Palace of the Maltan Knights Grand Master in Rhodes (photo from Wikipedia)
Links to Port Pages
Rhodes, Greece
Rhodes Greece has numerous historic sites and the home of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. We visited Malta in 2012 and saw the Maltan Knights' and Grand Masters' tombs in St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta. We did not realize that they had also traveled to Rhodes. We will definately need to visit some of the sites in the old town and also the Grand Masters Palace!
"Rhodes is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of land area and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the South Aegean region. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Rhodes. The city of Rhodes had 50,636 inhabitants in 2011. It is located northeast of Crete, southeast of Athens and just off the Anatolian coast of Turkey. Rhodes' nickname is The island of the Knights, named after the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem, who once conquered the land.
Historically, Rhodes was famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe.
The Colossus of Rhodes was considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. This giant bronze statue was documented as once standing at the harbour. It was completed in 280 BC and destroyed in an earthquake in 224 BC. No trace of the statue remains today.
Historical sites on the island of Rhodes include the Acropolis of Lindos, the Acropolis of Rhodes with the Temple of Pythian Apollo and an ancient theatre and stadium, ancient Ialysos, ancient Kamiros, the Governor's Palace, Rhodes Old Town (walled medieval city), the Palace of the Grand Masters, Kahal Shalom Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter, the Archeological Museum, the ruins of the castle of Monolithos, the castle of Kritinia, St. Catherine Hospice and Rhodes Footbridge." (from Wikipedia )
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Ancient Rhodes map by Piri Reis (from Wikipedia) |
Lindos and the Acropolis (photo from Wikipedia) |
What we plan to do:
We've decided to do our own tour of Rhodes. The cruise ship will dock close to the old town and we're certain there will be a shuttle up to the town. We will do some research and put together our own tour of Rhodes. Here's the "big" places to see -
Grand Masters Palace Enter the Old Town from D'Amboise Gate, the closest point to the Palace of the Grand Masters. The palace served as a wartime fortress, a peacetime residence for the Grand Master and a meeting place for senior knights.
Old City Walking Tour Walk along the cobblestone streets of the Avenue of the Knights, where the knights once lived. To this day, the street exudes a noble and forbidden aura; its lofty buildings stretch in a 1,968-foot-long (600-metre-long) unbroken wall of honey-coloured stone blocks, and its flat façade is punctuated by huge doorways and arched windows.
Archaeological Museum The Archaeological Museum is housed in the 15th-century Knights Hospital. Artifacts and exquisite statues dating back as far as the 4th century B.C. The most famous exhibit in the museum is the parian marble statue, the Aphrodite of Rhodes.
Rhodes was famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site.
