I have just finished my day in Rhodes. While the age of Greece is quite impressive everything else about it couldn't be less so. It is run down and dirty and the least Westernized place I have ever been (including Morocco and Honduras). I don't mind non-Western culture but this place is gross.
I arrived in Rhodes on a late flight from Athens. There were two American businessmen on my flight. I caught a glimpse of their passports and was pretty excited to talk to them. "Nice passport," I said. I began talking to them and learned that though they were from New York, one was of Greek decent and owned a house in Rhodes.
My hotel in Rhodes was beyond disappointing. In fact, I would go as far as to say it was disgusting. I arrived at around midnight. Rather than try to navigate the bus system so late at night, I felt I had no choice but to take a taxi. Though it was 32 euros, it was a good decision, as I never would have found the "hotel" (hereafter referred to as the roach motel) on my own. I checked in and it was if they were annoyed that I showed up so late. I explained that I was only there for one day (which contrary to what my American businessman friend said, was plenty) and would like to see as much of the island as I could. "Does a tour of the whole island exist?" I inquired. "Well, it's too late for us to book it for you tomorrow since you arrived so late," I was told. I went to the room they gave me, as I was exhausted.
The room was infested with bugs. I spent the next 30 minutes trying to kill them all, but it was no use. I was so outnumbered! Additionally, the room I was given was directly in front of the hotel bar, where some British people were getting drunk and living it up. I hate to be the buzzkill, so rather than asking the front desk guy to shut them up, I requested to change rooms. I was happy in my new room until I went to unpack my bags and saw the biggest spider I have even seen. It was so huge, I think we actually made eye contact. I gasped and sprinted out of the room. (Note to my high school track coach: if you wanted me to run faster, you should have found a spider like this!) Though I am no girly-girl and am not afraid of bugs, I thought if I tried to smush this thing, it might fight back. I ran into the lobby frantically saying "There's a tarantula in my room! There's a tarantula in my room!" The front desk guy came back upstairs with me and killed it. After paying extra for air conditioning and conducting a very thorough spider hunt, I was finally able to sleep. The repulsiveness of the hotel is illustrated by the fact that when I checked out nearly 30 hours later, the dead arachnid was still on the floor in his final resting place.
Today I visited the cities of Rhodestown and Lindos. Rhodestown had a lot to see. I visited the Fort of St. Nicholas, Avenue of the Knights, Church of the Virgin, and the Palace of the Grand Master (doesn't that sound like something out the World of Warcraft or Magic the Game or something?). I paid to take a brief (self-guided) tour of the Palace.
I also stood (at some point) where the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, once stood. See, they are not sure exactly where it was. It was rumored to have stood straddling the river, but they now know that is impossible. It is believed to have stood where Fort St. Nicholas is or where the Palace of the Grand Master is. Either way I was there.
I bought some souvenirs for my sisters and then took a bus to Lindos. I arrived at the bus stop in Lindos and after walking down the only street I saw, began to feel very frustrated. All I saw were two small stores, a few hotels with pools, and more donkey farms than I care to think about…(the donkeys weren't even fenced in). Right before I gave up and went back to Afantou (the village where my hotel was) I asked someone if there was an actual town to see. "Cross the street and you'll see a carpark," I was told. "Then go down the stairs and down the hill." Turns out the town itself is not really visible from the hill where the bus drops you off. Once I found the actual town, it was quite cute. The problem was it consisted only of souvenir stores and restaurants. I felt like the whole town was designed to make you spend money. Sort of a Disney World without rides. I only spent like an hour and a half there before boredom set in again, and I headed back to Afantou.
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