Cave of the Lakes, Agia Lavra, Mega Spileo

Cave of the Lakes (Kastria):

In the village Kastria of Achaia, 50 km from Aigio lays the famous "Cave of the Lakes". It is a rare creation of Nature. Apart from its labyrinth of corridors, its mysterious galleries and its strange stalactite formations, the "Cave of the Lakes" has something exclusively unique that does not exist in other well known caves. Inside the cave there is a string of cascading lakes forming three different levels that establish its uniqueness in the world.

The cave is an old subterranean river whose explored length is 1980 meters. In winter when the snow melts, the cave is transformed into a subterranean river with natural waterfalls. In the summer months, part of the cave dries up revealing a lace-work of stone-basins and dams of up to 4 m. in height. The rest of the cave retains water permanently throughout the year in 13 picturesque lakes.

The developed part of the cave is currently 500 meters long  and it includes artistic lighting. The visitor enters the cave through an artificial tunnel which leads directly to the second floor. The dimensions of this part of the cavern create awe and admiration. The passage from lake to lake is possible by small man-made bridges. At the cave's lower floor, human and animal fossils were found, among which that of a hippopotamus.

Agia Lavra:

The monastery of Agia Lavra is 60 km from Aigio and 7 km from Kalavryta city. It was founded back in the 10th century by Athanasios Athonitis, passed as a gift to the hands of Komninos family of Byzantines and Kathrine of Russia and became the hot-spot of the Greek Revolution of 1821. On the left of the entrance to the monastery is a huge ape tree in the shade of which the Greek fighters of the 1821 Greek Revolution swore  for the victory.

Mega Spileo:

This holly place is considered to be the eldest monastery of Greece. It was founded on 362 A.D. It has been destroyed several times due to war incidents and fire. The view is the most beautiful gift of the monastery since it is located at a height of 1000 m., while a huge building like castle, rises up to 8 floors inside the physical whole of an enormous rock. The church of the monastery, built during the 17th century, has beautiful wallpapers, all though old and blur, a floor with mosaic and a bronze door with stinted draw. Inside the Mega Spileo is saved the picture of Holly Mother, made of gum and wax, which is one of the three the Evangelist Lukas had made. A path that starts from the monastery leads at the top of the rock where there are left pieces of a castle and some canons.

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