The Old Town of Rhodes

Medieval walls enclose an enchanting microcosm, a place where

different eras, cultures and architectural styles meet.
ime is locked out. Everyone else is within: ancient
Greeks,Byzantines, Ottomans, Jews and Italians. This is, however, the
romantic view; in truth, they are not alone, these wonderful ghosts. With
them are tourists in their thousands, archaeologists, tour guides, artists,
permanent residents, business people and touts, all continuing to write the
history of the Old Town of Rhodes, a story which has been unfolding for the
past 2,400 years.

And this is why I approach those mighty walls, four kilometers long, with
some trepidation about what I will find. How harmoniously does the glorious
and intriguing past coexist with the intensely tourism-oriented present? The
monumental with the commercial? The Old Towns designation as
a UNESCO World Heritage Site (assigned in 1988) with the mass nature
of a global brand name in tourism which was already being developed as
early as the 1950s?

At any rate, these are my thoughts as I pass through Liberty Gate, one
of the11 gates affording access to the Old Town and the first that you
encounter when coming from the harbor of Mandraki. Its early in the
morning, and Ive already checked that there are no cruise ships in the harbor;
otherwise I would see nothing but people.

My first impression is one of awe. I suddenly find myself in a time of

knights: only porous sandstone and cobbled streets as far as the eye can see.
It is not easy to absorb this. You have the feeling that if you take a few more
steps, youll see modern buildings, ugly ones perhaps, or at least something
completely out of place. Or that gently pushing a wall will result in its collapse,
as if it were some flimsy film set at Cinecitt especially knowing that
the Italians, too, have left their mark here.

After they seized the island from the Turks in 1912, they saw themselves as
successors to the knights and set about restoring or reconstructing many
of the medieval buildings. But have no fear, no wall will collapse and there is
nothing ugly, at least not in the northern part known as the Kollakio, or
Knights Quarter.
In the cool of the evening, the Old Towns narrow streets and squares (like Hippokratous Square,
pictured here) fill with sightseers.

The Knights Hospitaller of St. John captured Rhodes in 1309. In the Old
Town, where they established their administrative center, there was already a
fortified Byzantine settlement occupying 175,000 square meters which had
been built on the site of an ancient city that dated back to 408 BC.

The Knights expanded the area of the town to 420,000 square meters and
protected it with three lines of defensive fortifications. This was also
how they handed it over to the Ottomans, after a long siege in 1522. The new
rulers made only slight alterations to the fortifications but changed the use
and form of the buildings, converting some churches into mosques.

When the Italians occupied Rhodes in 1912, they restored the Knights
Quarter to its former state. This area, named Kollakio, accounted for
one-third of the old city. The remaining part, known as the Bourgo, was
where the common people lived.

The amalgam resulting from the coexistence and the exchange of different
populations over the centuries is what makes the Old Town of Rhodes unique.
You dont really need a guide here. Even if you havent read anything, even if
no one has explained anything, you can see the history all around. Like an
illustrated childrens book, says Aikaterini Gogou, president of the
Association of Qualified Tourist Guides of the Dodecanese.

And the truth is that, in just one block, you can see: ancient ruins; a
Byzantine church; an Ottoman mosque; and a plaque honoring the
Fascist leader Mussolini. Everything is part of the history of Rhodes. And
we must respect everything. For instance, some visitors become angry when
they see the plaque. But this, too, is a piece of Rhodes. The squares you see
today are the results of German bombardments; they werent there before,
Aikaterini explains.

THE KNIGHTS QUARTER

After entering through the Liberty Gate, you get the first hint of what a
palimpsest the Old Town is in Symi Square and Argyrokastrou
Squarenext to it. In just a small radius are the ruins of a Temple of
Aphrodite, a preserved section of Hellenistic fortifications, the
11th-century Church of Our Lady of the Castle, the old arsenal of the
Knights (which houses a fine collection of folk art) and the Municipal Art
Gallery. A little further on is the Mansion of Hassan Bey and the Inn of the
Tongue of Auvergne, in the beautiful garden of which there is a caf.
The inns were where the Knights gathered, each one corresponding to the
language (tongue) they spoke. Most are located on the celebrated Street of
the Knights, which begins here, next to Museum Square and the Arnaldo
Gate.

A jewelry store, clothes and souvenir shops and a bank are housed in medieval
buildings. A group of street artists have set up their easels. Two young
wandering musicians rehearse, seated on the steps next to
the Archaeological Museum the former Hospital of the Knights. There,
you simply dont know what to admire the most the building itself, with its
impressive two-story gallery and spacious inner courtyard, or the marvelous
Hellenistic sculptures on display inside.

Fully immersed in the atmosphere, I am now walking along

the cobblestoned Street of the Knights, which has remained unchanged
for centuries. Most of the buildings house offices of the archaeological service
or serve as homes for archaeologists and employees of the ephorate of
antiquities, the only people with the right to live here. As a result, visitors cant
see the interiors, except for that of the Inn of the Tongue of France, which
houses the French Consulate and on occasion hosts cultural events.
I observe the blazons, the architectural details on the faades, the statue of the
Virgin Mary in the 14th-century Church of the Holy Trinity, and I feel that
an unwritten law imposes silence and discretion. Those around me probably
feel the same thing; you could hear a pin drop. Until, that is, the sound of a car
abruptly shatters the enchantment, even though no vehicles are allowed in the
Old Town. The law, however, has never been enforced for the permanent
residents.

The Street of the Knights ends at the Palace of the Grand Master,
which served as the Knights administrative center. Much of the edifice was
rebuilt by the Italians who, some say, made it even more impressive. I enter
high-ceilinged halls with period furniture and chandeliers as well as enormous
fireplaces featuring coats of arms. I walk on mosaic floors dating back to the
Hellenistic period, which the Italians brought from Kos. When I emerge into
the courtyard, I feel somewhat disoriented, both in time and space.

A good way to return to the present is to stroll atop the walls. The walk begins
in the Palace courtyard but is permitted only between 12:00 and 15:00; that is
to say, at the worst possible time, when the Rhodian sun can be merciless.
After 30-40 minutes, you reach the Red Gate to the south of the town. Along
the way, youll be rewarded with a view over parts of the new town and the sea,
too.
Another way to come back to the here and now is to leave the Old Town via the
exquisite DAmboise Gate, taking in the formidable bastions or, even better,
walking down in the medieval moat, which has been turned into
an attractive park much loved by locals. There, on the border between old
and new Rhodes, children and dogs play freely, peddlers set up stalls, cyclists
enjoy a ride and street artists sing or paint. At the park stands the aptly named
Medieval Moat Theater, which hosts marvelous performances in
summer.
THE BOURGO
From the Palace of the Grand Master, you can continue in a southerly
direction along Orfeos Street or Panetiou Street and enter the area
known as the Bourgo, which was separated from the Kollakio by a
pre-existing Byzantine wall. Initially, this was the area inhabited by Greeks,
but during the period of Ottoman rule, it was Jews and Turks who lived here
the Greeks, who were expelled from the Old Town, founded Mandraki. Later,
they all coexisted here, just as they do today.

About 2,000 people reside within the walls, including many Rhodian Muslims.
It is estimated that a further 6,000 work here during the summer. I wander
along the alleyways, spotting sections of the Byzantine wall as well as humble
homes with sachnisia (overhanging enclosed wooden balconies), small
porticos, arches and hidden courtyards. These narrow walkways are full of
fragrances, colors and sounds.

The imposing Suleymaniye Mosque, originally built in 1522 and

reconstructed in 1808, suddenly comes into view and takes my breath away. I
enter the Muslim Library just opposite and gaze at Arabic and Ottoman
manuscripts, unable to understand a word. Next door is the Clock Tower,
built by Fethi Pasha in the mid-19th century. The tower now houses a caf
and for 5 you can enjoy a coffee and climb to the top, where you can see the
Kollakio and Palace on one side and the Bourgo on the other, as well as the
walls by the harbor and the sea beyond it all; it is a panorama not easily
forgotten.

Today, however, not everything I see out there is a welcome sight. The cruise
ship pulling in is the signal that the Old Town will soon be crammed with
thousands of tourists. I hurriedly descend and take Sokratous, the main
shopping street.

I dont need anything, but I find myself ready to start shopping. Expensive
jewelry and brand-name bags hang next to gaudy souvenirs, tin suits of armor
and tourist sandals. A river of people sweeps me eastward and among the
thousands of objects for sale I spot a few stores, including some antique shops,
that look like they might be worth a visit. I also spy some Ottoman fountains
adorned with carved arabesques.
Sokratous Street ends at Ippokratous Square with its marble
fountain, which is always full of pigeons and is the main rendezvous spot in
this part of the Old Town. In the narrow streets around here
Miltiadou, Platonos, Evripidou there are dozens of bars and
clubs which at night make the Old Town unrecognizable, even to the point of
insult.

On the steps of the Castellania, once the Commercial Court of the

Knights and now the Municipal Library, couples flirt, students pass their
time and tourists rest. A faceless crowd and countless touts reveal to me the
other face of the Old Town, one which I had hoped to avoid but that becomes
even more intrusive as I make my way along Aristotelous Street and
into Evreon Martyron Square.

Here the restaurant barkers are completely unrestrained as they loudly

pitch the specialties of their respective eateries: moussaka, tzatziki, Greek
salad. One has enlisted the assistance of a parrot and another is trying to get
tourists to promise they will come in the evening. Do you really believe youll
get them to come like this? I ask him. They always come, he replies with a
laugh.

Argyrokastrou Square, near Liberty Gate, is the first

charming Old Town spot most tourists see and, naturally, a popular stop for selfies. The beautiful
fountain originally adorned the courtyard of an paleochristian church in the village of Arnitha.
.

LOST IN THE ALLEYWAYS

My suffering ends a few meters further on. I sit down on the steps
of Our Lady of the Bourgo, a 14th-century church built in the Late Gothic
style, now mostly in ruins. The boys playing football in front of me are
bragging incessantly about their favorite team, Diagoras F.C. Fortunately,
there is still plenty of Old Town to see. South of Sokratous and
Aristotelous streets, life continues at a steady pace, whether there is a cruise
ship in the harbor or not, whether it is summer or winter. All you need to do
is get lost.

This is what I do. With no idea where the nearest gate is, I simply stroll along
the alleyways. I recognize the Muslim households from the shoes left outside
the doors. People greet me with kalimera, (good morning) not moussaka.
Children play in the streets and grandmothers sit on the steps outside their
home or in yards filled with flowers, chatting away.

I walk past the Kahal Shalom Synagogue, Byzantine churches,

mosques, fountains, brothels and boutique guest-houses all in one small
area. In Arionos Square, I admire the soft curves of the 16th-century Yeni
Hamam, where up until a few years ago the locals could enjoy a Turkish bath,
just like in the old days; now theyre eagerly awaiting its renovation. The coffee
shops under the trees next to the hamam are in no way associated with the
unpleasant aspects of mass tourism; in the evening, they turn into high-quality
bars with good music and impeccable service.

Still further south, near St. Johns Gate, is the Kokkini Porta Rossa, a
quiet boutique hotel that has been open for three years and has helped
transform an entire neighborhood previously suffering from a bad reputation.
Its owners, Nikos Voulgaridis and his wife Angela, convince me with what
theyve achieved that the Old Town, despite some tourism excesses, is still
finding ways to endure and remain magical.