Meteora Proof of Religious Persistence

At first glance from a distance, it seemed impossible that anyone could have built these structures way before modern construction equipment existed. The Greek Orthodox monasteries of Great Meteoron, The Holy Trinity, Roussanou, Saint Nikolas, Varlaam, and Saint Stephanos defy any logical reasoning as they are constructed precariously on top of spectacular single monolith rocks at a height of up to 1,800 feet above the valley of Thessaly, a four-hour drive north of Athens, Greece. These standalone rocks in the middle of an otherwise flat valley were most likely formed around 60 million years ago during the Tertiary Period. Close up it only becomes more amazing in the realization that they had been built here in the 

13th and 14^th Century. In 1344 religious leader Athanasios Koinovitis arrived with a group of followers and founded the first monastery on a rock. Here the Greek Orthodox  monks learned to free climb and build caves in these rock walls to escape wars and persecution in order to pray in solitude God without outside interruption. Eventually, building materials were hauled up these rocks to complete the monasteries, seemingly clinging to the cliffs.

It would have been easier to carve stairs in the sandstone, but that would have made it possible for others to reach these pinnacles and thereby robbing the monks and nuns of the privacy of their religious retreat. Therefore, only removable ladders were used together with some woven baskets and netting operated by rope pullies. This way, entry was controlled. It is said that some of the monasteries took twenty years to construct. 

Twenty-four monasteries were built at Meteora, a name that means “suspended in air,” but today only six remain.

Under pressure from their bishop back in 1920, the monks began construction of steps carved in the rocks to allow walking up, but that had not progressed sufficiently by the time that much beloved Queen Marie, the last queen of Romania, became the first woman to ascend the Great Meteoron Monastery of Meteora. She was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, and Grand Duchess Marie Alexandra of Russia. Her grandmother was Queen Victoria, and her spouse was King Ferdinand of Romania. She had a reputation for openness, kindness and taking care of her constituents as a nurse. She possessed a bit of a “daredevil” attitude that, despite being the mother of six children, made her also the first woman to become a member of the French Academy of Beaux Arts and an outstanding writer. Three years later, on August 4, 1924, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine. Until her ascension at Meteora in 1921, it was understood that women simply did not attempt to visit Meteora and its monasteries. Today, even Orthodox Greek’s most revered site at Mt. Athos in Greece does not allow women and only a few are rumored or have claimed to have entered dressed as men.

Not astonishingly, when the queen was offered entry, she did not hesitate when she discovered she had to be hoisted up by the monks in a net sitting in Turkish fashion over dazzling heights of over one thousand feet. At the time the monks were delighted with her visit as it brought much needed publicity and funds to Meteora. However, since the rush of tourism is now common in Meteora, many of the clergy have departed as they can no longer live the tranquil life of prayer and solitude they had sought here. That said, I am surely not the first one to compliment the remaining monks and other staff on their friendliness and patience in dealing with the tourists. Even policing the strict dress code required to enter the monasteries is enforced with grace and thoughtful tolerance.

During WW II, it was proven that the staircase entries to the monasteries were not defendable as the Germans looted and burned many treasures here. There is even a photo of monks pushing a soldier over the edge of a rock wall, falling to his death. A defensive act that must have cost them great consternation, being totally against their religious doctrines.

Today, all six of the remaining monasteries are open to the public and approachable with medium effort. The Roussanou Monastery is the only one not requiring many steps, but a walking bridge crossing at a considerable height that makes access much less difficult but frightening for those with even a minor degree of acrophobia. 

Holy Trinity is the largest monastery with about 140 rather steep steps to climb. This is also the most visited one and of world fame due to a 007 Bond movie. The last scenes by Roger Moore in “For Your Eyes Only” were partly filmed here. This was not done without difficulty as the monks categorically refused to have any filming done inside despite full authorization from the Greek government and payment to a bishop. The outside scene included James Bond climbing up the vertical rock face to reach St. Cyril’s, a fictional monastery, and it is said that Roger Moore almost refused to do the famous scene as he suffered terribly from vertigo. Consequently, most of the actual climbing was done by a stuntman. Much was later recreated on film sets as allegedly the monks went as far as hanging laundry out to dry to boycott the filming. Other famous movies partially filmed in Meteora include The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Boy on a Dolphin, Tintin, The Naval, The Outlaw and the episode Eyrie Castle in Game of Thrones. However, again, filming here was boycotted by the monks and several scenes had to be digitally added in later.

In 1888, Meteora was included by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, and today, it is a popular destination for people from all over the world. Most tourists only visit one or two monasteries, and I suggest those should be Great Meteoron, the oldest and, I believe largest monastery, and Varlaam. With more time, follow up with Roussanou, probably one of the most beautiful, Holy Trinity, and possibly Agios Stefanos, although it is the busiest and St Nikolaos, which is the smallest and least crowded monastery.

Today well paved scenic roads offer specially dedicated road signs leading to the six monasteries. It is highly recommended to visit Meteora in Spring or Fall and stay overnight in the area in Kalambaka, or Kastraki, which is smaller and more tranquil. Start early in the morning as the tour buses from all directions normally arrive by midday. Every monastery opens at nine in the morning and is closed one day of the week. Visiting Meteora, if not a spiritual experience, at the very least is a testament to the dedication, determination and strong will of the original monks.

Ewout Rijk de Vries and his wife, Jill, brought America Travel Arrangements to Marco Island 40 years ago. They specialize in high-end small adventure tours and small safari groups for clientele all over the world but also are experts on high-end cruises with the help of longtime assistant and friend, Michelle Wegman. In combination with his writing and photography, Ewout has visited over 100 countries. Please direct your comments or questions to ewout@coastalbreezenews.com as he likes to hear from readers.