The Detouring Doctor

The 2 hour ferry trip from Greek Rhodes to Turkiye’s Fethiye proceeds uneventfully. We find our hotel high on a fill overlooking the port. The night lights from our balcony are impressive and what I thought would be a quiet backwater is anything but.

Our car rental pickup is similarly uneventful apart from our upgrade. We are given a better car, medium sized and automatic. I had ordered a compact sized little Fiat and would have preferred that for its ease of driving on potential narrow congested roads. Having said that, subsequent driving is on spacious highways where the extra grunt is welcome.

Two hours south is the coastal city of Antalya. My plan is to use this as a stop off point to a Roman amphitheatre. We have booked a room within a 150 year old hotel in the heart of the old town. Our accommodation has lashings of historical character and our host gushes enthusiastically about the history of the hotel and Antalya itself. He was right and we spend a lovely afternoon exploring a compact old town which goes back 2000 years.

The next morning a short drive takes us to the beautifully preserved 2000 year old Roman amphitheatre at Aspendos. We basically have the place to ourselves and lap up the opportunity to wander through an amazing piece of history.

Not all Greek Islands are whitewashed with blue trimmings as per the Santorini/Mykonos stereotype. They all have their own unique character but none are as different nor as beautiful as Symi. It is an hour ferry from Rhodes and we have a beautiful day trip.

I decided to visit the castle, a steep 40 minute walk up a mountainside overlooking the harbour. My life partner ascends steadily and uncomplainingly to the very summit. The castle is underwhelming but the views of the harbour are stupendous.

Leaving Naxos I have a strong feeling that something will go wrong today. It is a full on day, check out, return rent a car, catch flight with a tight second connection. Will something go wrong with the car return will we or our luggage not arrive? Whenever I fly I always feel that I have forgotten something but today the sense of foreboding was stronger.

Rhodes has long captured my imagination. Of course it was where the famous Colossus was built in 280 BC. Subsequently this island became the headquarters for the knights of St John who built a walled fortress in 1310 to protect Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land. We arrive uneventfully and I am lulled into a false sense of security.

First item on the agenda is booking tickets for a day trip to the picturesque Symi Island. Online bookings finished 2 weeks ago and will restart in April next year. Wandering through the old town, travel agents are closed as it is low season now. The only solution was to head to the port and bingo! We have success with a booking for tomorrow. Next step is booking the ferry out of Greece to Turkey for 3 days time. My pre trip research stated that there are at least 2 ferry crossings daily between Rhodes and Fethiye. We are directed to another part of the port complex to book the tickets for Monday. Imagine my reaction when I am told that there are only two ferries weekly on Friday and Sunday! My premonitions have borne fruit. We have big decisions to make and quickly. Ultimately we decide to leave a day early losing the extra day driving around Rhodes and a prepaid night of accommodation. We do, though get most of a day to explore this magnificent old town and I get to see the site of my 4th of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

The largest of the Cyclades group is our next destination. Lord Byron described Naxos as a “dream island”. The ferry trip from Paros only takes 30 minutes but, unlike the trip to Paros, this was a frenetic affair with the staff barking out orders and hurrying and herding us on and off the boat as if we were cattle.

Our little apartment is in the heart of the Old market and turns out to be the pick of our Greek island accommodations. The main town of Hora is wrapped around the waterfront. A causeway links us to a second island with a marble gateway, the Portara visible as one arrives by boat. It was to be an entry to a Temple to Apollo built in 530 BC but it was never completed. It is now an emblem of Naxos.

Again we rented a car for the day to drive around the island. The countryside is quite hilly and has the highest mountain in the Cyclades. A mountain where legend has it that  young Zeus took the bolt of lightning from a young eagle and made himself the almighty father of all the gods of Olympus.

I have long thought of holidaying in the Greek Islands without an itinerary and just island hopping by ferry. In 1982 I did a day trip to the islands of Aegina, Poros and Hydra. I fell in love with the little island of Hydra with its enchanting harbour, cobblestoned streets and absence of motorised transport.

Over the decades Greek Islands have become trendy in particular Santorini and Mykonos and these more popular islands have become cruise ship magnets to the detriment of the locals. Unsurprisingly I choose the “roads less travelled” and start with Paros. Part of the Cyclades group which comprise 220 islands out of an overall total of 6000 islands. The ferry docks in Parikia and it is a short drive to the picture perfect town of Naousa where we are staying. The old town where we are is charming and we hire a buggy for a day to wander around the beaches and historic towns.

It is the end of October and we are restricted somewhat as a lot of the businesses close for the winter and the water is too cold to enjoy the beaches. Nonetheless the island has more than enough to keep us happy.

Growing up through the Catholic education system, frequenting mass, a frequent phrase I would hear was “for our epistle today we have St Pauls letter to the Corinthians”. As a kid it tickled my imagination. Did he sit down with pen and paper? How did he post it? Where was Corinth? Well Corinth is here and it is a pretty archeological site including the very spot that Paul was put to trial by the local Jewry for teachings that were contrary to the Jewish faith.

But first it is up to the top of a mountain to visit Mycaenae. This is an older complex dating back to 1300 BC and was built by the Mycaenians whose empire collapsed just as the “mainstream” ancient Greek civilisation emerged. Consequently these ruins are less well formed and reconstructed apart from the beautiful Lion’s gate which was erected in 1250 BBC

Corinth complex has both Greek ruins and later Roman.The beautiful Temple of Apollo dated back to the 5th century BC. The Romans destroyed it in 146 BC and Julies Caesar rebuilt it in 44 BC. St Paul lived here for 18 months in 49 AD and was put on trial in 51 AD. It is remarkable to be at the same spot as a man who was an often quoted,almost mythical figure in one’s childhood.

A sunny Saturday afternoon in late October and the town is buzzing despite the tourist season being over. We circle repeatedly around the congested port car park and are lucky to snag a spot a stone’s throw from our apartment in the old town. It seems to be all locals this time and subsequently we discover that this is a holiday long weekend which probably explains the numbers.

Nafplia is a charming little gem. It is a port city set on the sparkling blue Gulf of Corinth. For us it is the stepping stone for Corinth and Mycaenae but it is worth a wander through the old town and settle down for a meal or a drink along the shore opposite the pretty Palmidi fortress on an island in the Gulf. All around there are crenellated fortress wall on the mountains which are the backdrop.

In the afternoon some 20 minutes drive away is the Greek theatre at Epidaurus, a complex dedicated to the god of healing, Asclepius constructed in the 4th century BC. The ancient theatre there is regarded as the best preserved in Greece and the acoustics are such that people in the back row could hear a whisper on the stage.

The famous Greek historian Herodotus wrote of seven great architectural achievements which became known as the seven wonders of the world. Of the seven wonders of the ancient world the only one still standing is the Great Pyramid in Giza. The rest are marked by where they stood but have long been destroyed by a variety of natural disasters. I have seen 2 of the 7 namely the Great Pyramid in Egypt and the site of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in Iraq. The Statue of Zeus stood 12 metres high and was made of ivory and gold. It is about to be Suzanne’s first of the seven wonders and was here in leafy green Olympia in Greece.

Where Delphi is dedicated to the god Apollo, Zeus rules here. In a broad verdant valley a complex dedicated to Zeus, the arts, philosophy and, most enduringly, of human sporting endeavour was constructed. The ancient Olympics were held here every 4 years starting in 776BC and finishing in 393 AD.

The foundation of the Temple of Zeus remains and a reconstructed Doric column. The stadium for sporting events has been excavated and we wander around it having the place to ourselves. It is easy to imagine the games unfolding before the spectators seated on the grassy slopes.

Driving in Greece and especially around Athens is not a prospect that I relish. Chaos is the best way to describe it narrow streets, double parked cars, cars, people and animals cutting across you. Massive cars confronting you head on when there seems to be only room for one car. Yet here I am about to do the unthinkable! The plan is to complete a round trip looping through the Pelopponese reprising the tour I went on in 1982.

Legend has it that Zeus sent out two eagles one from the east and the other from the west. Where they met, at the foot of Mt Parnassus is a massive cleft in the mountain range and it became the omphalos, the navel of the world. Initially the item was guarded by the terrible serpent, Python. Apollo killed the python and a temple was built dedicated o him in the 8th century BC. Between the 6th and 4th centuries BC, the Delphic oracle, a priestess who was named Pythia came forth with ambiguous pronouncements regarding the future. Her fame encouraged rulers and ordinary people from far and wide to come for a consultation.

Today this is an evocative site perched high along the mountainside. We enjoy a peaceful and interesting couple of hours here especially as this is now low season and tourists are less plentiful.

The sun is rising as we enter the world famous Acropolis. We stop at the temple of Herodotus to watch the sun rise over the Athenian hills. Then it is off to get some iconic pictures of the Parthenon in what is known as the golden hour of sunlight. Perhaps unsurprisingly there are no queues at this time of year and at eight in the morning but I have played it over cautiously and have pre-booked tickets throughout. My life partner tells me that this is a bucket list item for her and I am so happy to have brought her here.

Constructed around 500 BC on a rocky outcrop high above what is now a city, the Acropolis evolved into a number of temples celebrating the goddess Athena after whom Athens is named. Athena is a daughter of Zeus and is revered for her her wisdom, warfare and handicraft. When it came to Athens it was a choice between the gods Poseidon and Athena. Poseidon struck the ground with his trident and water came forth. Athena provided an olive tree and she won the contest. We spend a magic 2 hours wandering around absorbing the history and scenery.

The afternoon has us walking to the Panathenaic Stadium. Just behind Syntagma square it is the stadium for the first modern day Olympics in 1896. In 1894 Baron Pierre de Coubertin proposed a modern day Olympiad in Greece. Athens pulled it off and it was a huge success. In those days it was less about nations and more about individual athletes. A Victorian named Edwin Flack was studying in the UK and decided to enrol for the games. He won gold in 2 races and bronze in tennis is is Australia’s first Olympians. His efforts had Australia 8th on the medals table. Punters can now enjoy the stadium and run around the track channeling their inner athlete. It is irritable and corny to play Chariots of Fire while running around the track but I went there.