Stavrovouni Monastery

According to legend, Helena was returning from the Holy Land with the True Cross when a storm drove her ashore on the coast of Cyprus.

At that night the True Cross was transferred by a miracle to the peak of a high hill and that a strong light was coming out of that peak. Helena decided to leave a piece there, and built a small chapel to house it. It has since become one of the most important Christian pilgrimage sites on the island of Cyprus and is considered to be one of the oldest monasteries in the world.

The monastery complex, besides the convent buildings and the monastery church, includes a slightly lower terrace with the Church of All Saints of Cyprus and a bookshop. Women are permitted as far as the bookshop - only men are allowed access to the monastery itself.