A Special Monastery
Some of the most memorable experiences in Greece come not from visiting major sites but from modest, remote, unexpected encounters. There's just such a thing outside Metsovo -- the restored 14th-century Moni Ayios Nikolaos -- that rewards a little extra effort. It's not just that the church contains some quite spectacular 18th-century frescoes (lost to sight until the 1950s), a fine iconostasis, and some icons. It's that the resident caretaker is a lovely woman who, even if you don't know a word of Greek, somehow manages to communicate with you; beyond that, she weaves her own handsome textiles in the Metsovo tradition and will sell them to you -- but only if you are interested. Finally there is the monastery's location, high on a slope in a remote setting. There are two ways to get there. One is a half-hour walk down a rather steep and rough trail (and hour-long walk back up). It's signed from the far corner of the main square; take the second left, head for the clock tower, and then follow the signs. But you can drive closer to it by taking the road out of the town square signed Ioannina; at about 1km (1/2 mile), turn left onto the asphalt road signed Anilio, and wind downward for another 3.5km (2 miles). You will spot the monastery up on the hillside to your left, and after parking you have to scramble through a vineyard. Knock on the monastery door -- the caretaker will allow entry during reasonable hours (until 7:30pm in high season).
