Rhodes, Greece - Friday, April 18th

We have arrived on the charming island of Rhodes, Greece.  We're heading out on tour again, but this time I'm being extra careful.  My eye has turned black and blue and my legs and knees are really bruised.  Luckily, the fall yesterday has not affected my vision and the swelling has started to subside.  I look absolutely terrible but should look much better in a few days.  I'm still stiff and sore, but okay.  I have decided to take a walking stick when I go out on excursions to help support my knee.  Don't want any more falls!!!!

Rhodes is a sleepy little island with lots of high hills (can't really call a 1,000 foot hill a mountain).  First, we drove along the west coast of the island and ascended the highest point, Mt. Philerimos.  What a lovely view from the top, over the peaceful green hills and valleys and tiny little villages.  We stopped to admire a couple of beautifully designed churches, including the barrel-vaulted Church of St. George which contains body relics (bones) of the saint.

You can certainly feel the relaxed atmosphere Greek attitude here.  Such a lovely way to live :)  If anyone needs more time or we're running a little late--no problem.  We'll wait.  No pressure.  If we have a reservation for 3:00 p.m., it means 3'ish.  No worries.

Our next stop was at the ancient town of Lindos with its tiny, cobblestone lanes, much too narrow for cars to pass.  Our bus parked at the top of the steep hill and we walked down to the village.  There's one main street, but many smaller lanes that branch off from it.  They all look very similar so it's easy to get turned around and get lost.  Climbing back up to the top to get back to the bus was not fun but I walked slowly and made it just fine.  Bob still hadn't returned and it was time to leave.  I thought he may have liked it here so much that he decided to stay!!!  As our guide and driver were deciding what to do their telephone rang.  It seems they were with a "lost" American who was looking for our bus.  Of course, it was my husband!  He had wandered off by himself to explore and take pictures and got lost :).  Soooo, instead of him climbing back up the steep hill, our guide told them to keep Bob there and we would drive to pick him up.  I think it was all a plot so he wouldn't have to walk back up the hill :).  After we collected him we were back on the road to our next stop.

Our drive took us through us through more beautiful countryside and "I could see Turkey from my bus (thank you Sarah Palin)!  Amazing how close together these islands and countries are located.  We made one last stop at a charming seaside restaurant for drinks and a local snack.  Of course, it had been at least 30 minutes since we had eaten.  Wouldn't want us to get hungry :).  Bob came to the table with a large order of calamari, which was delicious.  I must admit it was pretty fun to be sitting down on a beautiful warm and sunny day on the shore on a lovely Greek island with my husband, who was enjoying a  cold, local beer.  Life is definitely good.  After a relaxing time at the shore we were back on the bus for our return to the ship.  Then, it's off to Kusadasi, Turkey.