This totally isolated monastery set in a rocky canyon is the perfect illustration of the monastic ideal: an austere remote site surrounded by just enough land to sustain the community and ambitious edifices blending into the landscape. Founded in the 16C by monks forced to flee by the Turks, it housed a school and even a small printing works. The last monk, a keen astronomer, installed an observatory in 1926. The visit provides an interesting insight into monastic life.