The panigyri is a popular fixture on the social and cultural calendar of Rhodes, the enchanting island of the knights. The pilgrimage to the Panayia Kremasti during the first half of August Panayia Tsampika on September 8 Ayios Soulas at the monastery in Soroni on July 8 Panayia Skaideni at Mesanagros on September 7-8, with an icon procession that recalls an ancient ritual the Annunciation of the Virgin (Evangelismos) on March 25 Ayios Gerasimos at Ayios Gerasimos Pylonas on October 20 Ayios Georgios at the monastery of Ayios Georgios Lardos on Easter Monday saints Constantine and Helen at the Monastery Tharri Laermon on May 21 Ayios Pavlos at the monastery of the Ayii Apostoloi in Lindos on June 28 Ayia Kyriaki at the Monastery of Ayia Kyriaki at Kalathos on July 6 Panayia Ypsnis on August 22 Sotiros at Maritsa on August 6 Metamorphosi at Kiotari on August 6 Timios Stavros at Apollonas on September 14 the Conception of Ayios Ioannis Prodromos at Artamiti Monastery on September 23. the Dormition of the Virgin at Embonas and Mesanagros on August 15. The feasts of Ayios Thomas and Panayia Skiadeni are the biggest held at Mesanagros, and the combination of the pretty natural setting of pines and cypresses, the cascade at Ayios Thomas, and locals’ hospitality attracts thousands of pilgrims each year. The panigyri of Ayios Thomas lasts throughout the day but begins much earlier with preparations—street cleaning, white-washing the tables, decorating, evening services and, of course, the main service and sharing of bread on the feast day itself. Every family brings along blankets to lay on the ground because as soon as services are over, the fires under the spits are lit and the roasting of the meat marks the start of the glendi, with kokkinisto (meat stewed in tomato sauce) and yaprakia (stuffed grape leaves) to whet the appetites. The icon of Panayia Skiadeni is brought to Ayios Thomas after it has been taken for viewing through all the villages of southern Rhodes. The icon is handed over to locals, who bring it to the church. The icon is then taken to Mesanagros, where the priest delivers a short blessing. One family is chosen to keep the icon in their home overnight and the next day it is taken to all the village homes before youths transport it to the sheep pens where shepherds offer their guests small goats, cheeses, and money. In the evening, the icon is taken to the Skiadi Monastery where there is a feast featuring spit-roast goat and other local dishes. The Wine Festival organized during the first week of September at Embonas is also popular. Embonas perches on the northwestern slope of Attavyros—which, at 1,215 meters is the highest peak on Rhodes. It’s a village that produces fine wine from the local grape varietals Athiri, Amoriano (a type of Mandilaria), and Moschato which thrive at Harakaki, Rhodes’s most fertile vineyard at an altitude of 700 meters over Embonas.