Rhodes ~ the Island and its History

Rhodes castle from gardens

Rhodes is extraordinary. Beautiful, fascinating in its cultural ambiguities and immensely rich in history, with the medieval town designated a World Heritage Site and its museums teeming with some of the most beautiful sculptures of the ancient world, it is a dream for anyone with a love of history, culture and art.

The walled city is one of the best preserved medieval towns in the world and is a destination in its own right. The full flavour of history hits you the minute you walk through one of the gates to the 14th century city ramparts, with walls towering against the Grecian sky, echoing centuries of battle. Entering the Old Town, its narrow, cobbled streets lead you through a maze of little houses, Turkish, Jewish, Greek, all mingling in an atmosphere that seems not to have changed since the Knights of St John at the beginning of the 14th century.

Rhodes fortress and pebblestone streets

With their mixed European influence merging with that of the Ottoman occupation, and later, the arrival of the Italians, its little wonder that the Old Town of today has inherited a truly International flavour. I lived here for the best part of 6 years and among my friends could be counted at least 11 nationalities. So sitting at a taverna in the evening with a carafe of local wine and a Turkish mese one can sense the presence of many cultures past and present.

View of sea from Old Town

Rhodes has always been well visited, but over a decade ago it developed a reputation as a summer fun/beach destination (the last of the invasions?). Despite the fact that this over-emphasis on revelry has since died down, the Island is still sometimes avoided by people who look for more from their holidays than beers and a tan.  A great shame, since any over-zealous revelry that still remains is located a long way away from the beautiful Old Town.

In short, you'll find that today's Rhodes is not the holiday haunt of revellers and drinkers, but rather: a revelation and an intoxication in itself.

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