Monastiraki is built on the slope, to the right of the Nafpaktos - Itea National Highway and reaches the sea, where the homonymous bay of the Corinthian Gulf. By Royal Decree of 1907, the "new county under the name of Monastirakion" was established. It is the "youngest" village of the Municipality of Efpalio, but apparently there used to be an informal settlement consisting mainly of fishermen. The majority of the first inhabitants came from the village of Klimakia (Messiano and Pera Klima) which was until 1890 the seat of the Municipality of Oineonos.
It is a coastal village, picturesque and beautiful. It has been designated by Royal Decree and Ministerial Decision as a tourist site and of special natural beauty, since it is built amphitheatrically around the sea and strongly resembles an island.
In the place where today stands the imposing parish church of Mark the Evangelist with the remarkable sculptured iconostasis, in the center of the village there was according to tradition a small monastery (monastiraki), which gave the name to the area. This was probably related to the Monastery of Agios Ioannou of Magoula.
To the west, the bay of Monastiraki is protected by a narrow rocky strip, a continuation of Agouraki hill, which ends at the cape "Kokkinos" or "Kokkinovrachos", which separates it from Chiliadou. The rock of Kokkinovrachos is microcrystalline limestone, which alternates with subgreen to red argillaceous slates and radiolurites. The name came from the color red.
Next to Cape Kokkinos the commanding view places the ancient city of Erythres. It seems that the Erythres sank into the sea, perhaps from a strong earthquake, as the finds on the seabed show.The sunken city has been marked at the location "Xera" some 500 meters from the rock in the sea. So the preservation of the name after hundreds of years even in its popular expression "red" is a very pleasant surprise. According to the Latin historian Titus Livius, Philip V, the king of Macedonia, in 208 BC. he passed with his ships to the Erythres of the Aitolians, which are near Eupalium. So at that time the Red Locrians belong to the Aetolian Commonwealth. So it seems that, in the 200 years that have passed, the port of Oineonas was silted up and replenished by the neighboring Erythres. A carved tomb, ceramics and coins have been marked on the Agouraki hill.
The village experienced great prosperity during the 1930s when it was the center of the transit trade of the entire Dorida and mountainous Nafpaktia and had a daily ferry connection with Patras and Psathopyrgos. The modern Monastiraki is a beautiful settlement, with many graces. The small and picturesque port, the beautiful houses, the seaside, the small lake by the sea east of Kokkinobrachos, the coves with lace beaches, the Lilliputian pond make up a wonderful resort for relaxation and enjoying nature.
To the east of Monastiraki is the settlement of Skaloma. Its name indicates that it was a small staircase, a dock where ships docked. Today it is a coastal settlement and its houses have reached almost to the national road. Going down you come across the picturesque little church and the paved road - the waterfront separates the beach houses from the sea. In the summer the coast is full of swimmers. It is an excellent seaside resort. North of Monastiraki is the settlement of Magoula at an altitude of 120 meters. It is a rural settlement. In Magoula there was a Metochi of the Monastery of Agios Ioannou Prodromos Thermen
Πηγή : dorida.gr
