Saint Naum

Sunday visit on the 1st of january to St. Naum...

One of the nicest monastery complex in the region. It has been very crowded, even in the morning on the first day of the year. Lots of people come to visit this place through the year, because of it`s beauty and cultural heritage. Built by the St. Naum of Ohrid himself, it was established in the Bulgarian Empire in year 905. St. Naum is also buried in the church.

Panorama of entrance to the monastery complex - St. Naum

The Monastery of Saint Naum is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the Republic of Macedonia, named after the medieval Saint Naum who founded it. It is situated along Lake Ohrid, 29 kilometres south of the city of Ohrid. The Lake Ohrid area, including St. Naum, is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Macedonia.

From the center of Ohrid to St. Naum monastery is a short drive, about 45 minutes on narrow country road by car. You can also get there by bus via local agency tour. Along the way, mostly all of the time on one side you have a view of Lake Ohrid and on the other the beautiful mountain range. Fantastic views are everywhere you look, untouched nature and green landscapes.

Monastery park with shops - St. Naum

So, after a 40 or so minutes of drive via coastal road, which was very simple just following the road and a few sings, we arrived to parking of the monastery. Parking is charged for the day and not to expensive.

When you enter monastery complex first you came across a park which has small shops that sell many local products like: honey, brandy, Christian icons, hand-made jewelry and famous local lake jewelry pearls and much more...

Small shops - St. Naum

River Crn Drim flowing into the Lake Ohrid - St. Naum

River Crn Drim ( Black Drim) - St. Naum

Continuing our tour and walking to the monastery we came to the small bridge over the river Crn Drim (Black Drim), from where you have two amazing post card views. Set amidst lush verdure where the River Crn Drim tumbles into the lake, the monastery of St. Naum is a refuge of tranquility at the very southwestern corner of the Macedonian Republic. The area around St. Naum monastery is among the most beautiful along the shore of Lake Ohrid. The magnificent greenery surrounded by the Crn Drim river springs, the spacious sand beach, the monastery complex and the unique view of the location makes it one of the most attractive tour destinations and another reason to visit Macedonia.

National park "Galičica", St. Naum Springs - St. Naum

From the picture above you can see the river flowing into the lake, but even more beautiful than that is the view upstream. Just before merging with the Lake Ohrid, River Crn Drim widens in a small lake. Still inside the Saint Naum Monastery complex, colorful covered motor boats sit waiting to whisk visitors over the lake to see the springs of St. Naum. The water here is fed by Lake Prespa and is astoundingly clear – at some points it is 3.5m deep and still you can see the bottom as if it were swimming right before your eyes.

The main reason to take the boat trip (other than for a bit of picturesque relaxation bobbing on the lake) is to witness the springs bubbling up from the lake bed. Because of the water clarity it's extremely easy to see. In some places calcification causes the rocks to turn white – it's quite a sight. At the end of the lake is a small chapel.

The charge for this trip is per boat, so if you wait for more people the price per person will become cheaper.

Little about the history...

The old church was built on a rock above the Lake with a wonderful view of Lake Ohrid and the surrounding mountains. Later on the church was completed with lodgings and a bell tower finishing the final look of the current monastery. The monastery lodging compartments are now adapted into a hotel. A traditional restaurant is also found on the location. Tourists from all around the world that visit Macedonia, pick this destination every year.

Monastery - St. Naum

Saint Naum

The original church was dedicated to the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel. The church was built on this site in the 10th century as a memorial of the Slavonic educator Saint Naum of Ohrid, the disciple of Cyril and Methodius and the associate of Clement of Ohrid. The names of St. Naum and St. Clement are praised because of their creation of the Cyrillic alphabet. St. Naum was also buried in the church in the year of 910. St. Naum's monasteries of the Holy Archangels together with Clement’s monastery of St. Pantheleimon in Ohrid are the earliest known Slavonic monuments in the region of Ohrid. This represents another important religious, cultural and tour attraction in this part of Macedonia.

As with most Byzantine churches, St. Naum was chosen primarily for its location – on a high, rocky outcropping over the lake, above deep forests and life-giving springs of the river Crn Drim.

The monastery has been renewed and enlarged several times over the centuries. While most of its iconostases and frescoes date from the 16th and 17th century, earlier etchings in the Byzantine Greek vernacular also remain. But numerous orthographical mistakes indicate that they were written by Slavic-speaking local monks. Other inscriptions in the church make up some of the oldest epigraphic evidence of Slavic literacy.

Monastery - St. Naum

The icons of St. Naum are some of the best religious painting achievements in the Balkans. They date from the first half of the 18th century. The wood-carved iconostasis itself was made in 1711 by an unknown artisan.

Multi-colored peacocks - St. Naum

Albino peacock - St. Naum

A peculiar element of St. Naum is located not on the inside of the church but on the outside: the preponderance of multi-colored peacocks strutting around and luxuriating in the grass. They are so gracious and friendly, not scared of people at all. Posing for picture or climbing all over the place, they are like home pets.

Conclusion

Visit to Saint Naum Monastery was without a doubt great experience. It's a place where you can fully spend your day and enjoy many attractions... In addition to many fun activities and enjoying beautiful surroundings, the monastery complex is a wonderful place for relaxation, enjoyment and resting.

If you get the chance you should definitely come to St. Naum monastery and also the city of Ohrid...

Crn Drim's (Black Drim's) springs - St. Naum