Cruise around Athos
Description:
Located on the third finger of the Halkidiki peninsula, this place still attracts believers from all over the world! Monasteries - fortresses built on steep coastal cliffs, truly amaze the imagination and are the face of asceticism!
According to legend, the Most Holy Mother of God herself is the intercessor and protector of this land. Even the ancient Greeks, who believed in the Olympian gods, considered this place a cult and erected pagan temples here in honor of Zeus and Apollo!
20 monasteries that serve as a place of humility, repentance and complete service to God for many who decided to say goodbye to the worldly life! Through work and prayer, monks deserve forgiveness for themselves and those for whom they pray. There are many miraculous icons of the Mother of God and other saints, valuable Christian relics, relics of saints! Time is different here! Every year thousands of pilgrims visit this promised land. However, among the pilgrims only men! According to tradition, none of the women, except the Virgin, has the right to set foot on this land, so as not to distract monks from serving God. If we talk about historical facts, then for more than a thousand years women are forbidden to be on the territory of the monastic state according to the decree “Avvaton”, and for violation of the ban they face a term of imprisonment.