Kos

After a very smooth ferry ride we landed in Kos another Greek Island. The trip only took a couple of hours and we walked to  a cafe to grab a coffee and look over the map to find our accommodation. This time we were staying in a hotel with a pool which was good as the temp was higher than Rhodes. 

It also had a small kitchen which we could make some breakfast then we would head out for a coffee in the main part of town. This port like many others has a castle built by the knights in 14th century. In fact you can walk around Kos and see the ancient ruins along side modern houses. We also saw a cow in one of the sites. Kos is where Hippocrates, the father of medicine and the first GP was born and lived from 460 to 377 BC and we went to the Hippcrates Plane Tree under which Hippocrates is said to have taught his pupils. Maybe they kept replacing the tree when it would die as these trees don't live more than 200 years. 

We caught a bus up to Asklipieion which is a sacred site built on a pine covered hill 4ks out of town. It contains a religious sanctuary to Asklipieion, the god of healing, a healing centre and school of medicine. The training followed the teaching of Hippocrates who had a rational approach to diagnosing and treating illnesses. It felt very special being there peaceful and relaxing. I can imagine people would have felt calmer just being there. 

On our last night we decided to have dinner at a small restaurant advertising they did stuffed capsicums. It was run by an elderly couple who shook our hands and welcomed us with big smiles. With the recession small establishments like this that are off the main streets are really struggling so any foreign customers are very welcomed. We had a fantastic meal of fresh bread,  7 dolomades which were home made and the best I had ever tasted, stuffed capsicums and beef that melted in your mouth. The total cost with chips and house wine (which came in a tin mug) was about E30 (A$40) for two of us. Great value. At the end the couple thanked us again for coming and we left them wishing we had found the restaurant earlier. 

Having booked our ferry  to Bolrum we packed up once again and headed for the wharf. As we were travelling to Turkey we had to have our passports ready for customs when we landed. The trip from Kos to Bodrum is only 1 hr.  

Rhodes

After a very quick and smooth flight we landed in Rhodes and taxied to our little Pension. Niki,s Pension is a small family run accommodation in the old town area. The Old Town is listed as a World Heritage site and is the largest inhabited medieval town in Europe. The Manager Michalis is a warm and friendly man who enjoys his work and is a wealth of information. Our room had lovely views over the old town and the hotel was close to restaurants and shops but not noisy at night. 

When we arrived Michalis had gone to the hospital as a friend was injured in an accident. We waited for some time before his wife arrived to take us to our rooms but it was nice sitting in the sun on the terrace and we got to meet two Belgian men who have been coming to Rhodes for many years and obviously loved it.

Breakfast was served on a sunny verandah by Michalis and we got to catch up on the Belgium men and their late night adventures. They recommended a seafood restaurant for us to try. They spent most of the nights eating there and after we tried it we agreed that it was fantastic. All the food was fresh and cooked to perfection. We had swordfish and octopus with a big Greek salad and a tzatziki dip to die for. Musicians would come around and play Greek songs and entertain for a tip. It didn't take long for us to relax and get into the swing of the island. 

We walked the avenue of the knights, a road where the knights lived and visited the Palace of the Grand Master and walked around to the New Town area with its new hotel, shops and sun lounges on the beach. 

We travelled by local bus to Lindos with its white 17 century houses and men with donkeys to take you up to the Acropolis perched 116m up on a rock. We walked up but I think from comments from the donkey men we took the donkey route. The Acropolis houses the 4th century Temple of Athena and the remains of a 20 columned Hellenistic stoa built in 200 BC. 

We also visited a Greek Orthodox Church which was beautiful except for the morons taking flash photos and talking like they were in a cafe. I told 2 guys that photos were not allowed and they scuttled off in shame. Some people have no respect. It was clearly noted before we entered that no photos were allowed and I was glad when the lady looking after the church noticed what was happen and told people off. 

We are really enjoying the Greek food and I had a fantastic Moussaka one night. Everything is fresh and well cooked and not too expensive. We head off for Kos by ferry next for another 4 night stay.

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Hope you are all well

Cheryl

Roma

Well it's been a very interesting time in Roma. We caught the fast train from Naples (speed up to 300k) arrived at our hotel to be told that our room which had a shared bathroom was not available as something was broken so they gave us a room with ensuite but only for 2 days then they would drive us by taxi to another hotel which also had ensuite. This seemed Iike a good deal so we agreed. The room was quite nice with big bathroom but the second hotel was more like a hostel. Our room had double bed and three singles and the shower was a cubicle without any curtain or screen and it smelt like sewerage. Cliff reassured me that it was only a plumbing problem with no s-bend but it wasn't nice. The room with the toilet didn't smell, go figger. 

Anyway we had fun walking around the city looking at millions of statues, churches and wonderful archeological sights, all for free. We decided to take the train up to Castel Gandolfo which is up in the hills in Rome and where the summer palace for the Pope is located. We purchased our tickets on line and headed for the train only to find that it was stopping two stops. We decided to try again later and this time we found someone who could speak English and found out they were doing track work so we had to change for bus to for the rest of the trip. Castel Gandolfo is a beautiful town and as we walked through the arch leading to the piazza we saw a bride and groom having their photos taken. There is a lake as well and the sight from the town is beautiful. 

After a fantastic lunch at a small Trattoria and a bottle of local wine under our belt we walked down to the area where we were dropped off. Locating the right place to wait for the bus was fun as two groups were formed in two different places. Much discussion went on trying to guess who would be right and as it turned out we were wrong and had to run up the hill to get on the bus.  At the station we had to use the machine and a women helped us so we purchased her ticket as well. We had to sit together as only one ticket was issued for 3 people. Turned out she was a tour guide originally  from Columbia  and we spent a pleasant time talking about travel and what to watch out for in Rome. 

We had a frustrating day when we tried to find the bus terminal for the pre booked trip to the airport and when we tried to post some items back to Australia. I think I was ready to loose my top after being directed for the post office to a tobacco shop to buy a padded envelope. We tried about 5 shops and gave up as none of them had what we needed. We also gave up on the bus terminal as Via Marsala 5 was all closed up with scaffolding surrounding the building.

We tried again the next day and found a very helpful man in the post office who not only sold us a small box but filled in most of the paperwork, we then worked out the bus terminal and we both relaxed knowing that things in Rome don't ever seem to work out as you think they will.

Bags are packed and the alarm is set for 5.30am to catch the 7am bus to airport for Greece Rhodes. 

Talked to Michelle at the airport for Mothers Day so that was really nice. I will get my present when I return. 

Michelle see number 4 picture below of me throwing a coin into an urge fountain as promised. Lol