On that Thursday we had no blessing for our lopping work around Vatopedi. It was a feast day and of course you don’t work on one of those holy days.
Father Matthew took the initiative to give us, the volunteers of the Friends of Mount Athos, a grand tour around the premisses of the monastic complex. What a treat that was! He is an excellent guide, who points at details that would have been unnoticed otherwise. He opens doors that would have been shut for other pilgrims, especially the wine-making and tsipourou distillery. And he is an entertaining story teller about the history of the place.
The group follows father Matthew uphill during the tour around Vatopedi. The roadworks around the monastery are recently finished. It looks brand new. A bit further down the road the dirt road starts. Father Matthew is a quick walker. Some of the group had difficulties following his pace.
There are ample olive trees around the monastery.
This small place was restored by initiative of the Prince of Wales. There is a small chapel inside. A very secluded and quiet place just outside of the main buildings. Father Matthew opened the gate for us, so we could watch the building from the inside.
The garden is maintained wonderfully. It was suggested that the volunteers might play a role in the maintenance of the garden. But there is a huge difference between the subtleties of gardening and the brute force of lopping.
This wonderful dome is the only thing you can see from the street level. The chapel itself is a bit below the street. An oleander hedge makes it even more secluded. The restauration work on the dome shaped roof is done excellently.
This is the unexpected main energy source for Vatopedi. Vatopedi’s low-tech energy plant. Burning wood is the source of energy.
The next building houses a distillery. A tsipourou factory. The copper kettle is used for the distillation process.
Looking back on the monastic complex. The abbot of Vatopedi has his dwellings on the top floor of the medieval tower. Father Mattew lives in the same tower, just below the abbot.
There is also a wine producing facility that looks very modern and efficient with its stainless steel reservoirs.
Old and new barrels. The new ones come from France (Bordeaux). They are made from oak trees. The wine is left in the barrels for 36 months.
The modern section of the high-tech wine making process in Vatopedi.
The red grapes had just arrived. We admired them and had a few. This tour was held on September 21st , 2023. To be continued.
Bas Kamps
