Rhodes, Greece

We recently returned from a visit with my youngest kiddo in Malta. This year, we added a side trip to Greece, another destination, like Sicily, that had been percolating in the back of my mind for decades.

Had I visited Greece in my early 20s, no doubt I would have ended up in Mykonos and/or Santorini. As a family trip neither seemed like the right choice - the first is notably a party Island and the second a place for romance. So, where to go? I wanted more than just a beach holiday, and we would be travelling in April when it would be too cool to lounge in the sun, anyway. I needed to find the right place. I went into a bit of a deep dive about where to travel in Greece.

I looked at Corfu, an Island that received a lot of praise, on the north eastern side of Greece. However, it looked more Italian than the other Islands, and while I love Italy, I really wanted to feel like I was in Greece. I also looked at Crete, but it's massive. I couldn't wrap my head around navigating such a big place. Naxos and Paros were runners up. They are smaller Islands that lie between Mykonos and Santorini. They sport the white washed houses with blue roofs that one typically imagines in Greece. And then I found Rhodes.

Rhodes is located on the far west side of Greece. Like much of the Mediterranean the history dates back to the Bronze Age. A lot has gone down in the interim. The Old Medieval town has been designated a UNESCO world heritage site. Rhodes was occupied by the Persians, the Romans and the Byzantines. Around 1310 the Byzantine era came to an end when the Knights Hospitaller occupied the Island. Many of the Island's famous buildings were constructed during this era. Rhodes remained under the Knights until 1522 when it was sieged by the Ottomans. The Knights went on to set up their operations in Malta. The Knights of Rhodes became the Knights of Malta. I had my Island.

Rhodes was a little trickier to get to. A ferry was out of the question. It would take 15 hours to arrive from Athens. We had to fly. And there were only sporadic flights from Malta to Athens which meant we had to travel on specific days. I booked an apartment first, based on those flights to Athens. A couple of weeks later I went to book the flights (sometimes I plan everything and then stagger bookings over a month or two) and realized they didn't line up with the accommodation. I'm still not sure if I wrote down the wrong dates, or if the flights changed in the interim. Either way we had an orphaned night in Athens, which is another story.

Nonetheless we arrived to Old Town Rhodes slightly weary, but on schedule. The airport taxi dropped us off at the one of two recommended gates and we dragged suitcases along the ancient, very, cobbled streets in search of our pillow for the night.

An inconspicuous brown door appeared in the wall of the old town which corresponded with the address we were searching for. It was the moment of truth. Would the code work to allow us inside. Success. We were greeted to a small private courtyard/living room open to the sky and with arched doorways, which led to an eat-in kitchen, hallway, a small bathroom with a well-appreciated, roomy shower and then upstairs we found two good sized bedrooms. I chose the smaller bedroom because it hosted 270 degree views through five windows including vistas of palm trees, blue skies and the old walled city. It doesn't matter how old I become, after growing up in Canada, a palm tree never fails to delight.

It had been a long travel day and we were tired. Everyone retreated to a nook of the apartment - unpacking, resting, settling in.

Eventually, our stomachs began to call and we wandered out into the labyrinth of small streets in search of life. The old city is a mix of the lived in and the abandoned. Like all ancient places the manicured and the overgrown somehow work in tandem. I love how plants grow randomly through cracks in the walls and up through the road. And there are the cats, who are communal and roam at will.

After twisting and turning in back streets, we were spit out on to a slightly wider street barely big enough for a car to pass. We found a little restaurant that beckoned us in through the kitchen that lead to a patio overlooking a square. We ordered up plates of gyro, greek salad, pita bread, tzatziki and grilled haloumi cheese. At the end of the meal they brought out small glasses of ouzo on the house. While we ate similar food each day, this may have been the best food of the week.

After dinner we meandered around the now tourist area buzzing with the energy of evening strollers, complete with an array of shops and restaurants, centred around various picturesque squares and fountains, and flanked by the towering knights palace.

The palace would wait for the morning ...