Holy Monastery of Saint Nektarios

The Monastery of the Holy Trinity, also known as the Holy Monastery of Saint Nektarios, which attracts thousands of faithful Christians from all over Greece, is located in the village of Kontos, at a distance of 6 kilometers from the port of Aegina, in the area of Xantos, opposite the medieval Paliachora. During the Byzantine era, there was a monastery dedicated to Zoodochos Pigi in the same location, which according to tradition was founded in the 10th century by Saint Athanassia, who came from the neighboring Paliachora. The history of the monastery is however connected with the bishop of Pentapolis, Nektarios, who came to Aegina in the early the 20th century looking for a place to found a monastery and become a monk. He opted for this position, which was related to the religious history of the island. Starting in 1904, while he was the director of the Rizarios School Ecclesiastical School in Athens, he began the restoration process of the abandoned complex, and founded the nunnery which he dedicated to the Holy Trinity. The works were completed in 1907. A year later, he resigned from his position and settled in the monastery, where he lived until his death in 1920. Given that the monastery was run by nuns, he lived in a small house outside its premises, which is still preserved to this day, including his personal belongings.