World Trip – Stage 4, Rhodes to Fethiye

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March 24 – 26, 2023

Our ship arrived in the Commercial Port in Rhodes on a lovely spring morning. The sun was glinting on the waves and the marina yacht sails were flapping in the stiff breeze – and we were determined to pick up breakfast en route to our hotel.

Along the way we spotted the booking office for our next ferry to Fethiye, so Peter took the opportunity to check our reservations, where we would embark, etc. It was only a moderately useful exercise (more of that later), but at least we confirmed that we were on the passenger list and that the Touristic Port was much nearer to our hotel. We were even given a very useful map of the city.

Rhodes is the fourth largest Greek island, situated on the intersection of two Mediterranean Sea routes and only 18km south west of Turkey. Unsurprising then that it has required extensive fortifications over the ages. Many civilisations have left their mark from Classical times, the Crusaders, the Italians (during the Second World War, including bombings by the RAF) which are manifested in the Medieval City, with ramparts, moat, narrow cobbled streets, castle, mosques, minarets, churches and synagogues.

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It was a delight to wander round the city, out of season. This meant that whilst some sights were closed, so were most of the tourist shops and restaurants, without hordes of tourists. We were astounded by the huge fortifications around the Old Town. Walking along the ramparts is possible during the summer, we were told, but we enjoyed the long walk in the (empty!) surrounding moat. The size and warlike intent was mind blowing. On the way, in the wide and deep moat, we found a theatre stage and circular seating, so Peter took the opportunity to declaim Shakespeare’s “Once more unto the breach, dear friends…”. A fitting speech for the location.

Saturday was also a Public Holiday, so we chose to watch the Greek Independence parade on the waterfront, the first for 3 years, on account of the pandemic. The parade was worth seeing and very well-attended with crowds lining the parade route, children waving Greek flags. Groups had come from many of the smaller islands and we saw many costumes, all to the sound of rousing marching rhythms, after the playing of the Greek national anthem. It seemed to us to be an important act of civil identity, as the nation was founded not so very long ago, is widely dispersed among mainland and many islands, and lived through internal division and conflict during and after the Second World War, and feels uncomfortably close to its big neighbour, clearly visible across the water.

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Our boutique hotel,  Evdokia, was a rather quirky establishment, fashioned out of a tower, with very hospitable owners, more interested in mingling with the guests than fixing the plumbing. Their breakfasts, made right in front of us, were amazing.

The day we departed Rhodes we visited the Archaeological Museum, which we were surprised to find open on a Sunday. This was a treasure, with a fantastic collection of Red and Black-figure Greek vases, statues and mosaics, outlining history back when Rhodes was a naval superpower in the Med, 1000 years BC.

The lady, at the booking office that Peter visited on arrival, had instructed us to check-in for our boat at the latest at 14.00 for our sailing at 15.00 to Fethiye in South West Turkey. The ferry makes a day return crossing to Rhodes, to allow tourists from Fethiye to visit Rhodes for the day, and also EU residents in Turkey to get an EU passport stamp to restart their visas. Our clocks had gone forward on Saturday/Sunday, but they had not in Turkey. That can be the only reason we could discern for the boat leaving at 16.30 rather than 15.00 which was printed on our email confirmation.

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The fast ferry, a catamaran, was busy with quite a few families with small children. Fortunately the crossing was smooth, and a huge Turkish vessel, which a fellow passenger thought might be military, ignored us, before we entered the bay in Fethiye, full of sailing vessels, surrounded by mountains. We passed though passport control into Asia, slightly later than planned, but with no difficulty. A short walk took us to our hotel for the next two nights – bliss.