The most beautiful religious buildings Iles grecques

The walk through the old village of Malia can begin at the central church of Agios Nektarios. It's the biggest church on the main road, so you can't miss it. The interior is decorated with impressive mural paintings by painter Michael Vassilakis.

Founded in the 16th century, and more precisely in 1594, as testified by the date engraved on one of the bells of the monastery, most probably by a monk from the family of Preveli, it has played for several centuries an important role as a center of studies (its library is particularly rich) and of conservation of certain artistic traditions (paintings, icons, woodcarvings). Its history is closely linked to the periods of resistance to the various occupiers: the monks often directly supported the rebels, especially during the Cretan revolutions of 1821-1823 and 1866-1869 against the Ottomans. During the Great Battle of Crete in 1941, many British, New Zealand and Australian soldiers took refuge there before being evacuated by the beach below in the direction of Alexandria in Egypt with the help of submarines. Part of the monastery was destroyed in retaliation by the Germans in 1941 and all the monks were taken hostage. The present buildings dating from different periods offer a pleasant ensemble. The monastery museum, built in the former stables, houses an exhibition of one hundred Byzantine icons (17th-19th centuries) of great artistic and historical value. Many of them are representative of the influence that Flemish art of the first half of the 17th century had on the austere Greek art of the Orthodox dogma. The museum also contains various liturgical objects and offerings from grateful British soldiers.

The monastery of St. George is a 2.5 hour walk from Arvanitochori, a charming flowery village nestled in a beautiful valley of fig trees, bougainvillea and jasmine. Take a small path to the left, heading south, on the road to Aghia Marina. If you are lucky, or if you come across him in the village before your visit, the caretaker of the monastery will not only give you a tour, but he can accommodate you for a night or two. A unique experience, with a dinner based onofto , a dish of lamb roasted for several hours.

The Kos synagogue has finally been renovated: closed for almost 40 years, it was consecrated and inaugurated in July 2023. It will soon be reopened to the public to tell the story of the Jewish community of Kos, almost entirely murdered by the Nazis after their deportation on July 22, 1944. The story of this synagogue begins in 1747, when a member of the local Sephardic community decided to build a first temple. The establishment of the Jewish community in Kos dates back to the Second Temple period, but it was expelled by the Knights in 1502, before being able to return thanks to the more tolerant laws of the Ottoman Empire. The community fluctuated in size over the course of the ^19th century, and was mainly involved in commercial activities, particularly wine. It was integrated into the wider Kos community, speaking Greek and Turkish, as well as Ladino, a Judeo-Spanish language. The local community expanded in the early ^20th century, following the arrival of refugees from Asia Minor after the Great Catastrophe of 1922. The great earthquake of 1933 did not spare the synagogue, which was rebuilt the following year in the Art Deco style still admired today. On the eve of the Nazi occupation, the synagogue housed around 140 members of the community. They were all arrested on the same day by the Nazis and sent to their deaths in the Auschwitz camp, along with the Rhodes Jewish community. Only one survivor returned to Kos after the liberation of the camps, and the synagogue has been abandoned to this day.