Visiting the Manastiri in Turkey? Find out more about the many monasteries in Turkey called the Manastiri Turkey…
One of the most exciting tourist attractions when visiting the different Manastiri in Turkey is the Sumela Monastery. It is essential to visit this monastery on your trip to Turkey. The breathtaking structure is constructed on top of an unbelievably steep cliff. When you compare the pictures to the actual site you will be amazed at how beautiful the real thing is.
This stunningly placed monastery in Turkey is very hard to reach by car and it is best that you take a tour from Trabazon in Turkey. Every day many coach trips run from Trabazon to the Manastiri Turkey.
The Sumela Manastiri
Once you reach the top you will find out that Manastiri is very small in size and the city of Sumela itself is very crowded as a number of tourists flock to this location to spend time at the strategically located Monastery. More than the structure itself it is the location of the Manastiri in Turkey is what amazes and enthralls vacationers.
This beautiful monument on the cliff side is one of the many monasteries and churches in the Turkish Pontian Mountains. The Sumela monastery is a 40 minute walk from the drop-off point. The holy icon of Virgin Mary was painted by the Evangelist Lukas and hidden by the Greek monks in this rocky cave.
The monastery was abandoned when Turkey and Greece agreed to exchange their population in the year 1923 and the Greek monks had to leave the country.
Nigde Manastiri Frescoes
To reach the Nigde Manastiri you need to travel 9 km northeast of the town of Nigde and take a left turn on route 805 in the Gumusler village in Nigde. The church which is housed inside the complex of this 11th century structure is home to the only image of the Virgin Mary in which she’s smiling.
It is believed that no other image of the Virgin Mary in the world exists that shows her smiling. This is mainly because of an error that occurred during the restoration of the church. There are dark and intriguing frescoes inside the church walls which have been preserved beautifully. If you want to locate the Virgin Mary with her smiling image you will have to move to the niche at the far left corner of the church and check the rock niche.
The monastery was partially carved as far back as the 7th century. However the 11th-century frescoes were whitewashed and destroyed by Turkish Muslims since idol worship is forbidden by the religion of Islam.
However as a more secular Turkey began to develop in the 1960s these images were restored to their original state. Additionally you can see an image of Aesops fables in the Manastiri in Turkey which are nonreligious images but part of the monastery.
The structure of the monastery includes a kitchen and rock carved rooms which are centered round a courtyard. There is also a small underground tunnel which leads to a different city under the ground.
When you enter the city of Nigde from the side of the town of Kayseri you will notice a large sign for the Manastiri Turkey. For the basic entrance fee of 3 TL you can visit Manastiri Turkey from 8 AM in the summer and 9 AM in the winter to enjoy the beautiful site.
