Evening Walks to the Vronta Monastery

One of our favorite evening walks is from the village up to the Vronta Monastery.  It’s about a 2 kilometer hike from Vourliotes, and it sits about 1,575 ft. above sea level, just off of the winding  road that leads up to it.  The amount of spectacular scenery in such a short walk beggars description: mountain ranges, vistas of Asia Minor, old stone cottages, chapels, and livestock shelters, exotic flowering plants, wild herbs, gardens, terraces, fragrant rosemary bushes and fig trees the that have sprouted from stone retaining walls, curious rock formations, roadside shrines, a farmer pruning his grape vines with a hand sickle, or dusting them with a stick and a pillow case. I could go on, but won’t.

 

 

The destination is no less spectacular.  The monastery is the oldest on the island.  The most consistent date given for its’ founding is 1566, but some sources give 1425 as the date for an earlier order founded there.  There is supposed to be a cave associated with the earlier site that we haven’t seen yet.  There are very few monks living there now.  The order is self sustained, growing all of its’ own food, but it accepts donations for votive candles and building repair funds.  The monks are cordial, but do not initiate conversation with visitors.   A large part of the monastery looks like the ruins of an abandoned military barracks, but the church and the relics inside it, are pristine.  There is a sign at the entrance asking that people be “decently dressed” before entering.  Like restaurants that require sport coats for men, there are wall pegs bearing wrap around “loaner” skirts for women to cover their bare legs with.  Like the fort in St. Augustine, Florida it would be well worth a drive of several hours to see.  By good fortune, it is within easy walking distance for us.

photos by Newell