Some 26km northwest of Prilep, towards Makedonski Brod, the 14th-century Zrze Monastery of the Holy Transfiguration rises like a revelation from a clifftop. The monastery's tranquil position around a spacious lawn, with views over the outstretched Pelagonian Plain, is stunning. At dawn, a low-lying fog sometimes shrouds the plain in marble.
During Ottoman times, Zrze underwent periods of abandonment, rebuilding and plunder but remained an important spiritual centre. Its 17th-century Church of Saints Peter and Paul contains important frescoes and icons.
Visitors can enjoy coffee with the kind monks and a tour of the church, with its priceless frescoes and icons. While today the museum in Skopje houses Zrze's most famous icon, the Holy Mother of God Pelagonitsa (1422), a large copy remains in the church. On the adjacent hillside, excavations continue on Zrze's precursor: a 5th-century basilica.
To get to Zrze, take the road towards Makedonski Brod and turn at Ropotovo, following signs for Sv. Preobraženie Manastir XIV Vek. You'll pass through three villages as the road worsens, and then you'll have a long drive through tobacco fields along a stretch of unsurfaced road, until you see the monastery on the hillside ahead of you. Near deserted Zrze village, beneath the mountain is where you should leave your car, unless you have a 4WD vehicle. From here it's a 2km walk uphill to the monastery. There is no public transport.
