For Your Eyes Only - the monasteries of the Meteora - IgoUgo Meteora Journal

For Your Eyes Only - the monasteries of the Meteora

Best Of IgoUgo

Overview

James Bonds monastery Photo - Meteora, Greece

Quote:

Floating above the clouds like something out of a fantasy genre are the monasteries of the Meteora - one of the great sights of Europe. Built as hermetic retreats during medieval times they cling to the summits of titanic monoliths inducing vertigo in all but the strongest of travellers. There, reached once by nets and ladders, they house chapels, breweries, gardens, cloisters, meditation cells and sweeping views over an astonishing mountain range. But there was something utterly Greek about them – the medieval stone walls contrasting with the sheer rock, the bearded monks themselves and the frescoes and icons. The Meteora is another world of spirituality with just that touch of bleakness ...Read More

Floating above the clouds like something out of a fantasy genre are the monasteries of the Meteora - one of the great sights of Europe.

Built as hermetic retreats during medieval times they cling to the summits of titanic monoliths inducing vertigo in all but the strongest of travellers. There, reached once by nets and ladders, they house chapels, breweries, gardens, cloisters, meditation cells and sweeping views over an astonishing mountain range. But there was something utterly Greek about them – the medieval stone walls contrasting with the sheer rock, the bearded monks themselves and the frescoes and icons. The Meteora is another world of spirituality with just that touch of bleakness and otherworldliness.

The Meteora is one of the most famous and impressive tourist attractions in Greece. The landscape is mind blowing and is a mix of precariously perched medieval monasteries with vertigo inducing rock pinnacles. There are hundreds of plinths and titanic volcanic plugs dotting the landscape. The eye cannot take in the size of these titanic grey cylinders. It's a chaos of pinnacles - thousands of feet high - cones, plugs, and stubby rounded cliffs. It was as if someone had plucked a set of asteroids from the sky and fitted them on earth. Why this area was chosen to build reclusive orthodox monasteries is obvious. The rocks humble man in the presence of Gods wonders.

Strangely enough, there is no Greek myth of these rocks and historians tend to ignore them. The wildness and inaccessibility of this terrain made it a refuge for those fleeing invasions. And later on, during medieval times, they provided refuges to religious hermits and later, monks who foresaked the world hoping to commune with God more clearly in the high air of the mountains. It's this experience that tourists visit the Meteora for today. The chance to experience what those medieval monks did - a sense of awe in one of the most spectacular places in Europe.

Quick Tips:

Imagine being a monk in a medieval Meteoran monastery...

You would wake before dawn, in a freezing cold half light. Matins said at six o'clock and continuing at regular intervals all day. All meals taken in silence - and as all food was winched up from below was pretty basic. An aura of silence permeating the monastery only broken by the sound of chanting from the chapel. And those winter winds whipping up from the plain of Thessaly. One wonders why be a monk at all?

Then you see the treasures these monasteries contain. The silverware, the gold embossed bibles and most of all the exquisite frescoes in the chapels. The 14th century icons looking down from domed chapels, the saintly relics, vestments, church vessels and manuscripts written on gold embossed vellum. The monasteries are a little time capsule of medieval life. It is still possible to indulge in travel to a time when life was much simpler and the whole otherworldly bleakness of the mountains adds to the atmosphere. A fascinating and eerie tourist attraction set amongst spectacular crags.

Only six monasteries are open to the public and the most popular are Varlaam, St Nicholas Anapavas and the convent of Aghios Stefanos. Each one is perched on a vertical crag with spectacular views over the Pindos valley and Kalambaka below. Most open in the morning and charge 2 euros entrance. Most monasteries/convents are still in use by monks/nuns and you will encounter them on a visit. But a visit to even the smallest one will show you something of the struggle of a hermit/monks life - their loneliness and discomfort contrasting with moments of awe and illumination. Facets reflected in the landscape of the Meteora.

Best Way To Get Around:

Part of the Meteoras charm is its remoteness. For hundreds of years there were rumours of floating monasteries and inaccessible mountains. During the second world war they were used by the resistance against the Nazis, and the communists used them in the Greek civil war. And although known to TV documentary makers and travel writers they really didn't get know until featured in a blockbuster movie back in 1981. When Roger Moore, Topol, and Carole Bouquet arrived in Kalambaka to make For Your Eyes Only. They discovered a unique cinematic location which soon became world famous and part of the Greek tourist circuit.

Two trains a day arrive from Athens' Larisa station on journey of five hours. The station is in the southeast corner of Kalambaka and the bus station is in the centre of town. The buses direct from Athens take about six hours and also connect with nearby Trikala, Ioannina, and Volos. There is no airstrip or runway in the Kalambaka/Kastraki area. I used www.chatours.gr which does overnight trips to the Meteora for about £100 including four star accommodation.

When you get there reaching the monasteries high up in the Pindos mountains is difficult without your own transport. Local buses drive up to "Great Meteora" and Varlaam monastery in the summer. From there you can follow the tarmac looping roads or cut across country on some of the exhaustive walking trails. There is a trail that runs between Varlaam and Rousseau but it is quite strenuous involving precipitous descents and ascents. An easier one is from Rousseau monastery back to Kastraki village which leads directly through the pine forests and olive groves. Read Less

Cheer!
Flag

Hotel Orfeas

Best Of IgoUgo

Hotel | "Hotel Orfea - in the Shadow of the Monoliths"

View from Orfea balcony Photo - Hotel Orfeas, Kalambaka, Greece

Quote:

Wherever you are in Kalambaka you will have a view of the Meteora. The monoliths loom hundreds of feet above the town. But there is something special about waking up in the morning, stepping out onto the balcony, and see the sun light them up with the dawn.Hotel Orfea was a very impressive four star hotel. It came part of the package I had with CHAT tours which did an overnight trip from Athens for £100. It is one of Kalambakas better hotels and is only a few steps from the main street. Not to mention, as it faces north, fabulous views of the mountains. But if you have been hiking around the monasteries all day or have arrived tired from other parts of Greece it is a pleasant place to lay your...Read More

Wherever you are in Kalambaka you will have a view of the Meteora. The monoliths loom hundreds of feet above the town. But there is something special about waking up in the morning, stepping out onto the balcony, and see the sun light them up with the dawn.

Hotel Orfea was a very impressive four star hotel. It came part of the package I had with CHAT tours which did an overnight trip from Athens for £100. It is one of Kalambakas better hotels and is only a few steps from the main street. Not to mention, as it faces north, fabulous views of the mountains. But if you have been hiking around the monasteries all day or have arrived tired from other parts of Greece it is a pleasant place to lay your head. It lives up to the notion of "Greek hospitality".

The rooms are beautiful. As well as featuring a north facing balcony it has white and navy blue decor and a walk in shower/spotless bathroom. Downstairs was a busy oval reception with multi-lingual staff and a small lounge area with bar and sofa. The whole downstairs had been decorated in white pine as well. They were going for the Greek antique look but with a fresh twist.

The dining area was massive and caters to the tour parties with a buffet in the evening. The buffet was tasty with chicken, vegetable, and rice dishes. And all could be washed down with a bottle of retsina for another five euros. It caters mainly for tour groups and features conference facilities. And despite the fact we were there one night we could have taken advantage of the Olympic size swimming pool at the back.

But it is the proximity to the nearby monoliths which give it its character. We were so close we could see the convent of Ayia Stefanou perched hundreds of feet up on its cliff. The elephant grey rock cylinders loomed over everything in the town. But they are Kalambakas 'bread and butter'. The reason you came to Northern Greece in the first place. And Orfea is an excellent base to explore these wonders. Read Less

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on January 1, 2007

Hotel Orfeas
58 Pindoy St.
Kalambaka 422 00
+30 2432077444

Cheer!
Flag

Head for heights? - the practicalities of visiting the Meteora

Best Of IgoUgo

Story/Tip

Rousseau convent Photo - Meteora, Greece

Quote:

The Monasteries of the Meteora came to the worlds attention in 1981 when they were shown on the big screen in For Your Eyes Only. The ancient monasteries perched high above the Thessalian plain became the perfect Bond villain hideout. The scenery and setting were used to good effect. Filming was only marred by Roger Moore taking lots of Valium to cope with the the precarious heights and the monks hanging out their washing to disrupt the filming. Athens had cleared the filming, but they had forgot to check with the monks first.It was this film (my favourite of the series, by the way) which drew me to the Meteora. If I was going to come to Greece, then the startling rocks overlooking ...Read More

Cheer!
Flag

Varlaam Monastery - Monks, icons and a terrifying way of ascent

Best Of IgoUgo

Story/Tip

View from Varlaam monastery Photo - Meteora, Greece

Quote:

In medieval times there was only one way of reaching Varlaam monastery - winch and net.A visitor could be hauled up in a rope net - half an hour of giddy twirling with the only sound being the rope slipping through the capstan. What thoughts accompanied these early visitors as they ascended? How strong is the rope? What if it broke? The terrified visitor must have been sweating profusely; imagining the drop hundreds of feet to the rocks below.Nowadays there is a rope footbridge from a cleft sticking out of the Pindos mountains. Most of the monasteries have precarious and genuinely dangerous ways of access. Varlaam was first settled by hermits in 1350 and they were shown the way...Read More

In medieval times there was only one way of reaching Varlaam monastery - winch and net.

A visitor could be hauled up in a rope net - half an hour of giddy twirling with the only sound being the rope slipping through the capstan. What thoughts accompanied these early visitors as they ascended? How strong is the rope? What if it broke? The terrified visitor must have been sweating profusely; imagining the drop hundreds of feet to the rocks below.

Nowadays there is a rope footbridge from a cleft sticking out of the Pindos mountains. Most of the monasteries have precarious and genuinely dangerous ways of access. Varlaam was first settled by hermits in 1350 and they were shown the way to the summit by local mountaineering guides. Later the sheer rocks were scaled with scaffolding which was a set of timbers wedged into crevices. Later they used colossal ladders to ascend to the top.

Every visitor can't help but put themselves in ancient shoes and imagining themselves being winched up by creaking rope. But nowadays Varlaam is one of the easiest monasteries to visit as it and "Great Meteora" are connected to Kalambaka by bus in the summer and there is a simple rope bridge and stone steps connecting it with the outside world. Varlaam is one of the most beautiful of the monasteries. It started as a hermetic retreat for the monk Varlaam and consisted of a chapel and a few small cells. During Renaissance times patrons from the nearby cities of Ioannina and Trikala supported the church. Varlaam was rich and its fame and prominence meant it garnered many religious treasures.

A ten minute drive up from Kastraki brings you to the carpark outside Varlaam. Get there as early as possible as in summer it gets very crowded although the tour parties seemed to have worked out a ruse of getting there when it opens at 9am. But as you get close the whole thing looks like a Gothic fairytale. With its red sloping roofs, small church domes and streaked rock it did look like something out of a fantasy genre. The rope bridge over the 500ft chasm is easily traversed then it is up a set of stone stairs that wind around the rock. The views from here are unbelievable. We were on one of the furthest titanic rocks and had a whole valley tens of miles wide between Varlaam and the next set. The rocks across the valley were miles wide and thousands of feet high.

When you climb the steps and pass through the doors you will be led into the courtyard and loggia. The courtyard has a balustrade which has magnificent views of the plain of Thessaly. Around here you will also see bearded monks as this is a working monastery. Most are very young, bearded and very polite - they must be used to dealing with hundreds of tourists. Most tourists head for the chapel and this is where the crowds build up. It's very small and dark (not more than ten foot wide) but is covered from top to bottom in peeling 14th century frescoes. The frescoes showed "the judgement of sinners" with those not making the grade being devoured by a huge fish/sea dragon. The pictures were much of a same - either the damned being consumed by hellfire or medieval patriarchs glaring back at me from the walls.

This is the first time I had been in an orthodox church. Our churches are grey and stone but are spacious. The Greeks/Slavs/Russians keep theirs in semi-darkness with golden candelabras suspended from the ceiling. The treasury was next door with ceremonial robes on display, copies of the bible, and icons hundreds of years old and encrusted with precious stones. More interesting was the winch room which had a metal basket suspended above the void with metal runners allowing it to be swung into the monastery. The monks supplies are still received this way. Finally, it wasn't all doom and gloom at the monastery. Nearby was a 16th century colossal wine barrel standing 8ft high. Imagine the amount of wine that contained. I couldn't resist the joke once everyone had crowded in.

"Now I can see the point of being a monk..." Read Less

Cheer!
Flag

The convent of Ayiou Stefanou - nuns, religious icons and a drop to infinity

Best Of IgoUgo

Story/Tip

The monastery at its bleakest Photo - Meteora, Greece

Quote:

Viewing the monasteries can be terrifying...At one point I was perched on a rounded rock overlooking the massive valley of the Meteora. The surface was smooth and shiny and the footing was precarious. Genuinely worrying was the other twenty people on this rock all trying to negotiate the tiny space and line up their cameras. Not a place for non-grip footwear. One slip and it was a quick drop into infinity.But the view was one of the best I have ever seen. In front of us was a plinth of grey rock standing 2,000 ft high. A sense of scale was achieved with the Roussanou monastery at its base perched on its own rock. The medieval roofs of the monastery didn't even reach a fortieth ...Read More

Viewing the monasteries can be terrifying...

At one point I was perched on a rounded rock overlooking the massive valley of the Meteora. The surface was smooth and shiny and the footing was precarious. Genuinely worrying was the other twenty people on this rock all trying to negotiate the tiny space and line up their cameras. Not a place for non-grip footwear. One slip and it was a quick drop into infinity.

But the view was one of the best I have ever seen. In front of us was a plinth of grey rock standing 2,000 ft high. A sense of scale was achieved with the Roussanou monastery at its base perched on its own rock. The medieval roofs of the monastery didn't even reach a fortieth of the size of the rock. The whole vista was breathtaking. It is easy to see why the monks who built these monasteries felt aweinspired by what they saw as Gods works around them.

This viewpoint was in the central part of the Pindos mountains. Not far from Aghia Triada and on the way to the Convent of Ayiou Stefanou. This is where the roads get very twisty, almost every part is a switchback road. And it is also very hard to reach if you have not got your own transport or are not part of a tour. There is a way to hike across country from Varlaam monastery to Roussanou but Ayiou Stefanou is another half hour from there.

But Ayiou Stefanou is worth a visit. It's a royal convent and one of the most beautiful in the Meteora. It was on a ledge rather then a plug or pinnacle and overlooked the plain of Thessaly with Kalambaka far down below. It's one of the oldest founded in 1200 AD. The Byzantine Emporer Andronikos lived devoutly in the monastery during the 14th century and gave it the royal warrant. As a result it was one of the richest monasteries in the Meteora. Most of it's treasures are priceless and not found anywhere else in the world.

Of course, it differs from the other male dominated monasteries in being a convent. Nuns were there, wearing black headscarves, ready to collect your 2 euro entrance. The monasteries/convents of the Meteora are no longer self sufficient. They are kept alive by the Greek government and in return they must let in tourists for a few euros - including women. But Greece has more than one collection of monasteries, the "monks republic" at Mt Athos in Macedonia still hasn't cracked and allowed women even as visitors. Even the farm animals are male.

The convent did feel more feminised then Varlaam with a rose garden in the crevasse under the bridge and a topiary garden at the rear. The set of buildings was made out yellow stone and terracotta and the courtyard garden housed a set of cloisters. The chapel is small and covered in colourful fading frescoes. It is a small dark place with a wooden ceiling and dark marble narthex. Bright paintings of kings, shepherds, saints and the Virgin Mary cover every inch. And this being a convent there was a long line of female saints.

The treasures were impressive. They included Gold embossed iconoclasts of Christ on the Cross dating from the 16th century, hand drawn manuscript Codexs', Icons of the 'Virgin in Lamentation', the abbots gold encrusted mitres and the heads of St Athanasios. Interesting though this is, it can get very cramped in the treasury especially with the myriad of nationalities viewing for a glimpse of the treasures. The garden at the rear had a magnificent terrace and balustrade with views across the plain of Thessaly. Kalambaka was spread out in the distance and you can make out roads and buildings.

From here you get a sense of the Meteora being an otherworldly place. There is no sound up here but the wind and the burble of other tourists. What must life have been like in Kalambaka down the ages? Imagine the start of a day in the middle ages. The first morning light illuminates the folds and crevices of the mountains. The sound of matins echoes down from the monasteries and the peasants in the village get ready for a new day.

There is something timeless about the Meteora. It's a gorgeous place. Read Less

Cheer!
Flag

The sacred precinct of the Pythoness - or how I came very close to seeing Delphi

Best Of IgoUgo

Story/Tip

The view from Delphi village Photo - Delphi, Greece

Quote:

The ancient Greeks called Delphi "the navel of the world"...High in the mountains of central Greece, forty miles from Athens, lies the ruins of one of the most mysterious places in the ancient world.Delphi was where you communicated with a 'divine presence'. The presence showed itself through the presence of a rock chasm where strange vapours rose. And anyone who inhaled them entered a trance and muttered strange prophecies for those who chose to hear them. A priestess used to sit in a seat above the chasm known as "the pythoness". She was consulted by king and emperor alike, wars were declared and kingdoms sacked on the advice of the oracle of Delphi.Kings and Emperors may hav...Read More

The ancient Greeks called Delphi "the navel of the world"...

High in the mountains of central Greece, forty miles from Athens, lies the ruins of one of the most mysterious places in the ancient world.

Delphi was where you communicated with a 'divine presence'. The presence showed itself through the presence of a rock chasm where strange vapours rose. And anyone who inhaled them entered a trance and muttered strange prophecies for those who chose to hear them. A priestess used to sit in a seat above the chasm known as "the pythoness". She was consulted by king and emperor alike, wars were declared and kingdoms sacked on the advice of the oracle of Delphi.

Kings and Emperors may have got to see her but I only got to see the ruins from the outside and was unable to venture in and explore. A shame because I would have loved to have seen one of the most famous sites in Greece. If you do get the chance then go! Delphi is a nice little town high up in the mountains with amazing views of valleys and plains rolling down to the Gulf of Corinth. And it is an interesting place, thick pine woods cover the mountains looking as if they hide creatures from Greek mythology. And try and take a tour - what can seem a piece of rubble or crumbling wall can be brought to life by a talented tour guide.

I got to Delphi town as part of my CHAT tour. For about £100 I got an overnight trip up to the Meteora and part of the journey up there was a stop at Delphi. Unfortunately it didn't work out like that. As anyone who has been on a tour knows often the tour company connects you with several of their other tours. We were to connect with a tour up from the Peloponnese. So while most of the bus were on day trips from Athens could begin their tour of Delphi - we had to wait at a hotel for our connecting bus up to Kalambaka. We had precisely one hour in Delphi, and we realised it was half an hour walk from our rondezvous point to the site gates. That would leave us with precisely five minutes to see the site..

We decided to give it a go!

The village of Delphi is beautifully situated. It's on a ledge high up in the mountains overlooking a valley tens of miles long. A balaustrade and walkway gave good views of the pine covered slopes opposite and it was a good place to pose against a vertiginous backdrop. The town survives on tourists and has enough hotels, cats, tavernas and souvenir shops to keep them happy. There are buses direct to Athens but from what I hear they get very packed - a journey standing up is not uncommon. Livadhia is not far away and that has a train station. So perhaps get off there and do the rest of the journey by train. For Delphi is worth a look, it can be done as a day trip but you get to see the town when the tourists have gone if you stay overnight.

Unfortunately the nearest I got to the sacred precinct was the entrance where I could see a number of scrubby ruins hidden by pines up a slope before I had to head back to meet the bus. A real shame, because like all great ruins the story behind Delphi is mesmerising. There has been a temple on this site since pagan times. The earth goddess, Gaia, resided here. Her son, "the python" was ensconced in an adjoining cave. But everyone from the Myceneans onwards knew of the oracle of Delphi - the Dorians, Persians and Egyptians. The "pythoness" had a reputation for being truthful. Pilgrims from all over the ancient world would make the dangerous mountain trek up to Mt Parnassus. On arrival they would sacrifice a sheep or goat and submit their questions on a clay tablet. Her replies would then be interpreted by priests and scribbled down in hexameter verse. The answers were notoriously unambiguous.

I wish I had questioned the oracle before taking the tour. Still, its a good reason to come back to Greece. Next time I'll consult a entrails of a goat. That always does the trick... Read Less

Cheer!
Flag

IgoUgo

Meteora Journals

Upload Photos

Write a Review

Create a Trip Plan

Make a Journal

For Your Eyes Only - the monasteries of the Meteora