Just Kos

Another Dodecanese island to be explored, and this one is so far east Aegean it's just 2 kilometres off the coast of Turkey.  Why Kos?  Just 'cos, we keep grinning to each other, and just 'cos it's only a quick 40 minute ferry ride from Kalymnos.  Interestingly, the Greek spell it Cos and people from Cos are called Coans.

Kos town is cosmopolitan (get it? last one, promise) and commercialised. It's large and packed with holiday makers, a very popular destination with Brits, it appears.  It's been described as a "Brits Abroard" destination.  Kos's main attractions are its beaches and its rich archaeological history.  We mainly know of Kos as the home of Hippocrates, the father of medicine and we're keen to visit the Sanctuary of Asklepieion,  the ancient site that was a healing centre and medical school, built in the 3rd century BC after Hippocrates death and to continue his teachings.  It's named after Asklepios, son of Apollo and protector of health and medicine.   

We rented a moto-scooter to explore Kos and our first stop was the sanctuary. It is beautifully situated on a green hill of cypress trees, and it is a little bit mind-blowing to walk through the ruins and to think that major contributions to modern medicine began here twenty four centuries ago, and that the Hippocratic Oath that sets out the ethics of medical practice still used today and as I walked around in awe thinking of the links between this ancient place then, and now. 

The Asklepios is three extensive terraced levels, and each level had a different function.  The first level was a healing sanctuary and housed treatment rooms, consultation rooms, a fountain, and later Roman-era healing baths of varying temperatures.  Up a marble staircase and there are the remains of the 4th century BC Temple of Asclepius, and restored columns of the Temple of Apollo.  The next impressive staircase and the third level has the remains of the crowning glory - the largest temple, and along each side were rooms for patients and visitors.  A final marble staircase takes us up the the grove of cypress trees dedicated to Apollo, a performance by the chorus of the thrumming of the summer cicadas, and a panoramic view over the sea to Turkey.  

Wandering around ancient ruins is one of our favourite things to do in Greece, and as we scootered around Kos we were delighted to find the Roman Odeon - a marble amphitheatre built during the Roman occupation of Kos in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD - and incredibly only re-discovered in the 20th century during excavations in the area.

A two night stay in Kos was just fine for us, 'too touristy' for our liking, and now we're waiting for our ferry to take us to our next destination, the Cycladic island of Amorgos.  Small, quiet, less-developed Amorgos ... ahhhhh, sounds perfect.

The first level of the Asklepion of Kos

In an arched niche on the first level 
is the 'little temple of Xenophon' 
referring to a Coan physician from the
1st century AD, Gaius Xenophon

Cypress groves surround the Asklepieion

Love wandering around ancient
Greek excavations

We've hardly seen a cloud during this
past summer - but over the past week
 in Kalmynos and Kos when the clouds
appeared the humidity shot up, it's
the first time we've ever experienced
humidity during a Greek summer. Reliably
the Greek summer is hot and dry. Perfect.

Roman Odeon amphitheatre 4th century AD

Marble stairs and the original stage - amazing

Colourful Kos

A wander through old town

Colourful, tourist-loving Kos

Loved these trees lining the streets of Kos

Had some wonderful food at Patrinko taverna.
Stuffed zucchini flowers and dolmades were the
best ever!

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(Of course there is another reason we knew of Kos. Only a few years ago it was horrific to read media reports and see vision of the plight of, mostly Syrian, refugees arriving on remote beaches of Kos.  I know the asylum seeker crisis in Europe has most recently shifted to the plight of refugees fleeing Ukraine, and while we saw no refugees in Kos, it's an uncomfortable truth that there remains on Kos and neighbouring islands hundreds, probably thousands, of asylum seekers awaiting settlement.)