Lindos Castle

This past weekend has been packed with spectacular adventure. On Saturday, I traveled to Kameiros, an ancient Greek site dating back over 3,000 years. The site was beautiful and offered a magnificent view of the surrounding countryside. The town center was one of the most interesting areas at Kameiros due to the presence of remarkably well preserved engravings. The engravings consisted of public laws, announcements, acknowledgments etc.
After taking in Kameiros, I traveled further south to the very tip of the island where an interesting natural event occurs daily. At the tip of the island, there is a very narrow stretch of land connecting Rhodes to another small island at Cape Prasonisi. At high tide, the connection is engulfed by the ensuing war between the wave-bearing Aegean Sea and the calm Mediterranean Sea.
From the tip of the island, I made my way back up the other side of Rhodes to Lindos. Here lies one of the most breathtaking places on the island. At Lindos, there is a well preserved castle which once belonged to the Knights of St. John. There is also an ancient Acropolis which was built thousands of years ago. There was also once a Byzantine fortress that was constructed on the same site, but none of it stands any longer.

The castle at Lindos had always been an important spot for the local people. Ancient Greeks had carefully chosen the location for an acropolis, which was followed by a Byzantine Fortress, and eventually a castle for the Knights of St. John. The location offers an unhindered view of the surrounding ocean, allowing the defenders to easily spot incoming ships coming from the east. The castle is surrounded by water on 3 sides, the south, east, and north. To the west there is a valley which extends to form large mountains in the distance. To the south and north, there are small ports which are protected by rocky outcrops. An enemy would undoubtedly have great difficulty landing troops, not to mention assaulting the castle. The castle that stands today is a remnant of the castle built by the Knights from the 1300’s. Little if nothing remains of the Byzantine fortress. Parts of the acropolis had remained and were reconstructed by Danish experts in the early part of the 20th century. The harbor at situated next to the castle is believed to be the place where St. Paul landed on Rhodes. The harbor is rightly named “St. Pauls Harbor.”

Kritinia Castle

Today I visited Kritinia Castle with some fellow classmates and a fellow named Kostas. The castle is located about halfway down the island and takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes to get there from Rhodes town. After going to the castle, we made the short trip up the mountains to the town of Kritinia, as well as the museum. It was here that I met a Greek friend by chance. Manoli, a host at one of the restaurants in Old Town had encouraged me to visit his village of Kritinia if I made it down to the castle. He told me that there would be free admission to the museum if I just mentioned his name to a heavyset man named Giannis. It just so happened that Manoli had come home to Kritinia to vote in the local elections and decided to relax at the bar when we ran into him. We all received a warm welcome and they showed us around the museum. After Kritinia, we went further into the mountains where Kostas too us to Mussolini's mansion. All in all, it was a eventful day.

The following is information about the castle:

Kritinia Castle

The Knights of St. John constructed the castle in 1472. It was originally constructed in three levels, each for a different Grand Master. It is approximately 131 meters above the nearby village. The site is in an excellent spot for observing the surrounding area, including the sea. It was a very strategic position for the Knights. The castle is in a very defensible position surrounded by steep cliffs and water on 3 sides. Today, the castle that remains is but a small portion of the original. Small ticket booths were recently installed in order to begin forcing visitors to pay for admission. The attempt to charge admission was met with hostility. The local people had been visiting the castle for years unhindered, and the the prospect of paying entrance fees for something that had once been free was not easily accepted. The attempt ultimately failed and the castle remains open for all who wish to enjoy it. The Medieval Rose Festival is held here in June.

Grand Master's Palace

I have now been in Podos for 5 days. So far, it has been a wonderful experience. I traveled to Old Town during my first day here, and visited the castle there. This is some research that I did on the castle:

Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes

Built near the site of the ancient acropolis of Rhodes, where a temple to the Sun God once stood. Byzantine occupants of the castle built a palace here around the 7th century but in the 14th century, the Knights Hospitaller took over the island. They built the Grandmaster’s Palace and established it as their new administrative fortress. The castle was destroyed by a gunpowder explosion but rebuilt in the 1940’s to its original design. Part of the reconstructed castle was dedicated to Benito Mussolini. The castle was built on the highest point in the city. The Knights instituted changes in the castle such as cutting a 50 foot wide ditch at the foot of the castle walls to cause would be attackers to fall into a gully. The Knights also created forward positioned towers along their walls in reaction to gunpowder weapons designed to knock down walls. The integrity of the wall would not be compromised with the fall of the tower, and neither would the tower be compromised with the fall of the wall. The Knights also built a wall surrounding the harbor and added an enormous tower in the 1400’s that fell in 1863 during an earthquake. The tower was called “The Tower of Naillac” and was noted as being an exceptionally strong fortification which was built after a flaw in walls defense was discovered during the siege of 1444.