Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Varlaam Monastery

After a calf-burning session on Mt. Olympus, we drove a couple of hours to Meteora, Greece, home of a stunning collection of monasteries perched impossibly atop rock precipices. The seeming inaccessibility of the rocks was no doubt a draw for solitude-seeking monks, the first of whom arrived in 985. He was followed by others, until a monastery was built in 1336. At one time, there were twenty-four monasteries spread over the various rocks, but now there are only thirteen. Below you see various angles of one monastery, Varlaam. More to follow.

In the foreground is Roussanou Nunnery. Varlaam is in the upper right, high on the cliff, and Agios Nikolaos Anapfasas is in the background.

The winding stairs leading up to Varlaam


This was taken the following day, after the weather cleared a bit, from below Varlaam.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

These photographs put me into a satisfying reverie. They're gorgeous, Betsy. Thank you for the information, too. It added even more to my pleasure. JM

Betsy said...

Hi Mom,
These photos and words were from Brett! He really took the time to learn all about the monasteries, and photograph them from every angle. I can't take credit!
Love, Betsy

Anonymous said...

You must still be that person who said she "couldn't be a brownie, because she couldn't live up to the pledge." You have enough to take credit for, anyway, so pass on my remarks to Brett, for me, ok?

judy baker said...

I enjoyed each of the photos in this set even more when I clicked on each and saw the enlarged version. Incredible!! mom/judy