Hey guys,

today we continue with Part two about the city of Lindos and the Acropolis.

The way to the Acropolis led us through a part of the town of Lindos. This consists largely of small, white houses. The alleys here are very interwoven to confuse pirates at the time. I was also confused;)
The way could be managed well without a donkey under the butt;)) The ride with the donkey costs 5 euros. We started from the edge of the village (which I can also definitely recommend). The way to the Acropolis was shorter than expected. In my last post you can get some impressions of what to expect on the way up. Especially the old town and the small streets fascinated me. Here you can find at every corner souvenirs and souvenirs that you can buy.

Acropolis - good visiting time is in the morning

The Acropolis is located in Lindos on a mountain. Lindos itself is considered by many Greeks to be the most beautiful village in Greece. Whether it is, I can not judge, for that I would have to visit some other villages in Greece. What I can tell you, however, is that there are a lot of tourists here. Well we were there in the summer, so in the high season. Nevertheless, I would recommend you to visit the Acropolis in the morning if possible. Of course, this works best if you also have your accommodation in Lindos. The Acropolis is open from 8am to 8pm in the summer. The visit to the Acropolis itself costs 20 euros per person for adults (day ticket), which is relatively much in my opinion, but the view and the temple complex is definitely worth it!

On the way to the temple

Lindos, rich in Greek tradition and a listed monument

In any case, it is clear that a visit to the temple complex of the Acropolis is a must for every visitor to Rhodes. And the visit of the town of Lindos in my opinion is it too.
Lindos has, if you can put it that way, two sights. One is the village itself. Here you will find a lot of Greek tradition, which is why the village is a listed monument. Lindos offers the typical scenery that one imagines under a Greek village: lots of narrow streets and romantic white houses.
The other sight is directly above Lindos, the Acropolis of Lindos. It is probably the most important ancient sight in the Dodecanese.

The alleys here in Lindos are car-free. Whereby I also know no car that is so narrow that it would fit through here.
In general, for your day trip (if you don't have an accommodation here, I would definitely recommend you to take a whole day for Lindos, there is just too much to see here), you have to plan a little more money. Lindos is a bit more expensive than the rest of Rhodes, but it's still within reason.
In fact, most of the visitors are day-trippers, mostly from Rhodes Town (where we were also coming from).

Under Lindos there is a about 300 meters long beach with taverns

The Acropolis, the most important ancient building in the Dodecannes

But now to the really interesting part, the Acropolis. It is the most important ancient building in the Dodecannes. And also a very important one in Greece. The temple complex was actually larger than I had imagined. Even if I had already gotten a small impression from below.
The oldest temple of the complex was built about 800 BC. We made it to the temple in a little more than ten minutes. We started from the edge of the village. Even if it looks like a longer walk, I can reassure you. But you should take enough water with you, it is still necessarily. Because the path is, although short, very steep and you run up many steps. The difference in altitude to the village is about 120 meters.

An enthroned acropolis above the small village of Lindos

After we had paid the entrance fee, we could had a look at the castle above Lindos from the inside. And I can tell you, it is worth it! I liked the castle walls very much, but the highlight was of course the temple of Anthina Lindia. It stands at the highest point in the acropolis of Lindos.
In addition, from this point, but not only there, you have a great view over the east coast of Rhodes.

You can really call the Acropolis, as you can see, a ruin. It towers majestically over Lindos. What gives it such expressiveness above all is the relatively small village of Lindos below it.

A building full of history

It was not until the beginning of the 20th century that the temple complex near Lindos was discovered. So not long ago, there was "only" a mountain here. And Lindos before the discovery was also known as a beautiful village, but rather among Greeks than tourists. The temple complex was found by archaeologists from Denmark.

Remains from different periods, the oldest date back to the Neolithic period

Gradually they excavated more and more structures of the Acropolis. They found remains from different periods. The oldest remains of the temple complex date back to the Neolithic period (11,500 to 9,500 BC)!

Research today shows that the very first temple complex of the Acropolis was built on the mountain around the year 800 BC. Gradually terraces, a large portico and other temples and castles from the Roman and Byzantine periods, as well as a castle of the Knights of St. John were added.

Construction work on the Acropolis

A complex temple complex, easy to imagine

A wooden temple for the worship of the goddess Lindia

The first temple was built for the goddess Lindia (hence the name). It was built by the Dorians in the 7th century BC. The temple was built in a place where there was a grotto in the immediate vicinity. In this grotto the goddess was worshipped until the temple was built. This temple was actually a wooden temple. How I would have loved to see this temple! I can not imagine a temple made of wood so well;)

First the Byzantines, then the Knights of St. John

Then, in the sixth century BC, a second temple was built, this time from the material stone. Two hundred years later, however, it burned down.
Then, in the 13th century, another structure was built, the castle of the Byzantines with the Orthodox church. After the Byzantines came the Knights of St. John, who expanded the castle they found. The church of the Byzantines was now used as a chapel. Even today you can see some remains of the castle, such as some castle walls.

A temple complex consisting of many plateaus that are connected to each other

The whole temple complex was built with system. This can also be seen quickly and is very convenient for sightseeing. The ruins of the various buildings are located on several plateaus (you can also see this well on the photos). These plateaus are connected by stairs.

Cisterns, a former church, a relief, ruins of the two-part castle, a Roman imperial temple, a temple of Psythiros, a ambulatory, Athena of Lindos and the ancient theater

Here a small mental round trip through the different plateaus: At the today's entrance are the cisterns. On the right there is the former church and behind it a five meter high relief. This relief is about 2,000 years old.
In the middle area are the ruins of the two-part castle. Next is the Roman imperial temple and the temple of Psythiros.

In the 3rd century B.C., a large ancient ambulatory was also built. At that time, this was supported by a whole 42 columns. Only a few of these columns are still standing. These were rebuilt piece by piece in the last century. At the southern end of the complex is the temple of Athena of Lindos. A few meters away is the ancient theater. This was built in the 4th century BC. At that time, a whole 2,000 people could sit here. Imagine that! This is even easier than you think, because there are still a few rows of seats and even the stage is partly still there.

Temple of Anthina Lindia

A great view over the city of Lindos and its white houses

How did you like the post? Have you ever been to Lindos and visited the temple complex? How did you perceive the complex? Feel free to write your feedback in the comments. See you next time :)