st. valsamitis

MUST VISIT!! Situated among the hills just beside CHora of Amorgos, a little monastery, white, simple, full of flowers and ...cats! Sister Irene is the main "attraction". A woman full of light, joy and spirit!

Sister Irini is a wonderful person, welcoming everyone and explaining the history of the place.Here there is a very good energy, and you really feel great when you visit this Monastery. Make sure you see the cave with the water in the church.. You can also buy a nice painting from the hands of sister Irini.

Great place to visit. Bring comfortable shoes and long pants unless you want to wear someones old possibly sweaty jeans. You can't enter church in shorts. If you watch Big Blue later you will be able to say "I was there"

This Monastery is alive now with sister Irini welcoming everyone with a smile.Every Saturday morning there are services, following by a community breakfast, The whole feeling and atmosphere is unique. Everyone should visit when visiting Amorgos.

Hidden in the Amorgian mountains,this small monastery gains you from the first time.It shines super white under the sun, its small garden is lovely and the inside wall iconography are old and precious.Warm and sincere welcoming from the lady has the care of the monastery (as the nun was in Hozoviotissa that day) touched us.Everyone is invited in 'trapeza' (dining room) for raki, sweet and cold water before leaving.

During our walk Katapola - Chora we stopped at this monastery and got a guided tour and something to eat and drink. The monastery is small. A visit doesn't take more than half an hour

Many years ago I met this artist DIna in the small village of Lagada in Aigiali (Aigiali is probably the nicest port in Greece!). This summer we passed by - like every year - the church of Giorgos Balsamitis a little bit south of Chora. And to our very big surprise the church ground also had turned into a monastry area. The building connected to the churhwas now a monastery for nuns again - 257 years after the last nun died! And the very best part is that the nun who lived there was in fact Dina - who now had the name Irini since she was re-baptised - and she had moved in after 5 years of mental and religous preparations.I strongly recommend a visit there, and she speaks very good English. She has a good story :-).

AN ORTODOX CHURCH INSTEAD A PAGAN TEMPLENo doubt, there was an altar here, on the place of a spring considered to be the oracle of Amorgos Island. Christians of the island built here a church, protected by San George (Agios Gheorgios Valsamitis), in the past, because they appropriated their ancestors’ spring. The ancient spring is still here, in the southern corner of the first room of the church. The legend says that pagan people of Yperia (the ancient name of Amorgos Island) used to come and ask the spring when they had to decide something very important. If the spring water were becoming unclear, the decision had been considered wrong and abandoned. This monastery is absolutely beautiful and interesting, at the same time, because it is a typical replacement of a Christian church instead of a pagan temple. Praying to Jesus Christ and to His Holy Mother, Christians transformed the spring oracle in healing water. “Valsamitis” is the Greek name of a healing plant which grows around the monastery. The church is a marvelous monument of Byzantine architecture, full of precious icons and Liturgical objects. The monastery is open again, nowadays, after an important restoration. The name of the nun who is living at Agios Gheorgios Valsamitis is Irene. A wonderful person! For anyone who arrived at Amorgos Island, a visit to Agios Gheorgios Valsamitis will be a unique moment.Luiza Barcan

Once you have marvelled at the cliff-side wonder of the imposing Monstery of Hozoviotosa, you will find another nearby site just as memorable, for other reasons.. It is the Monastery of Saint George Volsamitis, which has been lovingly restored single-handedly by Sister Constantina, who is there to guide you through the history of this 16th century small structure and its famed 'miraculous' water source which is still there to drink from. It is filled with stunning seventeenth century frescoes and fits beautfully among the terraces going down to the seaside. Those terraces were once the site of a type of mint--valsam--which gives its name to this peaceful and evocative site, made even more moving by the loving restoration of Sister Constantina.

Ο Ιερός Ναός του Αγ. Γεωργίου του Βαλσαμίτη βρίσκεται μετά τη Χώρα, στη διαδρομή προς Κάτω Μεριά. Το υδρομαντείο αυτό λειτουργούσε και κατά τους χριστιανικούς χρόνους, ως ΄΄αγίασμα Βαλσαμίτη΄΄, με χριστιανική αγιογράφηση του θαλαμίσκου, στο δάπεδο του οποίου υπήρχε η πηγή με το ΄΄λάλον ύδωρ΄΄. Το λάλον ύδωρ της πηγής στον Bαρσαμίτη εσίγησε επισήμως το 1967, κατόπιν αποφάσεως της Iεράς Mητροπόλεως. Οι ιστορίες πολλές, διαβάστε, πραγματικά αξίζει και .... ίσως ακόμα και σήμερα κάποιοι το χρησιμοποιούν για να βρούν απαντήσεις... Εξαιρετική Μονή, εξαιρετικοί άνθρωποι, αξίζει να διαβάσετε για την ιστορία της Μονής και να την επισκεφθείτε και να απολαύσετε το τοπίο.

Pas de visite possible et on ne le voit pas très bien de l'extérieur. Pas grand intérêt. La route qui y mène est cependant très belle.

La visite de cette chapelle était intéressante à plus d'un titre, déjà au niveau historique, savoir que sur cette île se trouvait un des sites antiques les plus importants (pitie qui prédisait l'avenir en manipulant de l'eau) mais aussi par l'accueil chaleureux de la sœur qui vit dans cette église. Elle a conversé très gentiment avec nous et nous a offert un rafraîchissement bienvenu.

luogo dell'antico oracolo ,non ha molto fascino purtroppo , inoltre la visita è un po' gestita per venderci qualche santino senza entusiasmo .non vale la deviazione

Το υπέροχο πραγματικά αυτό μικρό Μοναστήρι βοηθάει τον επισκεπτη να νιώσει πραγματικά σπίτι του !!!Η γερόντισσα είναι μια πάρα πολύ ήρεμη και φιλόξενη παρουσία αγαπά τον κόσμο και το νιώθεις είναι η ψυχή του μοναστηριού φροντίζει το χώρο να είναι ένα στολίδι καθαριότητας και τάξης !! .Ο χώρος του ναού είναι πολύ ζεστός και πάντα έτοιμος να δεχθεί τις προσευχές των πιστών με πάρα πολύ θετική αύρα .Πραγματικά ο προσκυνητής ηρεμεί με τον χρόνο που θα διαθέσει κατά την επίσκεψή του εκεί !!!

Ik kwam hier toevallig langs nadat ik bij het grote klooster was geweest. Erg sfeervol en klein klooster waar ik ook weer een glaasje raki en water kreeg. Om ´s ochtends vroeg al aan de raki te zitten is niet mijn gewoonte..