Close to Kalampaka, in the way to Meteora is found the graphic village named Kastraki, with the characteristic traditional life and its rich natural beauty. Its beauty is noticed, particularly, by the imposing landscape of rocks of monastic state of Meteora. The village is embedded in the embrace of huge rocks, ressembling that they protect it. The community was created the time of Ottoman domination with the conjunction of smaller settlements, from Epirote men that resorted there in order to be saved from the notorious autocrat of Ioannina, Tourkish-Albanian Ali Pasa.

A Byzantine castle gave the name in the village. Few ruins of it are saved today. In prewar times the village maintained intact the rural picture of Greek countryside. Today, however, with the enormous attendance of sightseers, it has developed in a marvellous place of recreation with camping, taverns and hostels. This infrastructures offer pleasant rest in the visitors of Meteora.

Diava is a semi-mountainous village (300m. height), 3,5 km south-west of Kalampaka. It is constituted by roughly 900 residents, which deal in their majority with agriculture and livestock-farming.

In the East of the village, the River Penios flows. Exceptional beauty the forests ?Channels? in the 1200 m., in distance of 8 km from Diava are distinguished Meteores and Domokos. The old name of village was ?Prebenta?, that in the local dialect meant passage. It was renamed in Diava, because it was the crossing, the passage to the villages of Aspropotamos.

In the limits of communities Diava ? Agia Paraskevi, the ruins of ?Palaiokastro? were saved, ancient fortress the classic or hellenistic years. Interest present the post-byzantine churches of Agia Paraskevi, Agios Dimitrios and Agios Athanassios. Considerably popular are also events that revive in the village the New Year's day, on Sunday of Apokreon, in 1st May and in 26 July, where becomes resurgence of traditional agricultural activities.

Meteora, "Thebais" of Stagoi, as they were apprositely called, is the largest and the most important complex of monasteries in the whole Greece after Mount Athos. At the northwest edge of the Plain of Thessaly, between the mountain massifs of Pindos and Antichasia, near the Peneios river, hounted by the nymphs of the Greek forests and rivers, the Dryads and Naiads, the stone giants of Meteora stand still and silent, and their proud and imposing aspect breaks off the monotony of the landscape of the vast Thessalic plain right above kalambaka City and the picturesque kastraki, causing awe and ecstasy.

The rocky forest of the Meteora Godsent rocks creates one of the world's most wondrous and spectacular landscapes. There, the anchoride weary of the hustle and bustle of the wordly life, found the most appropriate place for the ascetic life and respose, the ideal refuge in which to seek tranquility of soul and peace, during his despserate efforts to conquer his passions and abate life's anxiety with the help of the stunning landscape. On these untrodden peaks the daring abd determined hermit discovered the secret ladder which leads to heaven's chambers and ultimately to union with God, as the hymnographer characteristically describes: "The net says to the monks, be careful, not only do i lift you up from the ground to the top, but also to heaven".

The first traces of the history of Meteora are shrouded in the mist of the legend and tradition. It seems that early as the 11th century the first hermits braved the storms and the fierce weather and armed with their indomitable will, they climbed up on the rocks like the wildbirds of these wind-beaten crags in quest of fulfillment of soul and redemption.

In the late years of the 11th century or the early years of the 12th century the nucleus of a rundimentary monastic state was already in existence, the Skete of Doupiani or Stagoi and the worship was focused on the church of Theotokos (mother of God) which was the Kyriakon of the skete. "Head of the Skete of Stagoi had been proposed as the foremost being (protaton)", according to the so-called "Historical Treatise" or "Chronicle of Meteora". In this church, which still stands today, just below the Monastery of St. Nicholas Anapafsas, the austere and withdrawn from the world hermits gathered together each Sunday. They descended from their caves, their "prosefchadia" and cells to participate in the communal, formal and established worship of God.

The head of the skete of Stagoi, according to the Athonite tradition, bore the title of "Protos" (Prior) and Superior of the Skete. It should be noted that "No-one acquired the title abbot, neighter in the Meteora, or any other monastery; that is except the Prior of the Skete of Doupiani, no-one else was called superior in any Monastery in Meteora. This habbit prevailed because the Prior of the skete had also the name of the abbacy".


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