Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The monastery was founded after the discovery of a priceless silver-plated icon of the Virgin that was brought
from Asia Minor. Believed to assist fertility, the icon had been guarded in a nearby cave by two hermits until their
deaths. The monastery's existing church, built in 1731, is currently closed to the public as it is part of a working
religious order. However, if you are polite and patient the monks may well let you in.
Continuing along the mountain road, you pass the shaded picnic areas of
3
Troöditissa
and
4
Kampi tou
Kalogyrou
in the cool pine forests. From there you reach the village of
5
Prodromos
(
www.prodromos.org.cy
).
This small village still has some hill-station clientele but is not as well known as Troödos and Platres. At 1380m,
it's Cyprus' highest village and is surrounded by lush orchards with apple, peach, plum, almond and chestnut
trees. Looping back towards the south brings you to
6
Paliomylos
and
7
Agios Dimitrios
, a pair of timeless
villages barely touched by tourism, buried beneath the greenery and grapevines.
A little further on is
8
Foini
, a great place to stop for some
loukoumades
(similar to Turkish Delight, but fla-
voured with
bergamot
rather than traditional rosewater) and a strong coffee. It's also very popular for its hand-
made pottery and
pitharia
(earthenware storage jars). For lunch, a good choice is the fresh trout at Neraida.
Located on the western side of the village, near the stream, it's open Thursday to Tuesday for lunch, and for din-
ner Friday and Saturday.
Marathasa Valley
This scenic valley to the northwest of Troödos cradles some of the mountain's most im-
portant and impressive sights, like the splendid Kykkos Monastery, the beautifully fres-
coed church of Archangelos Michail in Pedoulas; and the humble Agios Ioannis Lam-
badistis Monastery in Kalopanayiotis.
Spring and autumn are particularly lovely times to visit, when wildflowers display their
dazzling rainbow of colours. There's also some excellent agrotourism accommodation to
be found in the valley, mostly in restored traditional houses.
Pedoulas
Pop 195
Pedoulas (
www.pedoulasvillage.com
) is the main town and tourist centre in the Marathasa
Valley with some reliably good eating and sleeping options. Famous for its spring water
(sold all over Cyprus), it's particularly cool and breezy in summer.
1
Sights
