In the center of the Ayia Napa resort is the monastery of the same name. It is believed that the entire town grew up around this shrine. The monastery was built around the 15th century near a cave, but the details of this event are shrouded in mystery.
One of the legends says that a young girl from an aristocratic family, whom they wanted to marry off by force, was hiding in this cave. She ran away from her parents' home and decided to become a nun. Soon a monastery was built near this cave, and with money from those same aristocrats.
According to another legend, there was once a dense forest on this site where people could hunt. One day, a hunting dog saw a strange light among the trees and ran toward it, attracting its owner with barking. He followed her and discovered a cave in which lay an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was given the name “Holy Forest,” which in Greek sounds like “Ayia Napa.” It was decided to build a monastery next to the site of the miraculous find.
By the way, throughout its history it was never destroyed or rebuilt (into a mosque, like other temples). Therefore, it can be said that the structure has survived to this day in its original form.
Monks lived here until about the middle of the 17th century, but then suddenly left these places. Most likely, this was connected with the influx of refugees from Thessaloniki, where the plague was raging.
Now the monastery is open to visitors and functions as a museum. Various festivals and праздничные мероприятия are sometimes held there.
