October 20, 2011

After hiking about 2 hours, we reached the ruins of Yediler also known as the Monastery of the Seven Brothers. The walls are all that is left of the monastery. You can find the small stone alcoves where they slept. They were very small but did have a window with a view of the lake. The ruins are spread between two areas which look somewhat like the living quarters and the chapel. What an austere life it must have been.

We also were trying to find the frescoes which they painted on the underside of a large rock. A group of French hikers arrived and I asked them if they had seen them. Oui. Ou? They pointed just down below. Off we went to try to find the rock. We circled around the area a couple of times and almost gave up before we noticed some cairns and followed them. The rock had a hollowed out overhang which they had plastered over and painted pictures of the story of Christ. It was amazing to see these frescoes that were centuries old outside on the hillside. The overhang had protected them surprisingly through the years although people had vandalized many of the faces. But still very amazing.