Astypalaia or Astropalia as it’s sometimes called is the northwesternmost island of the Dodecanese group. Butterfly-shaped, it floats in the sea between the islands of Amorgos, Anafi, and Kos, yet its architecture, traditional music, and heart is closer to the Cyclades. On February 2, the panigyri of Panayia Flevariotissa is an occasion for a public gathering of the islanders who share a communal feast, replete with wine and folk dances. The Monastery of Panayia Flevariotissa encloses the main church and a group of low structures around a spacious courtyard. The pretty white church features the vaulted cruciform structure and dome supported on four Gothic-style arches can fit up to fifty congregants. The icon of the Panayia was found in a small chapel dug into a cave in the church’s northern wall. On the eve of the feast of the Ypapanti, the lambriano, stuffed lamb cooked in the oven, along with other dishes like yiaprakia, pougia, and lambropites. The village women cut the meat, clean the lamb livers, feet, and head, then prepare the stuffing of minced lamb livers browned with onion and seasonings, then simmered with rice. The lamb is then stuffed, sewn, and placed in the oven to slowly cook over night. The yiaprakia (stuffed rolls of cabbage or grape leaves), pougia (bite-sized pouch-shaped fried savory pies filled with cheese or wild greens in season), and other meze are also prepared. In the evening, the food is taken to the monastery. The island’s biggest panigyri is held on August 15, the feast of the Dormition of the Virgin, at Panayia Portaitissa and runs from August 14 to August 16. On the eve of the feast of the Dormition, there is a glendi, or feast with music, on the church grounds and on the feast day itself, the lambriano is cooked outside the church. Swimming competitions and games like yiaourtotaisma, where pairs in blindfolds feed each other yogurt, are played on the day after the feast. Another traditional game is petinos: a toy rooster is tied at the end of a wooden beam slathered in grease and participants try to walk across the beam to reach the rooster. On September 4, the icon and relics of Osios Anthimos are taken in procession around Hora, the capital, to the town hall and past the house of the feast “sponsor”, with blessings along the way and a celebration at the end. The feast of Panayia Thoma on September 8 is observed at Vathi with a communal feast, wine, and island folk dances. Other religious folk festivals worth noting are Panayia Poulariani on September 8, Ayios Dimitrios on October 26, Ayios Pandeleimonas on July 27, and Sotiras Christou on August 6.