Εκκλησία

Driving from Arkadi monastery (Rethimnon prefecture) towards Amnatos and Pikris village: This fine country road runs between olive groves and traverses a small gorge, bringing us after a distance of 2.5 km to the exceptional village of Pikris - already called Picri in the 16th century - located in the Arkadi monastery and Arkadi gorge. Its natural beauty due to a riot of greenery is favoured by the course of the river Arios (or Arkadiotis) which gave life to the village by watering the fields and powering its many watermills. Pikris is a Venetian village with many magnificent mansions. Without doubt, a walk through the picturesque alleyways is worthwhile, passing beneath the vaulted passageways to visit the Villa Clodio with its impressive doorway and the inscribed pediment which bears the date 1610. The church of the village cemetery is also Venetian; remains of wall-paintings are preserved in it.

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Kapsaliana used to be a lively and active village southeast of Rethimno. Under the control of the Arkadi Monastery the village produced olive oil in the press owned by the monastery. Kapsaliana village located about 1 km northeast of Amnatos.

From the village it is four kilometres to Arkadi, and 15 to Rethymnon. The view from the village to almost all directions is beautiful. The drive to the beach by the sea is about 10 minutes.The olive trees in the area date back hundreds of years. There are olive trees in Crete that are over 2000 years old. Kapsaliana olive oil press workshop was founded in 1763 AD by Abbot Philaretos. The press was the heart of the village’s functions and economy. The press stopped operating in 1955, and the decay of the village started.Present timeThe village is architecturally a typical Cretan village with Venetian influences. The complete restoration of the village has been carried out harmonically and beautifully, and the fine details and the exterior stairways of the houses give the village its characteristic classy looks. The village offers high class accommodation in a peaceful atmosphere. The olive oil museum is open to the public and there is a café and a tavern in the village.RestorationThe leading idea of the restoration of the village was to preserve Kapsaliana as a whole and as a genuine part of the surrounding local culture. In Kapsaliana you can be accommodated in an original Cretan village in modern rooms with modern facilities or hold meetings and gatherings. The restoration and the finishing of the whole village has been carried out with careful planning and execution. Sustainability and the environmental aspects were seriously taken into account in the process and the village therefore has its own farming plots and only natural materials were used in the restoration. Most rooms have typical, traditional Cretan furniture and objects, and the local tavern gets fresh vegetable from the village’s own farming plots.

The settlement was first mentioned in documents in 1842, was a dependency of the metropolis Arkadi and among the 15 buildings on the mill and included it. By 1958 the oil mill was in operation and the settlement housed 15 families in the coming years, unfortunately, the left leading to deserted and devastated. The village is now restored on private initiative, will host the "The Olive Tree Museum" in the same olive mill of the monastery. Olive oil museumThe center of the village is the museum, where you can see machines from the village’s original olive oil press workshop, as well as Cretan olive oil pots. Olive oil is a symbol of Crete, religious element and a central part of everyday life, food and art. For these reasons the restoration of the village was performed without sparing money or effort. The restoring and renovating has been carried out extremely carefully to the finest detail, and the village is in a way even more original than the original village itself.Hotel roomsThe hotel rooms with modern conveniences have been placed inside the old, restored buildings. Four completely new buildings have been built according to the traditional design of the village. The village is beautiful and peaceful by its looks and details.  All aspects of the village emphasise its beauty and peacefulness.There are altogether 18 separate apartments with 39 beds in the village, offering real peace and quiet in a traditional Cretan atmosphere with conveniences that easily meets modern standards. Which ever of the apartments you choose, you will be positively surprised by their equipment, convenience, elegance and the aesthetics. The size of the apartments and the rooms vary from 15 to 48 square metres.

The rooms are equipped with bathrooms, electricity, free internet connection, natural stone warmers, large size beds, a desk, minibar, hair dryer, safety locker, fireplace (in most rooms), hygiene items, bath robes and sandals and own terrace or balcony.

Continuing southwards for 3.7 km we come to Arkadi monastery. The greater part of the road runs parallel with the Arkadi gorge, a place of great natural beauty.

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