Leaving behind the picturesque village of the Municipality of Meteora, Kastraki, and going up towards Meteora, we come across the male Holy Monastery of Saint Nikolaos Anapausas. We do not have much information about this particular monastery. The monastery was renovated at the beginning of the 16th century AD. by Saint Dionysios Metropolitan of Larissa and by Hieromonk Nikanoras. It operated non-stop until around 1900 when it was finally abandoned. In 1690, the monastery was restored by the Archaeological Service and inhabited until 1980. In 1997, the monastery began to function normally until today. Going up to the monastery's first floor, we come across the chapel of Saint Antonios, as well as a crypt in which rare objects and manuscripts were kept, which were transferred to the Holy Monastery of Saint Stefanos. On this floor, there is also the mansion that functions as a reception area. On the second floor is the Holy Monastery of Saint Nikolaos, while on the third floor is the old bank of the monastery, which contains works by Strelitzas, just like the monastery of Saint Nikolaos. There is also the ancient ossuary of the monastery as well as the chapel of Saint Ioannis Prodromos. At the top of the rock is placed the stone bell tower. In the past, access to the monastery was via a hanging wooden staircase with 62 steps. Today, 80 carved steps have been constructed that make climbing the monastery easy. To enter the monastery, men are required not to wear sleeveless tops and shorts above the knee and women long skirts below the knee.
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