Panorama of Metéora Greece - a photo on Flickriver

            Per Wikipedia “The Metéora , "middle of the sky", "suspended in the air" or "in the heavens above" — etymologically related to "Meteorite"  is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece, second only to Mount Athos. 
The Theopetra caves 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) south of Metéora had inhabitants fifty millennia ago!
In the 9th century, an ascetic group of hermit monks moved up to the ancient pinnacles. They were the first people to inhabit Metéora. They lived in hollows and fissures in the rock towers, some of which reach 1800 ft (550m) above the plain. This great height, combined with the sheerness of the cliff walls, kept away all but the most determined visitors. Initially the hermits led a life of solitude, meeting only on Sundays and special days to worship and pray in a chapel built at the foot of a rock known as  Dhoupiani. As early as the 11th century AD hermit monks were believed to be living among the caves and cutouts in the rocks.
At the end of the 14th century, the Byzantine Empire's 800-year reign over northern Greece was being increasingly threatened by Turkish raiders who wanted control over the fertile plain of Thessaly. The hermit monks, seeking a retreat from the expanding Turkish occupation, found the inaccessible rock pillars of Meteora to be an ideal refuge. More than 20 monasteries were built, beginning in the 14th century.
Until the 17th century, the primary means of conveying goods and people from these eyries was by means of baskets and ropes.
Six of the monasteries remain today. Of these six, four were inhabited by men, and two by women. Each monastery has fewer than 10 inhabitants. The monasteries are now tourist attractions.”
Five monasteries are visible in this panorama, as well as a herd of mountain goats.
We visited two of the monasteries, St. Stephen and St Barbara. The monastery of St. Stephen had fairly new iconography painted in the area of worship, incredible work but photography not allowed!
An UNESCO World Heritage site.
Metéora is understandably a centre for rock climbing.

   

Taken on: May 25, 2013

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Greece 2013

Metéora

Meteora Monasteries

Kalabaka

Trikala

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St. Stephen Monastery

7 images merged in PSE 11

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St. Nicholas Anapausas Monastery

Holy Monastery of Roussanou /St. Barbara

Monastery of Great Meteoron

Monastery of Varlaam

five monasteries

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Camera: Nikon D7000, f/8.0, 1/80 sec, 20mm (=30mm), ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D7000
Lens:	18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6
Aperture:	f/8.0
Exposure Time:	0.013 sec (1/80)
Focal Length:	20mm (35mm equivalent: 30mm)
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Elements 11.0 Windows
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