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 North of Agios Kirikos after Mavraton lies Oxea, one of the oldest villages in the southern part of the island and Ikaria's highest village at nearly 700m. Besides its historical importance, the village has unequal scenic beauty. Its neat houses, both old and new, are spread in harmony over the mountain side hidden away in lush vegetation. Here and there its old chapels appear suddenly and higher up towards Mavraton stands the Monastery of Agios Nufrios, a church in the Byzantine style. The date 1809 is inscribed above the western outer gate of the monastery. Its small icons are old and faded and the ruined cells remind one of the monastery's former days of occupation by devout monks. At a small distance away stands the pretty chapel of Agia Marina in a dreamlike location where a traditional feast takes place on the day of Agia Marina.
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