An unmarked stone portal affords entrance to an open pebbled corridor, with the synagogue on the left, and stairs to the mehitzah at the end of the corridor. Up a few steps on its right is a small, restful courtyard planted with fruit trees and a grapevine that trails over the trellis shading the corridor. Interior of the old synagogue in the former Jewish quarter. Click to view enlarged A choice example of Balkan synagogue architecture, the interior is sparkling in sharp contrast to an austere facade. Carved multicolored geometric capitals are painted predominantly in dark blue to harmonize with the paler blue walls.
Crystal chandeliers are customary in Greek churches and synagogues sparkle between the arches.
A row of high windows surrounds the prayer room, providing adequate, pleasant illumination. When Rhodes' Jews lived there, the narrow ghetto alleys echoed the sounds of daily activities and residents' greetings. There the stalls were astir on market days, with merchants, peddlers, and customers doing business in Turkish, Greek, Italian, Judeo-Spanish, and sometimes French or English. Sounds of the tradesmen and fragrances from the open food stalls mingled in colorful confusion. The crowded taverns offered the ever popular raki, a sweet Turkish liqueur.