Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Ηπείρου

The Vyliza (or Viliza) monastery is located near the village of Matsouki. It is built in a wild landscape on an altitude of more than 1.000 meters, overlooking over a gorge of Kallaritikos river. The name “Viliza” - from the Latin word “vigilo”, which means “guardian” - was given to the monastery. Its location and fortuitous construction justify the name. Most probably the monastery was founded in the 11th century. But the most ancient written testimony of Vyliza is the icon of St. John the Baptist, dating back to 1676. The monastery was one of the most important in Epirus with a rich library and a great participation in the local community. The monastery has many cells around the catholicon in a rectangular courtyard. The little church has splendid frescoes, dating back to 1793. The precious icons of the church are replicas. The original icons are kept safely in a museum in the neighboring village of Matsouki. In 1893 the monastery was abandoned and then destroyed. Since 1981 the monastery has been restored. To visit the monastery, we first had to collect the key from a cafe in the village of Matsouki. After parking the car at the roadside, we could start a walk to the monastery. The stone-paved path went constantly up and down and counted many steps. When it started raining on the way back, it was quite a challenging walk of almost 2 kilometres. (See PiPs on the right side of the main picture)

The Kipina Monastery - a couple of kilometers outside the village of Kalarrites - is considered being one of the most impressive monasteries in Greece. It is wedged into a vertical cliff and seems to be a part of the rock. It was constructed in 1212 and dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary. A short path from the road leads to the monastery; after crossing a wooden drawbridge that guarded the entrance from invaders, one can take a look inside. The katholikon inside a small natural cave is decorated with impressive frescoes, dating from the late 17th century/beginning 18th century. The iconostase is carved and gilded. During our visit it was absolutely dark inside the church and had to use my mobile-phone light for making some pictures. A secret door leads to a 250 meters deep cave, which was used to protect nearby residents. During its existence the monastery played an important historic role, acting as both a secret school during the years of the Turkish occupation, as well as a hidden arsenal throughout the Greek War of Independence and the following liberation of Epirus. The monastery got its name probably from the gardens ( kipoi in Greek) that were cultivated by the monks in the valley. Nowadays, there are no monks living in the monastery and it is free to visit. Just check if it is open, otherwise one has to collect a key from a nearby café.