Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Great
shows the great conqueror as a humble skeleton. Look just above the door, past the
candles.
For a panoramic break, visit the rambling
Psaropetra lookout
, located 300m east of
the signposted fork northeast of Moni Varlaam.
Moni Agias Varvaras Rousanou
MONASTERY
( 9am-6pm Thu-Tue Apr-Oct, to 2pm Nov-Mar)
Access to Moni Agias Varvaras Rousanou is
via a small wooden bridge. The beautiful coloured-glass-illuminated
katholikon
is the
highlight here, with superb frescoes of the
Resurrection
(on your left entering) and
Transfiguration
(on your right). The imposing steep structure of Rousanou is itself a
stunning accomplishment, and is today home to an order of around 15 nuns. If you're
there near closing, listen for the call to vespers.
Moni Agias Triados
MONASTERY
(Holy Trinity Monastery; 24320 22220; 9am-5pm Fri-Wed Apr-Oct, 10am-4pm Fri-Tue Nov-
Mar)
Of all the monasteries in Meteora, Moni Agias Triados has the most remote feel,
plus the longest approach. It was featured in the 1981 James Bond film
For Your Eyes
Only
. The views here are extraordinary, and the small 17th-century
katholikon
is beauti-
ful, in particular the
Judgement of Pilate
and the
Hospitality of Abraham
. A well-marked
1km
monopati
leads back to Kalambaka.
Moni Agiou Stefanou
MONASTERY
( 24320 22279; 9am-1.30pm & 3.30-5.30pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, 9.30am-1pm & 3-5pm Nov-
Mar)
The newest of the monastery's two
katholikon
of Moni Agiou Stefanou was built in
1798 and is dedicated to St Charalambos. In recent years, Greek hagiographer Vlassios
Tsotsonis has been repainting the
katholikon
(depicting the Life of Christ) with beautiful
results. Efficient nuns do a thriving trade selling religious souvenirs. The monastery is at
the very end of the road, 1.5km beyond Agias Triados.
VISITING THE MONASTERIES
Entry to each monastery is €3 and dress codes apply: no bare shoulders are al-
lowed, men must wear trousers and women must wear skirts below the knee
(wrap-around skirts are generally provided at the entrances). Before planning your
route, double-check days and opening hours; the monks are an independent lot,
