You don't have to be a Rhodes Scholar to work there. . .

After the wall around Rhodes Old Town (maybe Jim Moran could get stimulus money to build an old wall around Old Town Alexandria), we took a break for some water. Then we marched off down Sokratous Street, which is a cobblestone street with plenty of shops and a few restaurants. Maddy and I climbed up the Burgos clock tower (and had a good view of the Mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent).

We caught up to the other three whilst they were shopping. We had lunch in a café on a side street in-between the Street of Knights and the Street of Greek Merchants Trying to Sell You Stuff. The food was so-so, but at least it was expensive. Thank God Europe has united, so that no country is inexpensive any more! (We first got the Euro shock in Ireland in 2003 – these heretofore affordable countries now cost too much!). I know there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but I wouldn’t mind an affordable one.

We then headed back to the ship, but detoured via Plateia Ippokratous – a central square in front of the Marine Gate that includes a famous medieval fountain. The square is lined with restaurants and tourists. Quite the scene – like Times Square, although the biggest danger had yet to rear it’s head (read further down).

The plan was to rent a car and head to a beach. And maybe Lindos. But it was getting toward mid-afternoon, so I hired a taxi and we squeezed in. (Note to Bonnie Orleans – Torie had to sit on Julia’s lap to fit, but we did not get a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt.)I always believe taxi in a foreign country is a fun way to get around. (I’m telling you, put a camera in the front of a taxi in Rome, live stream on the web, and it would be great Net TV!). I’m glad our cabbie was driving, because getting out of Rhodes wasn’t the easiest route to find. Our cabbie’s name is Angelos – I didn’t have to heart to tell him everyone in Baltimore is unhappy with his cousin’s ownership of the Orioles.

We went to Filaraki and hung on the beach from about 2:30 till 5:30, when he picked us up. It’s a very resorty beach, but more in the Ocean City, MD style than in the Outer Banks, NC style. We rented three lounge chairs and spent the afternoon swimming and sunning. Torie, of course, stayed in the water the entire time.

With several hours to kill before dinner, we gave the girls money so they could walk into Rhodes Old Town and get some ice cream. Carol and I walked in separately, just to get a drink. The restaurant and store hawkers were out in full force. I even had a guy yelling at me for not looking him in the eye when I said no thanks. So I turned around, held up my hand apologetically, and said, "no thanks." If he was looking for a fight, he was messing with the wrong guy (in that I’m a lover, not a fighter, so he wouldn’t have had one).

Anyhow, it had the feel of the scene in Airplane when Leslie Nielsen uses martial arts to fight off the Hare Krishnas, peace protestors, and others at the airport (I may have the scene slightly wrong, but if you’ve seen that classic, you know what I mean).

Eventually we sat down at the Square with the medieval fountain – and watched the world go by. There were two amazing parts to the time. The first was how competitive the side-by-side bars are for customers. At one point, I thought our "caller" (for lack of a better word) was about to get into a brawl with the next door caller over a couple. The callers take a guess as to nationality/language, and started aggressive conversations. Not sure if it works, but clearly they believe it does.

The other amazing aspect was when they finally brought our drinks (service is optional in Greece). I had ordered a large beer – it was a huge glass in the shape of a boot. It had to be the equivalent of 2-3 beers. We were sitting in the front row – and a tourist even asked to pose with the beer for a picture. Sure, why not.Afterwards, we made our way to the nearest gate so we could safely escape without too many callers trying to persuade us.

The girls reported the same experience – and found it the most annoying part of Greece.

(We’re now steaming into Istanbul – so I’m hopefully going to post this and go up and watch the sunrise over Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque.)