Cyprus - My 7 day circuit across the country - Day 6 late morning -Troodos Mountains - Omodos -Timiou Stavrou Monastery (Monastery of the Holy Cross) - The 10th of November 2016

A rather undescribable feeling took over me as I watched the slopes of the Southern part of the Troodos mountains from the bus ... what it was about I don't exactly know but it was as if I was getting closer to what I had come for.

We stopped at Omodos, one of the Krassochoria vine growing villages for a few moments before visiting its Monastery, so as to buy some local products which ranged from alcoholic beverages, jellies, rusks, arkatena bread, as well as brocades, threaded quilts, narrow-knit and Chantilly laces. 

 

 

 

The 12th century Monastery of the Holy Cross, one of the oldest and most historic monasteries of Cyprus stood in the centre of the village, its timber roofed monastic buildings surrounding a three hall Basilica which we spent a short time at. According to legend St. Helena, Mother of Emperor Constantine, left there a piece of the rope with which Christ is supposed to have been tied to the cross. The relic is is kept in a cross-shaped reliquary and so is another venerated relic- the skull of St. Philip's, which is kept in a silver casket.

 

 

I just strolled around quiet and curiously, once more feeling people's religious attachement to icons and letting the surrounding atmosphere take over me ...  

 

 

Cyprus - My 7 day circuit across the country - Day 6 morning - West Cyprus - Pafos - Agios Neofytos Monastery ensemble; church, hermitage cells and Museum - The 10th of November 2016

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We headed towards the 12th century founded St. Neofytos Monastery so as to visit its Church, the hermitage cave and the Museum which are part of an ensemble I personally found to be very interesting.  With the exception of the Monastery Church where we managed to take some inner photos, no others were allowed, which was a pity, because the most impressive frescoes and religious artefacts were precisely to be seen at the  enkleistra of three cave cells and the Museum itself.

 

 

Being a hermit and an ascetic, author of philosophical treatises and hymns the Saint is said to have dug  three cells in the limestone rock with his bare hands and later painted the amazingly beautiful mural frescoes that still cover its walls depicting the last days of the life of Christ.

 

 

It is impossible to describe the feeling as we walked into the cells especially the first two where most of the frescoes were painted. The whole atmosphere was pungeant and despite the exiguous space he lived in I can understand his predisposition to write in such a monastic type of environment.

 

 

I could't help buying a book on icons to later "explore" once I realised that from now onwards the chances of photographing would be scarce and one of the major reasons that had led me to come to Cyprus had been the frescoes. 

 

 

Note: The frescoe reproductions have been downloaded from the internet.