Magnificent Meteora, Greece

Our tour guide, Jim, picked us up to start our tour and as soon as we boarded the bus we knew we were in for a fun afternoon. Jim was just brilliant, entertaining, interesting, engaging and informative. One of the best tour guides we have ever had. He told us the history of the area as we started our drive up the mountainous roads, making sure we got to stop at many great photo locations. Just seeing the monasteries perched on top of the Meteora rocks was mind blowing to say the least. Our first photo stop just showed us a glimpse of the vastness and height of this place.

Many centuries ago, on these gigantic rocks with the breathtaking landscape reaching heights of more than 600 metres, monk originally came to the area seeking solitude and lived in caves naturally formed on the side the mammoth sandstone pillars. Accessible only by ropes and hand made ladders, the monks formed one of the most important monastic communities of Greece.

The Greek word Meteora means “suspended in the air” and this phrase aptly describes these remarkable Greek Orthodox monasteries perched on top of the steep rocks.

Today only six monasteries are active with a small number of monks or nuns who reside on Meteora. In 1988, the Meteora monasteries have been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List

Thankfully Jim stopped at many stops along the away allowing us to photograph and try and capture the grandeur and beauty of this place. Sadly photos just can’t convey the feelings of being here.Read more