Sumela Monastery is located in Altındere Village of Maçka district of Trabzon. When I first came to the Black Sea two years ago, Sümela Monastery was closed. Sümela Monastery has been under renovation for the last few years and it is not possible to visit it.. This time we hit the road to see even from afar. The full name of the former Greek Orthodox monastery and church at an altitude of 1,150 m above sea level is Panagia Sumela or Theotokos Sumela.
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How to Go to Sümela Monastery?
We hit the road at around six o’clock on a rainy Sunday morning in case there are few people.. We were in Vakfikebir in the evening.. 92 km from Vakfikebir Sumela Monastery. Traveling via Trabzon. Navigation works smoothly on the road. They built very beautiful roads such as skiing up to the Sumela Monastery.. You can come to Trabzon airport and go to Maçka from here and visit Sümela Monastery.. The distance between Trabzon airport and Sumela Monastery is 47 km.. That means roughly an hour.
Although it is 6 in the morning, everywhere is full of Arab tourists and it is very crowded. Even at that hour, people cannot pass by.. I didn’t expect this crowd. There are many shops at the point where we came by car.. There is a small bazaar where you can drink tea, eat corn, buy magnets etc.. Entrance by car 11 TL (August 2018) We are three people in the car. The number of people does not matter.
The text “You are in one of the corners of heaven on earth” welcomes us. The weather is rainy and foggy. When we ask how to get to the Sumela Monastery, they say “first look from the observation terrace, then you will go out by car”.. I look at the mountain behind me on my way to the observation deck. There are fog clouds behind me. The system can’t see anything else. We think that we will go to the hills and dive into the forest.. we climb. The ground is very slippery from the rain, but the forest is magnificent. Its smell, its greenery… It cannot be explained.. We need to dive into that forest.
We say “Let’s not go yet, we can’t get down”. Gul’s arm is still in a cast. We’re coming back hard. When I look back for a while, Metehan looks at the weather and takes pictures.. I can’t believe what he’s pulling. What was behind those mists I first looked at? Of course, Sumela Monastery. He also photographs the Sumela Monastery.. We climbed in vain. How we laugh at this.
There used to be a path. We had aimed to walk there to Sumela Monastery, but now it is closed.. We have to go up by car. On the way out, you start to see even if it is very far from an observation terrace.. After entering the point where we can get closest to Sümela Monastery through the main gate, we leave in 5 minutes. There are places where you can drink tea. A small bazaar was also formed here.
We Always Turn Our Backs to Sümela Monastery
It starts to rain heavily. Inside a historical building, we listen to Sümela’s story on the screen.. “The Byzantine Emperor of the Sumela Monastery I. It is thought to have been founded by two priests, Barnabas and Sophronios, who came from Athens during the time of Theodosius (375-395).. Sümela continued its monastic function until 1923.. The monastery was known as the Virgin Mary among the people.. It was founded for the Virgin Mary, and it is said to have taken the name Sümela from the word molasses meaning black.
This name is thought to have come from the Montenegrins, where the monastery was founded. Sumela Monastery, located at an altitude of about 300 meters from the valley, does not break the routine of establishing monasteries outside the city, in forests, caves, mountains and watersides, as usual.. While monasteries are always in the hardest to reach places, our madrasahs are always in the city center and are just as easy to reach.
The weather is still cold, foggy and rainy. We are actually in a cloud. There’s a messy air. While we wait for the fog to fall, we take out the breakfast boxes we brought with us on the wooden railings. I suggest you also pay attention to wooden railings.. They play bad. cliff below. It’s also good that you don’t.
While we wait for the fog to dissipate, we are having breakfast. When European tourists are curious about the molasses tahini we eat, we make them taste it too.. I think they liked it. I look behind me for a while. Sumela is behind me. We’re looking in the wrong direction again. We laugh at this too. We never manage to look the right way in the fog today. Are we surprised? Even though we can’t catch the Sumela Monastery, the fog finally clears and we watch to the fullest.
So beautiful in a magnificent nature. One wonders how they built this monastery on those steep mountains. It looks so new. It is very pleasing that the monastery, which was taken over by the Ottomans in time, still survives today.. An even more mystical environment emerges when fog clouds occasionally close the Sumela Monastery.
As someone who has been to Arab countries, after treeless, generally desert geographies I would love to be able to listen to how they felt when they saw such crazy greenery and our insanely flowing waters.. Although we are used to green, if it affects us this much, I think they feel in heaven.. That’s why I don’t persistently watch Arab tourists.
When we take countless photos and unintentionally turn around, the sound of a kemençe catches us in that tiny bazaar.. The weather is too cold for August. While listening to the kemençe, we drink our tea and try to warm up.
When Will Sumela Monastery Open?
Sumela Monastery was closed two years ago. I couldn’t see. This time at least I can see from afar. Restoration never ends. According to the latest news, a secret passage and chapel have been found.. Stone falling from above. According to what I read, it will be fully opened on 18.05.2019.. I hope I’ll be there at the press opening.
After the chapel with frescoes depicting ‘heaven and hell, death and life’ on the upper right slope of the north roof of the monastery, now an outpost for future attacks on the monastery. The ‘Surveillance Chapel’ emerged. The chapel, which can clearly observe the entrance door and is located symmetrically opposite the St. Barbara chapel, cannot be reached without stairs. While a part of the structure, which was built at a height of 4 meters from the ground, was demolished, it is stated that the chapel has the characteristics of a hawk’s nest. Although the chapel, which is thought to have been built to ensure the safety of ancient roads, was hidden among pine and laurel trees, it was observed that like other chapels, it could not escape the wrath of treasure hunters in the past.. Sabah Newspaper
Waterfalls and waters flowing everywhere. It has a green and beautiful atmosphere. Even the way back is so beautiful.. On the one hand we take pictures and on the other hand we have fun. Saying goodbye to this green paradise is not easy.
