Monastery of Theoktistis
The monastery complex of Theoktistis is a place you must visit while on Ikaria. It is located high in the mountains next to the village of Pygi, 8 km away from Evdilos. Up on the way to the monastery you will pass by authentic stone houses and old churches, and at some points the trees on both sides of the road are so thick that they form little tunnels.
The monastery was founded around 15 century or earlier. It is made of stone and consists of the main monastery building, two churches and a few auxiliary buildings. One of these buildings is turned into a miniature folklore museum, and another one is used as a coffee-shop from which you can also buy local herbs, spices and home-made sweets. There are no nuns or monks in the monastery, but there is a house-keeper who welcomes visitors and show them around. Inside the complex is the church of Theoskepasti built under a huge flat rock in such way that the rock looks like a cap on the top. The church is very small and with low ceiling, adults need to bent down in order to get in and walk inside. Around the monastery you will notice a few more small buildings with such rock ”caps” but it is not clear who built them and why.
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highlights: monastery complex and church, religious sight in Ikaria, North Aegean Islands, Greece