Greece 2021

Friday5November

Ouch! If there was one day when we needed a beautiful clear sky, it was today! The Meteora, these high rocky peaks topped with their monasteries, will lose some of their splendor if the clouds reduce or hide the beautiful panoramas we can expect.   We therefore cross our fingers that tomorrow will be under better auspices, and we start the day with a visit to Kalambáka, the city located at the foot of the Meteora. Here we are at the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary.

Passage by a small chapel where a steep path leads to a cross.

The cross is located on the rocks forming the beginning of the cliff. You need shoes that grip well...  

The cross overlooks a large rock and right behind, it's the slightly dizzying void...

Back in Kalambáka.

Kalambáka is south of the Meteora. On the west side, it is the small neighboring town of Kastraki that enjoys the view of the cliffs.

On the side of one of the formations, a curious cavity catches the eye...

This cave houses a church (Agios Georgios Mandilas) whose ruined walls can be seen as well as what seems to be laundry hanging on wires... Curious assembly placed 40 meters above the ground and apparently inaccessible. Practically inaccessible yes, but not totally. Once a year, on April 23, Saint George's Day, the villagers gather here and access this cave using ropes to come and replace the fabrics. This tradition began after a Muslim woman invoked Saint George to save her husband, injured at the foot of this cliff by the fall of a tree. The only offering she could give was her veil. The husband came out unscathed and without sequels and it took no less to proclaim the miracle.  

The Doupiani hermitage.

Another converted cave.

The Nickolas chapel.

The Constantius cell.

One of the streets of Lastraki with its superb setting...  

We cross our fingers that the sun will appear tomorrow, but in the meantime, we decide to go and visit the six monasteries suspended, not from the peaks for today but from the clouds... Here is already, that of Roussanou.;

Beyond the unreal aspect of religious buildings, geological formations alone are worth the detour. And finally, the fog gives a very nice mysterious touch to the decor.

"The monasteries are perched in detrital cliffs, composed of "puddingstone", conglomerate formed of pebbles linked by a sandy cement." © Wikipedia

The Agios Nikolaos Anapausas monastery.

"The detrital formation dates from the Tertiary era, a large tributary of the Thessaly Sea having deposited little by little, pebbles and sediments, as shown by the stratified appearance of the rocks. During the folding which gave birth to the Hellenic peninsula, this river was displaced or disappeared, the alluvium was partly metamorphosed under the effect of pressure and heat, while the whole was raised, then cleared by erosion, giving a sandstone model made of rounded blocks typical of this type of rock." © Wikipedia

The Great Meteoron Monastery.

The mystery is complete, maybe tomorrow, we will see more...  

It is only since 1923 that the monastery is accessible by these steps. Before, you had to use ropes.

The small oratory and its icons at the foot of the tower.

The monastery of Varlaam

From the Varlaam, the Roussanou impresses.

The Varlaam in the mist of Meteora.

Yes. Isolating yourself in steep places to be very quiet is good. But to refuel or reach the top of the rock effortlessly, it's immediately more complicated... So, suspended cabins invited themselves into some of the monasteries. Only for monks, not for tourists.  

The Sun tries in vain to pierce the fog, but nothing helps, the thick cloud is stronger.

Suddenly, the chimes activate, immediately filling the void separating the monasteries.

The view is superb despite the cloud ceiling being a little too low. Our imagination can do the rest...

The Roussanou monastery seems very frail in front of the geological colossi.

In the distance, the Agios Nikolaos monastery.

Kalambáka pointing the tip of its nose between two peaks.

The Agía Triáda monastery.

The Great Meteoron Monastery. In Greek in the text, ?et???a ???ast???a means "monasteries suspended in the sky".  

Agía Triáda also has its cable basket...

One of the Orthodox monks living in the monastery.

The long paved path leading to the stairs then up to the front door. Tomorrow, we will cross it.

The basket of the Agía Triáda monastery. It was one of the only ways to reach the monastery before the steps were built in 1923.

Ha, it's been a while, a cat comes to strike a pose.

Return to the apartment where we can see from the street the Agios Stefanos monastery. All that remains is to wait for the Sun to set behind the clouds and reappear like magic tomorrow morning!