[c-cialis]

Dear James,

don't rule out Mt. Athos yet. One of the monasteries I wa going to recommend to you is the Monastery (Convent) of the Annunciation near Ormylia in Halkidiki. It is probably only about half an hours drive from there to Ouranoupoli so it would be no problem for your wife and daughters to stay there while you go on to Athos for a few days. Please seriously consider this as an option and let me know if you decide to do this. (There are strict limits on the number of people who can enter Mt.Athos each day, but there are ways around this if you can't find a free spot. The trick is to arrange for a monk on Mt.Athos to invite you.) Many of the nuns at Ormylia speak English fluently and the Monastery is truly a piece of heaven on earth (we visit often). They also recently had their new church consecrated by the EP.

Even if you don't get to visit Mt. Athos, there are literally hundreds of monasteries all over Greece, including the islands. From what I've seen of the tours (from a quick google search on pilgrim/tour/greece) it looks like they pack far too much in each day for you to really benefit spiritually. It has just occured to me that there might be a real need for slower paced pilgrimage tours that don't try to cover everything. You want to end the day spiritually refreshed, not exhausted from rushing from one place to the next.

The monasteries at Meteora are wonderful to visit, and mid Winter would be ideal as during Summer they are crawling with tourists. Actually, late Autumn or early Spring would be better as the roads may become inaccessible due to snow in Winter. We visited at the beginning of Lent and were lucky enough to find all the monasteries open to the public on that day, plus the cool weather kept the tourists to a minimum. I only know of one nun who speaks english at Saint Rousanou, although I am sure there would be many more. Father Iasaf must be run off his feet as currently he is the only monk at Metamorphosi (Transfiguration), the largest monastery at Meteora.

Here is th book that Alexis mentioned:
www.amazon.com Evlogeite: A Pilgrim's Guide to Greece
and here it is for a third of the price:
2nd Hand - www.amazon.com Evlogeite: A Pilgrim's Guide to Greece

John.

[Queuerriptota]

Dear James,

Greetings in the Lord!

I've been a lurker on this list for a couple of months now, and you've compelled me to make my first post today.

I can't really help you with your first question, but in response to your second and third questions I would like to recommend a book that I recently ran across entitled, I believe, "A Pilgrim's Guide to Greece," by Nun Nectaria McLees.

This is an expansive book of many churches and monasteries in Greece which was written specifically for people planning trips like yours. I myself haven't read the book yet, but I heartily recommend it based soley on the reputation of the author.

I hope I've been of some help.

Pray for me a sinner,
reader Alexis