EZTrip.com International Destination Guide and Hotel Listings

The district "capital", ÁYIOS YERMANÓS proves a surprisingly large village of tile-roofed houses, overlooking a patch of Megáli Préspa in the distance. It's worth making the trip up just to see two tiny late Byzantine churches, whose frescoes, dating from the time when the place belonged to the bishopric of Ohrid, display a marked Macedonian influence. The lower church, Áyios Athanásios , was renovated in 1995, but if it's open (a rare event) you can glimpse a dog-faced St Christopher among a line of saints opposite the door.

Far more impressive, however, is the tiny, eleventh-century parish church of Áyios Yermanós up on the square, hidden behind a new monster awkwardly tacked onto it in 1882. The Byzantine structure has its own entrance, and the frescoes, skilfully retouched in 1743, can be lit; the switch is hidden in the narthex. There are more hagiographies and martyrdoms than possible to list here, but there's a complete catalogue of them (in Greek and English) by the door. Among the best are the dome's Pandokrátor ; a Nativity and Baptism right of the dome; a Crucifixion and Resurrection to the left; plus the saints Peter and Paul, Kosmas and Damian, Tryphon and Pandelimon by the door. Less conventional scenes include the Entry into Jerusalem and Simon Helping Christ with the Cross , opposite the door, and the Apocalypse , with the Succouring of Mary the Beatified by Zosimas , in the narthex. Mary was an Alexandrine courtesan who, repenting of her ways, retired to the desert for forty years. She was found, a withered crone on the point of death, by Zosimas, abbot of a desert monastery, and is traditionally shown being spoon-fed like an infant.

In the village is the excellent Préspa information centre (daily 9.30am-2.30pm), focusing on the wildlife of the national park; given sufficient warning, the centre can arrange guides for trips into the park. It also sells locally farmed organic products. The village has a post office - the only one in the Préspa basin - and just one place to stay : a set of pleasant, renovated old houses at the very top of the village, run by the local Women's Cooperative and heated by wood stoves in winter. Reservations (tel 03850/51 320 or 51 355; ¬24-33) are strongly advised, especially in August when a folk-dance seminar takes place in the village. These premises - plus a larger, centrally heated building at the bottom of the village - are open year-round. The best taverna is Lefteris , nearby.