Saint Andrew church at Malaxa
On the road that runs from Chania to Keramia, before reaching village Malaxa, we meet the small church of St. Andrew (Agios Andreas). Saint Andrew has always been a major milestone for the region because of the adjacent spring with water that quenched their thirst hikers from the region on their way to the villages of Keramia. The spring site is seen from afar due to the large plane located there. The church of St. Andrew is relatively new, however, a few meters away we can see the remains of the very old chapel of the old St. Andrew that was probably built during the Venetian Era.
Nearby, we see the remnants of cells that were there. According to tradition, St. Andrew was a small monastery with monks that was leveled by the Ottomans during a revolution at Keramia. Several years later the locals built the new temple of St. Andrew. In the destroyed chapel we will see a few faded icons and a shrine. The local authorities plan to maintain and restore the ruined temple. For this reason, they recently built a supporting wall beneath the church and soon restoration works are expected to start. Around the temple, we see the old terraces that were used for the cultivation of cereals and all fruit and vegetables needed for the maintenance of the monastery. If you look up high above the temple, on the mountainside, you will see a huge gap. This opening is the cave of St. Andrew and has three rooms and was recently converted to a prayer room and a small temple.
