The Murals of Agios Nikolaos
We've featured a lot of churches in our blogs. This is not surprising, as they are lovely buildings ornately decorated, and great places for quiet reflection on a hot summer's day. The more modern churches often have fantastic murals which take your breath away. But this is not a new tradition. A visit to the remote church of Agios Nikolaos, near Galataria, will show you that fully immersive church murals have been around for centuries...
Little Church on the Prairie
The Church of Agios Nikolaos can be found on the road from Galataria to Salamiou. If you are descending from Galataria you will find it half way down the valley on your left. We first spotted it when we were exploring the area during the winter rains. However, it was pelting down at the time, so we stuck to the main road and left it for another day.
Rear View
Fast forward a few months and we are exploring the Xeros River nearby. We couldn't travel any further upstream as the track was washed out, so we returned to the road, and once more found ourselves by the church.
Sensible Foundations
They certainly knew how to pick a decent build location back in the day. This church is built on solid foundations. It almost looks like it has grown out of the rock it stands on.
The Entrance
So let's go in.
Guard Lizard
The bouncer assured us we were dressed appropriately. Joking aside, if you visit these churches, please remember to treat them with respect, and dress appropriately. People come here to pray and even remote churches like this get visited fairly frequently.