The Return of Elias

With the return of Elias, the study tour was back on! For two days, we toured the island. We took a couple of cars (students drove, another example of excellent organization) and went all over the place.


We started in Lindos, a town near the water where the buildings are all white. We walked up to the acropolis which was actually closed, but we got to get up to the base. The acropolis (dedicated to Athena) was actually really cool; it was an old fortress and still very well preserved. Plus, there were great views of the beach from the top. Because it was still Carnivale, after the acropolis we stayed in town for a bit to watch the celebration. The highlight? Seeing a performance parodying the Greek gods. The premise was that the gods were broke and needed an IMF loan. I laughed (eventually. I had to find somebody to translate first).


The celebration continued in Soroni. We saw a parade, which everyone thought was really cool (I didn't, but after Mardi Gras, no parade will ever be as impressive...) and hung out for a while. Good times and a pretty sweet day.


Other places we hit: Kristina, where we saw an ancient fortress and incredible views (what's new?); Kamiros, the ruins of the most ancient city on Rhodes and one of the most powerful cities in the ancient world; a winery in Ebona where we got to do a wine tasting which was a lot of fun (I learned that I like dry whites and sweet reds!); Kalithea, the gorgeous tourist hot-spot known for its SCUBA diving; the 7 Springs, which was a lot of fun to play around in and really gorgeous...peacocks roamed freely!; and Mussolini's summer home, which is now a hotel. Ironic.


We were able to squeeze all this into two days, and it was wonderful to be able to see more of the island. Oh! I forgot about the Honey Museum, which showcases how honey is made and gathered and comes complete with a hive to visit and an extensive giftshop. Rhodes is actually known for its honey, and for good reason. We were able to sample a bunch of different kinds of honey... I liked orange the best. Yum.