Rhodes part 2

I woke very early the second morning in Rhodes. I wanted to see what the old town was like in the sleepy morning hours before many people are stirring. The streets were exactly like I had hoped, completely deserted. Even the stray cats were tucked away still dreaming of feta flavored mice. My first order of the day was coffee of course. This turned out to be a challenge. I did find a few cafés being cleaned and prepped for the day by their early bird geriatric owners, but they would not sell me coffee. I was enjoying having the small streets to myself so really didn’t mind all the walking in search of the Greek sludgy eye opener. I eventually found likely the only place open, and ordered two cups. I immediately drank one, and took the other to go. Feeling a surge of energy and admittedly a little twitchy, I continued my stroll. I decided I would walk in one direction all the way to the city wall and then walk the perimeter. When I reached the wall I noticed a small iron gate, closed but not locked. I quickly pushed the gate open and entered. As I have already mentioned in previous posts, I have a hard time passing up the chance to stick my nose in places it’s not necessarily allowed. I found myself standing in a rundown, maybe forgotten courtyard. The courtyard was completely surrounded by high walls with many statues in different states of erosion. All of it was covered by overgrown grass and vines. I was on a path which I followed through the courtyard. It ended in the corner opposite where I entered at a dark staircase leading down into what I thought was another courtyard. After descending the staircase it took me a few moments to realize I was in the moat!
The moat is obviously no longer in use, and luckily drained and free of shark, piranha, and aquatic tigers. As I stood at the bottom of this canyon created by two enormous walls I tried to imagine all the soldiers, prisoners, and giants that met their fate where I now stood.
The moat was about 75 yards across and maybe 50 yards deep where I stood. It was mostly high weeds with small patches of green grass. I also noticed tons of perfectly round stones, which I learned the day before are ammunition flung at the castle during an assault. I was giddy with excitement and wonder. Not like little girl giddy mind you, more of the tough just won the super bowl kind. I looked in the only two directions available, because returning the way I came was not an option, picked left, and was off. I felt like a kid rifling through his parents closet looking for a present (which I have done Mom and Pops, sorry). Any situation is made infinitely better when you know you are not suppose to be there. Periodically I would find small tunnels leading downward at the base of the castle wall. Further investigation showed each tunnel to be closed by iron grating. I am not sure if these were sewage conduits or passages. After walking a half hour or so I came across a larger tunnel than the rest with no grate. After maybe 30 feet of blind stumbling I found myself in a round cavern which I realized was one of the castle towers. I climbed a staircase that followed the curved wall upwards for the equivalent of 8-10 floors and was again standing in the morning sun. I had found my way to the top of a castle tower! I sat on the wall edge with my feet dangling and savored the rest of my caffeine sludge. Sitting so high and looking down into the grave of an ancient moat, the boundaries between reality and my imagination disappeared. I could hear the battle cries and commands shouted from soldiers all around me. Flaming arrows whizzed past an all directions. Gigantic crocodiles swam below me with armies of rabid midgets on their backs. I finished my coffee and decided to leave this bazar battle behind and see what else I could discover. I climbed back down the stairs but instead of exiting I found another passage and followed it to the top of the lower castle wall. I was now walking on the top of the castle wall.
I walked for a while but eventually came to a dead end when another tower with no entrance ended my wall walking expedition. I had to backtrack to the original passage I had found. It had been a few hours by now and I was starting to think people would be going about their business and I might get caught. Instead of going back through the court yard I felt confident I could continue in the direction I was walking and find another way back into the city. This turned out to be a brilliant plan as I more than once found passages into the city but blocked with grates. At one I stood on the outside and watched as a man walking his dog walked right past, stopped, saw me, laughed, said something in greek like "oh man, what a good looking kid trapped in the moat" and moved on. At least his dog didn't pee on me. I ran around at the bottom of the moat for a while longer before I realized there was no way into the city. I guess that is the point of a wall and a moat after-all. Well done Rhodeians, your fortified city has proven to be Mike proof. I found my out, but could not get back in. I ran back to the court yard praying to all Gods that the unlocked gate was still unlocked. If you choose for the gate to be locked please turn to page 12, If you find the gate unlocked turn to page 38, if you are eaten by a troll close the book and hit yourself 7 times in the head with it.
The gate was unlocked, I reentered the city and quickly dissolved into the mass of tourist that the most recent cruise ship had delivered. This is one of my most favorite moments in Greece. I promise not to be so long winded in the future. I know how irritating it is when you are reading a blog and it just goes on and on with all these details that no one cares about. Or worse when the story just continues with no real purpose. I can empathize with how annoying that is.I remember this one time I was reading a blog about a guy that is making the world largest ball of tin foil. He kept talking about the best types of foil and the best application techniques but none of this reveled if his ball of foil was big enough to roll over a truck. Talk about a waste of time. Up next, how I got the smallest car in the world stuck between two buildings!