The drive toward the cathedrals takes us about 30 minutes before we get to a bridge to cross into the old town of Goa. Before we go though, our guide (again, clueless as to his name) asks if we’d like to stop for souvenir shopping. Sure, why not.
When we arrive in the parking lot, we get a close up look at a jackfruit tree. It’s amazing how they grow clustered on the tree. I’m dying to grab one and see if I can sneak it aboard in the bottom of my backpack – but since I haven’t a clue how to determine the ripeness, I end up aborting the idea. Which makes Ed very happy. LOL.
The shopping is nothing to write home about. Pretty pricey actually, so we wander around a bit, use the toilet and hop back in the van.
We arrive at the cathedrals and endure the normal Arizona/Canada “how long will we be off the bus” question, then proceed to the Basilica of Bom Jesus where the corpse of St. Francis Xavier is located.
It’s a beautiful old Jesuit style church, with it’s aged brick and large courtyard. Inside, ornate gold altar pieces stand out in contrast to the stark white walls.
The bleeding Jesus is pretty graphic, though, against the gold and the white tableau.
The tomb where St. Francis Xavier is kept is, as expected, ornate and well guarded. Before they put the corpse in the tomb, it was left out in the open and people kept taking things from it to keep as relics and good blessings. They finally decided it would be best to put him behind glass (or plexiglass) before the entire corpse disappeared.
We have some free time to wander about, so we walk through the inner courtyard and find ourselves in front of a neat fountain area dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
Completing our tour, we find everyone else already outside (it is so odd for us to be the last people….but it says something about this group I suppose), and we head across the street to the Se Cathedral.
This is a more modern cathedral dedicated to St. Catherine, with all the typical trappings of 17th century design. Huge chandeliers, golden nave, religious paintings on the walls.
All in all, a nice walk through history and contrast between ancient and modern religious times.
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