Our Big Fat Greek Bus Ride
Trip Start
Jul 06, 2008
1
20
26
Trip End
Aug 18, 2008
Rhodes,
Dodecanese,
Greece
Monday, July 28, 2008
We arrived on the island of Rhodes at 10:30am and immeditely began our search for a hostel. With our huge packs on and the narrow winding streets PACKED with tourists - it was little tricky. What made it even more tricky was that all of the streets were very windy, narrow and very uneven cobblestone. It was like a labrynth of mysterious passageways twisting and turning between tall stone buildings. What you think is a back street (path) into no where was a main street that you needed to take to find hostels, restuarants and shops.
We did eventually find a place to stay with a friendly lady named 'Poppy' running it. She spoke pretty good English and always had a smile offering maps to us and suggesting places for us to go and see. We really enjoyed staying in Old Rhodes Town
01. On Ferry
. It is where the Knights Templar stayed back in the day. During the medievil times, the Knights of St. John lived on the Avenue of the Knights. The knights were divided into seven languages. There were different avenues and areas that were home to various knights depending on where they were from. It was really cool to wander through the grounds and see cannons and cannon balls as well as the rooms in which they stayed. We strolled through huge doorways, and arched walkways as we checked out the various areas of the Old Town. We could really feel the history and the ambiance surrounding the area. Even aside from the historical information and sites, it is quite charming here. We have thoroughly enjoy the food. Our first meal was their form of fast food - Gyros and Fries. These were delicious, soft, warm pitas filled with your choice of meat, veggies and it is then slathered with a tastey sauce. Mmmmmmm, Mmmmmmmm, Good! I think we had one for lunch every day! Even better than Pita Pit!
More of the charm came from the people and the sounds here. It is just like in the movies...
There are women chatting back and forth through second story windows across a narrow cobblestone pathway as they hang their laundry out to dry with an accordian player playing somewhere in the not too far distance
02. Our Hostel
. Men are sitting on verandas or just off the cobblestone street talking, smoking a pipe or enjoying a quiet relaxed sit-down. Restaurants and cafes are found all along certain streets with tables and chairs often spilling almost onto the cobblestones, the tables covered with simple cloths and olive oil and vinegar on each almost as a center piece. It doesn't matter where you go, where you stop or where you wander...that soft music is playing in the background daring you not to smile as you make your way down the uneven, simple streets. It is amazing. When we were certain we had seen much of the Old Town Rhodes, we decided to check the Acropolis of Rhodes. It was the site of the ancient Hellenistic City. There was a 2nd century AD stadium that once hosted the Olympic games and at the top of the hill there was the Temple of Pythian Apollo. We were able to go right onto the track below the stadium. Very cool.
Once we had seen the sites in and around the area we were staying, we decided to hit up the highly recommended beach of Lindos. Before we left for Lindos, we booked a ferry to our next island - Crete. Until then, we were excited to swim in the Mediterranean again and check out another part of Rhodes Island by bus. This was a 45 minute bus ride, but was worth it
03. Old Town
. As we pulled up to the area, you couldn't help but be breathtaken by the white 17th century houses built up along the cliff side only to be topped off by an old stone castle. These white buildings have been bought by foreign celebrities and have been renovated. In the past, St. Paul landed here on route to Rome. The beach was great as well. We were dropped off at the top main street, where we took a smaller shuttle bus down towards the beach area. Here, there were donkeys and their owners waiting to take you up towards the castle and through the winding streets and white buildings for a small price. We were far too excited to jump in the water and be cooled off. The sand was the velvety kind. The water was the crystal kind. The girls were the topless kind. Sorry Mike, no pictures. (You probably wouldn't have wanted to see these ones anyways).
We spent nearly 4 hours at this beach before we headed back up to the donkey area to inquire about a bus back. (Something, in hind-sight, we should have inquired about before). There was only one bus left heading back to Rhodes, which we had to be on to catch our ferry to Crete by midnight. Thank goodness there was one left!!! The girl giving us the information kind of smiled as she told us about this final bus
04. Gate
. We weren't sure why until we had made our way all the way up to the main road to wait for the hour or so for it to arrive. We started to get a general idea of her little smirk, when every 5 minutes or so more people came trudging up the hill to join us at the bus stop. Before any bus came anywhere near the road, both sides were plastered full of tourists and locals waiting to get on the bus. We were a little worried. There were no pre-paid tickets for this one, and we HAD to get back that night to ensure we would make it to our ferry in time. Fingers crossed. We found out which side of the road to wait on - just before the bus arrived, so luckily we were with that half of the crowd. When the bus pulled up, the front door as well as the door three quarters of the way to the back opened to let current passengers off. I scuttled to the back door (following a few other travellers) and hopped on, not realizing that just behind me the doors shut quickly. Apparently, the doors literally hit her in the shoulders as it was closing, and she stepped back. Her 3 year-old daughter had gotten on just before her mother had attempted to, and was now somewhat stranded on the bus with her entire family waiting outside the front door where everyone had to pay. Trevor had seen it all happen, but I was oblivious as I was on a mission to get us seats.
I quickly sat down and saved two seats so we would not have to stand for the entire 45 minute ride back into Rhodes. I watched outside the door as the huge crowd began to get a bit smaller, and the bus continued to become more and more packed. Meanwhile, Trevor was jockying for position in line, taking up any extra inch that was given to him. It was almost as strategic as one would be in a mosh pit - making sure your position is always better than the people around you
05. Lighthouse
. His senses were peaked and when he felt a tap on his shoulder, his head snapped back to see what the person could possibly want - he wasn't about to give up his spot. It ends up it was the 3-year old's father asking Trevor to help him get the drivers attention so that the daughter could get off the bus. Trevor waved and said he would try, and within a minute - the crisis was averted. Daughter and family reunited! Meanwhile, inside, the seats were filling up rapidly, and I was apologizing to others when they asked to sit in the seat that my waterbottle was so comfortably taking up. Straining my neck to see the front of the bus, it appeared that Trevor had finally made it to the front of the line and was stepping on the bus. With a quick glance to the back, it was easy to tell that the bus was full and there were no seats left for even the people who were ahead of Trevor. Yikes.
By the time we pulled outta there, the coach-style bus which sat close to 60 people, had every seat taken, and the aisl completely jam-packed with people standing shoulder to shoulder. We counted over 20 standers, and multiple sitters with people on their laps. Not only were we this jam-packed full, but the driver would pull over along the way if there was anyone waiting at a stop
06. Cobblestone Sidestreet
. The looks on their faces were priceless as we pulled up and the doors opened with people nearly busting out of them. One stop he made to pick up two local women and three or four children was a long one. We can not understand the Greek language, but the tones of the ladies voices and the looks on their faces definitely told us that they were LESS than impressed when they tried to get on the bus. There was a bit of shouting, some pushing, probably some cursing as well. When there didn't seem to be a solution in sight, the bus driver simply turned off the engine and sat there looking out his window, waiting for the problem to work itself out. Eventually, the ladies found a place to stand and worked their way to a point of - less than happy, but more than furious and the engine started up again, and we were on our way.
If the bus would have had elastic bands around it, we would have been stretching them to their limits and people would have seen a fat, warped and bulging bus flying down the road. You could tell the driver was getting a bit frustrated (or perhaps he just couldn't see) when people were still trying to get off the bus or reach for their bags and he would begin pulling away, only to hear the shouts and hollars from multiple voices from the back. At one stop, a family made their way off the bus and as they were getting their stroller from the underneath storage area, the driver began pulling away. It was quite a kerfuffle when he started banging on the outside of the bus and everyone inside was shouting for the driver to stop.
Regardless of the packed ride, most people were in good spirits and even the driver had some smiles left in him. We felt sorry for the guy as he couldn't see anything around him being as the aisle was completely packed and there were also people standing next to him, up against the windshield and down the stairs to the door.
It really was a Big Fat Greek Bus Ride.
Hugs and Love,
Dana and Trevor
