Teriade Museum Lesvos
One of my favourite Greek islands, Lesvos, has plenty of hidden gems, but the Teriade Museum, in the village of Varia, just outside Mytilene, is the one not to miss. Teriade, who studied art in Paris, rubbed shoulders with many of the 20th century’s greatest artists, and he managed to persuade them to collaborate with him on his celebrated art publication, Verve, which he published from 1937 right up to 1960.
The museum’s collection includes beautifully illustrated artists’ books, original prints and works by Chagall, Picasso, Matisse and other 20th-century ‘greats’. In any major city, this museum would be packed; in Lesvos, you’ll probably have it almost all to yourself.
Meteora Monasteries
It’s hardly surprising that the magical Meteora monasteries have inspired filmmakers and artists alike, with their extraordinary landscape even providing the backdrop for the Eyrie in Game of Thrones: perched on top of their lofty stone pinnacles, these medieval sanctuaries rise out of Thessaly’s dramatic landscape like colossal sponge fingers.
The six monasteries, whose name derives from the Greek word meaning ‘suspended in the air’, are among Greece’s most extraordinary UNESCO World Heritage Sites. While they can get busy during the summer months, particularly with day-trippers from Athens, visiting early in the morning or outside peak season offers a quieter experience. Kalambaka, the town at the foot of the towering rocks, is around a four-hour drive from the capital.
It’s well worth making the effort to visit, however, for the thrill of visiting Agia Triada (Holy Trinity), which starred in the 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only, or seeing the historic hoisting mechanisms once used to transport monks and supplies up to Moni Varlaam, a 16th-century monastery perched on a precipitous cinnamon-coloured swirl of rock which is now reached by clambering up 195 steps.