Prior to coming to Greece, some of the most dramatic photos we saw were of the buildings that seem hover above the towns of Kalambaka and Kastraki, known as the Meteora Monasteries. (Meteora is Greek for “suspended in the air”). They were built on cliffs rising 400 meters above the plain, and six of the original twenty-four monasteries remain open for public viewing.
In the 11th century, Orthodox Christian hermit monks, came to this central Greece location for spiritual reasons and settled in cliff dwellings, remnants of which are still visible. By the 14th century they had started building the clifftop monasteries, making them almost inaccessible.
The sunny weather we experienced in Athens turned inclement and the buildings were partially obscured behind clouds and rain.It was misting by the time we toured an open monastery, dampening some of the exterior drama, but the interior of the monastery was magnificent.
After our tour we viewed the early cave dwellings. The mist started to clear by the end of the day, and the following day was beautiful (as so often happens). By then we had moved on to our road trip to Delphoi and the Peloponnesse.
We were fortunate enough to stay at the Douplani House Hotel while we were in Kastraki. The accommodations were delightful served a wonderful breakfast. Douplani House is located among the cliffs.
