, which overlooks the picturesque village with its white houses. Actually, not that much remains from the ancient Greek era, since a medieval castle was built on top of the medieval remains by the Knights of Saint-John. But the views from the castle/ruins are undeniably stunning.
The village itself looks quite picturesque from afar, but is a real tourist trap based on what we saw. I suppose there are parts that haven’t been overwhelmed by souvenir shops, bars and restaurants, but we didn’t find those… Basically the overwhelming heat “forced” us down to beach again. Not a bad beach, actually, with ancient Lindos looming above us, as we enjoyed the Chrystal-clear waters (and the shade offered by the parasol).
From Lindos, we carried on towards the southern side of the island. The views from the road were pretty stunning, and the further south we made it, the fewer tourists we saw, thankfully. We drove all the way to the southern tip of Rhodes, Prassonissi. Unsurprisingly, it’s basically a big beach, very popular with wind- and kitesurfers, thanks to the heavy winds that prevail there. It was also very windy when we were there, so we were treated to quite a spectacle
On the way back, we stopped by at an interesting place called Kallitheas spa. It’s a kind of fake-oriental spa, built by the Italians in the 1920’s (Rhodes was under Italian rule from 1912 to 1947 – apparently some of the old locals still speak Italian) – when Mussolini wanted to revive the “ancient times”. It was renovated a few years ago, and is now a combined beach, spa, bar, conference centre – very popular for weddings too, apparently. We stopped by for a drink at the snazzy bar, overlooking the picturesque bay. A nice aperitif, I would say ;-).
The next day, we decided to drive up the western coast of the island. The west side is a lot winder than the east side, and is therefore perhaps slightly less touristy, and has fewer beaches. But the scenery is magnificent… We started our day with a visit to Kameiros, which is one of the three oldest (one of the other one being Lindos) cities on the island. The ruins here are much more well-preserved than at Lindos, and there were a lot fewer tourists here as well, so we quite liked the place. The ruins give quite a good overview of the layout of a town from the ancient Greek era. And the surrounding scenery was pretty cool as well…
From there, we carried on towards the coastline, stopping by at a couple of medieval castles (Kastello and Monolithos). There wasn’t much to see, actually, at either of the castles, but the views from their hilltop sites are just amazing. We also found a nice little beach, where had a refreshing bath.
We had lunch in a nice mountain village called Embonas, which had been recommended to us by Maria. The food to have there is grilled meat, and we were indeed not disappointed. I had some grilled goat (something I believe I’d not tried before), and Mathilde had some grilled lamb. Simple, cheap and delicious. Good combination, that! After a bit more chilling out at a beach, we headed back towards Rhodes. For dinner, we headed back into Rhodes old town, where we found a nice fish restaurant, a bit hidden away from the worst tourist areas.
The last day in Rhodes was a pretty relaxed one. We walked around a bit in the modern part of town (I was again amazed by the number of Finns and Swedes crossed our path), and spent a couple of hours at the beach again. We also spent some more time in the old town, soaking in the atmosphere of the cobble-stoned medieval streets (with a souvenir shop here and there to bring us back to reality). For dinner, we decided upon one of the swankiest restaurants in Rhodes old town – Ta Kioupia. The restaurant used to be located in one of the villages near Rhodes until recently, and was apparently ranked as one of the world’s top 10 restaurants a few years ago by the Guardian newspaper. So expectations were high. And, it would be unfair to say we were disappointed, the food was indeed good (very Greek, but with a sophisticated touch, let’s say), and the service was equally good. But, at the same time, it wasn’t THAT special, and the bill was pretty salty compared to what we’d gotten used to on Rhodes. Still, a very nice way to end our holiday!
So the next day, it was time to catch our flight back to Bergamo then. All in all, it had been a very relaxing week indeed, just what the doctor ordered, so to speak. Not the sort of destination we would normally choose for our holidays, but I would say in the end we were both positively surprised. Sure, it’s extremely touristy, but with its gorgeous beaches, beautiful scenery, and friendly people, why wouldn’t it be? And at the end of the day, like at a lot of these places, if you make a bit of an effort, you can always avoid the tourists. And of course it was great to see Maria again – hopefully we will see her soon again. Perhaps in Kos? ;-)
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