
Mules are still used for carrying the loads in construction work. These ones are going back for more stones.
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The first view of Agiou Gregoriou monastery
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The guestmaster's room in Agiou Gregoriou
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More contruction work at this monastery too.
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Beautiful new woodwork, mostly made from the monastery's own chestnut forests higher up.
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Daniel in the lion's den.
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We were particuarly fortunate in this monastery to be allowed to photograph some of the frescoes in the narthex (outer entrance) of a snall chapel. The imaginative ideas and the blodness of the execution give you a new view of frescoes. And these were just two of them! The fresco below was not in very good condition, but was nevertheless a delight with buried people rising from their graves, drowned people rising ut of the waters, and even people eaten by animals re-emerging from their mouths.
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The day of the resurrection
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Every inch of available land is terraced and cultivated
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Construction works
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and more construction
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and more mules doing the heavy work
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The garden to the right of the main entrance
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The monastery kitchen with very modern equipment
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St. George on the left, one of the many fresoces in the refectory
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These frescoes were done by 5 of the monks fairly recently
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Detail of the refectory floor
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The entrance to the main church of the monastery
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One of the cantilevered walkways
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Athos time and the world's time
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Athos time is measured from the time of sunset, which is 12 o'clock. Most monasteries reset their clocks every day or two, as the time of sunset changes. The photocrpah above was taken at around noon by Greek time, but Athos time is around 3½ hours ahead, since sunset the night before was arond 8.30. The first service of the day was arund 4 am Greek timeduring our visit in June, but of course it gets earlier and earlier according to Greek time until the end of the year.
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A nice fish mosaic
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A very colourful door with the garden beyond
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Looking out from the terrace
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The jetties have been completely rebuilt
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The ancient approach road to the monastery, and (left) detail showing the "bricks on edge" to prevent slipping
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The tower of St. Anne
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An outlying church at the start of the path back to Agiou Paulou
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A little further on
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The path has some quite steep gradients
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but some spectacular views
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First view of the monastery of Agiou Paulou
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The arsenal and the view back to Dafni
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The full extent of Ag. Paulou
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The old path suddenly joins the modern bulldozed road
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The main courtyard of Ag. Paulou. Like many of the monasteries, it has suffered from a major fire, and was completely rebuilt some 100 years ago. Unusualy, there is quite a lot of stained glass, i fiarly large panes of colour, which give a curious effect in the sunlight.
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Looking over the parapet to the roof of a small church
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Sunset
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Home page
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4 Perceptions
These pages posted as a public service by Internetworks Ltd of Epsom , England in July 2001
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