• Around the Adriatic
    On the balcony of St. Nikolaos of Anapafsas ⛪The Ottomans must have had a hard time trying to conquer these monasteries 💀Varlaam ⛪Roussanou ⛪Miel considering becoming a monk ✝️Inside Holy Meteoron ⛪, the first and biggest monasteryYpapantis ⛪Bumping into a 'buildering' competition in town. Meteora really lives and breathes climbing.Some people 🔎 multipitching a 🧀1Sumi relaxing at the campingInside the chapel of the Holy Trinity ⛪Lunch with a view of St Stephen's ⛪1 picture, 5 monasteriesThe old way to haul in people & goods ...1... and the new wayHoping none of these stones come loose 🤞

    Meteora

    Sep 19–23 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    We thought Pindos would be hard to top, but Meteora easily joined our Greece highlights list 😍. It's quite touristy, but standing beneath those towering stone pillars with monasteries perched on top is simply jaw-dropping.

    A bit of history: hermits came here in the 11th century, and monks followed in the 14th century. They built high-up monasteries looking for contemplation, isolation and refuge from Ottoman attacks. Back then, the only way up was by ladder or being hoisted in a giant net🪢😨.

    Out of the 24 monasteries once built, only 6 remain active, and we spent two days hiking between them 🥾.

    Meteora is also a climbing hotspot! The rock towers are made of sandstone and conglomerate, ancient river sediments from a time when this whole area was underwater 🌊. Quite scary to climb!    Read more