Rhodes is famous as the former site of the Colossus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and the oldest inhabited medieval town in Europe. It is my favorite Greek town, and my hostel idles right in the center of the old town. Me and my new friend Jean from SFO woke up in this beautiful town and took photos before the crowd flooding into old town. We were lucky enough to ask a few people in old town after 2 am to find our hostel and had a great night sleep.
Medieval buildings, mosques, traditional fountains, oriental motifs, Byzantine and Gothic churches, shops and cafeterias are scattered throughout the Old Town of Rhodes, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the best preserved and most extensive medieval towns in Europe.
As we wandered from the old town and over the outer wall and moat, it's like stepping back in time. It is also the location of many monuments and several museums.
Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes - can be split into outside, courtyard, outside wall, first floor and second floor.
The first floor (photos prohibited) contains some artifacts of Ancient Rhodes but is closed - in it's absence, the entrance fee is entirely not worth it. The Archaeological Museum offers more selection and allows photos. Second floor has a variety of later "artifacts" such as mosaics from Kos and other odd bits and bobs, but it has almost no descriptions (probably to force people to wait for a tour guide). The Palace of the Grand Masters was demolished by a gunpowder explosion in 1856 and reconstructed by the Italians as a summer residence for Mussolini in 1940. This knowledge (that this isn't actually an authentic swords and knights castle and is instead basically a souped up country mansion).
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