Holy Monastery of the Virgin Mary of “Paliocherso”

 2 kilometers from the village of Defaranata is the Monastery of the Platitera at “Paliocherso”, which was built before 1600. The church is dedicated to the Virgin Mary’s Birth Day and celebrates on September 8th. Her festive icon is called “Platitera ton Ouranon”. The propping of the church and the reconstruction of the buildings, after the disastrous earthquakes of 1953, started under the care and expenses of two clergymen brothers, Archimandrite Nektarios and Father Panagis Sklavounos in 1977. The cloisters had been turned into ovine stables and only the church remained where Holy Mass was held once a year on the Monastery Feast Day on September 8th. 

 

The first part of the project was completed in 1983 with the semi-inauguration of the church. In 1992, the Monastery’s “palace” was renovated from the foundations and on its Feast Day, 8-9-1993, it was also inaugurated.

 

Construction of the dining room was completed with the followers’ help, as well as the building of a small guesthouse for far away visitors. The Monastery’s iconography was also completed.

After the Holy Mass on the Monastery’s feast day, there is hospitality and food for everyone (the boil goat soup, offered by local livestock farmers, remains unforgettable to visitors).