The Island of Rhodes

Rodhos, as the Greeks call it, is located in the southeast Aegean sea near Turkey. Many travelers go there because of the numerous sandy beaches on it's south east coast. We are staying in the town of Ixia, which is on the more gravelly and windy northwest part of the island, which makes the lodgings more affordable. The good part, besides the financial savings, is that Ixia is only about 4 miles away from Rodhos town.

Rodhos town is described as a "remarkably preserved medieval city". The crusading Knights of St. John used the island as a main base from 1309 until 1522. One of the things that attracted us to Rhodes was the great old architecture. We hope to fine lots of inspiration in the old town

We are also traveling during the "off season", which is something else we always try to do since we don't like a lot of crowds. It saves money and right now the weather in Rhodes is in the 70 to 80 degrees instead of the baking hot temperatures of the high summer season.

Rhodian Fallow deer sculpture in place of the Colossus.

I always wanted to see the harbor where the "Colossus of Rhodes" stood. The bronze statue of the Greek god Helios didn't straddle the harbor like some of the Fifteenth century drawings show, but it did stand 107 feet high. Having worked on creating bronze statues, I can really appreciate this. Unfortunately, the finished piece only stood about fifty years before and earthquake in 226 BC broke it off at the knees. In fear of offending their god, Helios, the Greeks didn't dare move the broken pieces. It stayed there for 800 years when the invading Turkish armies dismantled it. It would be great to create a piece of art that people still came to admire even when it was broken!

Jeff's Corner: Looks like Tina has finally become a "Rhodes" scholar!