Ancient Rhodes Town Circular

GREECE

RHODES

WALK

Ancient Rhodes Town Circular

Saturday 13 April 2019

We had a good nights sleep at our accommodation, Galanopetra, and ate our breakfast in the courtyard, sitting in the morning sun.

Our plan for the day was to walk to the Acropolis of Rhodes and a few other sites near the Acropolis and then walk down through the modern city of Rhodes to the other side of the peninsula before heading back into the medieval walled city.

There was no rush, we had all day and we would not be using any other form of transport other than our feet. So, time for another cup of coffee and an omelette then!

We left the hotel just after nine and headed for the nearby beach. It was empty. Hotels were still preparing for the beginning of the season and a small group of workers were starting to clear the debris that had washed up on the beach during the winter.

We followed the beach for a short while before turning off to into a residential area. The Acropolis of Rhodes is situated on the highest part of the city and the quickest way there on foot was to walk through the streets and alleyways.

Eventually, we reached the bottom of the large park area, Monte Smith, and started to walk up through it. We could see the Doric-columned porticos which are the remains of the Temple of Apollo and, sadly, we could see that they were being supported by scaffolding.

What was a complete surprise to me, mainly because I had done absolutely no research, was the ancient Olympic stadium, and the Odeon.

The stadium is 210 metres and was restored by the Italians who excavated the site between 1912 and 1945. Its surviving features include the sphendone (rounded end with turning post), proedries (officials’ seats), and some of the spectator seating.

In Athens, it would cost you €10 each to get into the stadium but here it was absolutely free.

The Acropolis was built during the Hellenistic and Late Hellenistic periods (3rd-2nd c. BC) on stepped terraces supported by strong retaining walls.

I had used the Maps-Me application on my phone to navigate to the Acropolis and it was showing that there was also a Cave Church nor far from where we were so we sat and enjoyed the Acropolis and the views for a while before heading for St. Nicholas Church.

I have really struggled to find out anything about this small chapel in a cave. I have no idea when it dates to or how it came to be here other than a single reference to the appearance of the Saint on the walls of the cave.

All I can really say about the Chapel of St. Nicholas (Agios Nikolaos) is that it was very peaceful and that it was nice to relax on the benches outside in the shade for a while pondering its’ origins.

Back on the road above the Church, we saw some brown tourist signs pointing to ‘Nymphaea Cave Sanctuary’ but there didn’t seem to be any kind of building or infrastructure on the site. Just an area of long grass and a small dirt track leading to a small house.

We decided to explore and found the ‘Cave Sanctuary’ about 50 metres from the road in the middle of the long grass. Remarkably, these are part of the Acropolis and would have been interconnecting artificial grottoes and ‘Nymphaea’, decorated in a flamboyant style that the citizens of Rhodes would have had to walk past to reach the main temple complex at the top of the hill.

A Nymphaeum is an ancient Greek or Roman sanctuary dedicated to water nymphs. And would be filled with plants and flowers, sculpture, fountains, and paintings. The nymphaeum served as a sanctuary, a reservoir, and an assembly chamber where weddings were held.

We couldn’t get into the sanctuary because the gate was locked so we had to make do with looking in from above. Afterwards, we headed back towards the main road, Diagoridon, and down the hill until we saw another brown tourist sign saying ‘Hellenistic House’ and again, decided to explore.

Before we reached the Hellenistic House we came across another site with a brown sign that read ‘Palatial Building’ and a few metres up the road was the site of the Hellenistic House. To the untrained eye, you would be forgiven for thinking they looked pretty much the same. Well, they did to my untrained eye anyway.

Having had enough of ancient Rhodes for a while we made out way slowly down the hill and through the streets of modern Rhodes toward the harbour. It was great to see a glimpse of the ‘everyday’ away from the tourist shops and restaurants if only for a short while.

Before long, we were back behind the thick defence walls of the medieval town, exploring the little streets and trying to avoid the crowds.

At Kolona Harbour there is a bronze statue of dolphins, This is to celebrate the fact that the people of Rhodes believe that their island is shaped like a dolphin and that the town of Rhodes is on the nose of the dolphin.

Above the Odeon, looking down the park to Rhodes

From the road, steps to St. Nicholas Church

Nymphaea cave sanctuaries some sort of path down

Nymphaea cave sanctuaries looking along the path

Bronze sculpture of dolphins at Kolona harbor.

Sulayman Pasha Mosque. Built circa 1528.

Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes

Walls built by the Knights Hospitaller of Saint John

The Route

Distance : 7.5 Miles

We started this route from our hotel and just wandered about in the general direction we needed to go in. I used the Maps Me app to navigate but mostly just to know how far and how long each location was from our position.

Click HERE for a GPX file of the route.

David Welch – View Profile

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