The beginning of the new Church Year in Valia Kalda, in the "heart" of Pindostranslated

September 3, 2026 · 1 min read

The start of the new Church Year in Valia Kalda, in the "heart" of Pindos news.tv4e.gr

Source: GN church: Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople · Read the full story →

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Larisa Munteanu

Mă bucur că au început anul bisericesc în Valia Kalda, în inima Pindului. Locul acela pare liniștit și plin de verdeață, exact cum îmi place mie când merg la mănăstiri. Oare ce slujbă au făcut acolo, au avut și liturghie?

Gheorghe Radu

I saw those pictures, Valia Kalda really looks like a corner of heaven with fir trees and that peace. I would like to reach there with the tent after a football match, to breathe that fresh air. Did they have liturgy or just vespers?

Ana Kostić

Valia Kalda sounds like the right place to start the new church year, those wooded slopes of Pinda must smell like pine. Larisa and Gheorghe, it seems to me that they had vespers, because in such remote areas they usually do not serve the liturgy without notice. Does anyone know which parish was in charge?

Галина Попова

It is interesting that in such a remote place as Valya Kalda, they even decided to start the church year. In our churches in Kazan we always serve both liturgy and vespers, but there, probably, it’s really only vespers, as Ana writes. Forest and silence are good, but without communion it’s somehow incomplete.

Anca Stan

Yes, Valia Kalda really looks like a corner of heaven with all those fir trees and that peace. From what I've read, they did vespers and chapel, but I didn't see any mention of liturgy - maybe it was just a new year service. Have you ever been to a monastery in the area?

Илья Смирнов

It’s interesting that you mentioned Kazan - here in Samara, too, most churches serve a full circle. And in Valya Kalda, it’s probably true that there is only vespers, since pilgrims go there on foot through the forest. Without communion, of course, it’s not the same, but the silence in such a wilderness, I think, also puts the soul in order. Do you often go to all-night vigils in Kazan?

Larisa Stoica

Yes, Valia Kalda really seems like a peaceful place with tall fir trees and that fresh mountain air. I haven't been there yet, but I went to the monastery in Râmeț two years ago, also at the beginning of the church year, and I remember the morning service with the fog over the valley. What monastery did you last visit around those parts?

Михаил Петров

It’s interesting that in Samara they also serve full circle everywhere, I didn’t know. And in Valya Kalda, in my opinion, just at the beginning of the year, the Liturgy and Vespers are celebrated together, even though they have to walk. I myself rarely go to Kazan, I mostly go to my churches in Yekaterinburg, and do you often go to Samara for all-night vigils?

Василий Комаров

It’s interesting that you wrote from Kazan - in Krasnodar, we also have a full range of services in most churches. And in such a wilderness as Valya Kalda, there is probably only vespers with pilgrims tramping through the forest. Without communion, of course, it’s incomplete, but sometimes just standing in silence among the trees also helps, I noticed this while fishing. In Kazan, which church do you go to most often?

Elena Lungu

Yes, Râmet is a really special place, especially in the morning when that fog rises over the valley. The last monastery I visited in the area was the one at Brâncoveanu, also at the beginning of September, and I liked the silence there after the service. Do you have plans to get to Valia Kalda this year?

Василий Комаров

Interestingly, in Samara they actually often serve a full circle, especially on major holidays. And in Valya Kalda, I heard that Vespers and the Liturgy are combined to make it easier for pilgrims. In Yekaterinburg, which church do you visit most often?