The walled city of Rhodes is one of my favorite destinations. Despite the corruption from the ever present huge cruise ships, this World Heritage city (!) has retained its charm. Within the ancient fortifications are back streets which are still residential, small (but weirdly redundantly named) hotels, and little old ladies with warts on their noses (not pictured here fortunately for you). The old harbor no longer has a "colossus" straddling the entrance. Although that wonder of the world (as they say) is gone, it has curiously been replaced with two small deer. Go figure.
We had a very pleasant morning before the crowds arrived walking throughout the the old Knights of St. John (an offshoot of the Templars) city and visited the recently restored 1577 synagogue. This World Heritage site is designated one of the "100 most endangered". When I was here in the late 1990s, the synagogue was in disrepair. There are only 30 Jewish people left in Rhodes, and most are old women not the required 10 men to have religious services. An Auschwitz holocaust survivor was lecturing a group of tourists in this spectacular place as we stopped by, truly an emotional experience. We made yet another picture along the "Street of the Knights" to hang up in the hall at home where I somehow collect such pictures and then walked to the shore line where apparently a swimming pool had been flooded. Or something.
After the traditional "Axing of the bow line", the Silver Wind sailed for Cyprus where we will arrive today, Saturday, at noon.
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