Monastery Panagoulaki

The Monastery Panagoulaki, one of the monasteries of old calendarists monks of Kalamata along with those of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, is located at short distance from the center of Messinian capital, near the cemetery.

In an area of about two acres in Monastery Panagoulaki that was founded in the early 20th century by Elias Panagoulakis there are the church of the Annunciation, the  suffering by earthquakes temple of the Holy Trinity, the church of Ypapanti, the small chapel of Zoodochos Pigi, the cells of the monks , the cemetery and the ossuary.

You can descend into the cave by the church of Ypapanti of Monastery Panagoulaki. It is ctually cave used for pray by the founder of the monastery. The entrance to the impressive and small-sized cells of the monks was almost by side in commemoration of the gates of Paradise, as explained by the founder of the monastery.

In the southwestern corner of Monastery Panagoulaki, the monks have a workshop for production of candles in an area that was once a mill for grinding grain.

The story of the founder of the Monastery Panagoulaki, Elias Panagoulakis is very interesting as although for the first three decades of his life he was the owner of the tavern with dissolute life, after the loss of a friend he became hermit-monk, who submitted himself to a strict monastic life.