Monday, August 8, 2011

Explore Exquisite Churches on Your Goa Holiday Packages


A land where the tropical breeze is filled with gaiety and leisure, Goa is where nights bring pulsating rhythms of disco lights in the neon-lit chambers of nightclubs and where beach side parties are more common than traffic-clogged streets. However, the city grabs your attention in the most unexpected ways as it gives a sacred start to its mornings when the euphoric chimes of the church bells wake you up. Add a visit to exquisite colonial age churches of the region to your Goa holiday packages and witness interesting contrasts. It is a great opportunity to walk past ancient streets of Christianity and explore beach fringed egalitarian white churches amid lush paddy or cobbled streets of the city. Your holiday packages of Goa that introduces you to an era of Portuguese rule when Goa was a strong religious center and when explosion of architectural activity lead to formation of beauteous cathedrals.

A visit to Old Goa will introduce you to some of the well preserved archaic flavor of Christianity at the churches present there; out of which the famous ones are:

Basillica of Bom Jesus: All Goa holiday packages include a visit to this church which is the most august and famous of all churches in Old Goa for it contains relics of St. Francis Xavier, Patron Saint of Goa and Apostle of the Indies. The exteriors of the three storied church is a fine fusion of Doric, Composite and Corinthian styles of architecture and is built of black laterite stone. A cenotaph of gilded bronze dedicated to Dom Jeronimos Mascarenhas, Captain of Cochin and the benefactor of the church is situated on the norther wall of the church.

Chapel of St. Francis Xavier: Another prominent tourist attraction of holiday packages to Goa is Chapel of St. Francis Xavier which is dedicated to the famous saint St. Francis Xavier. Situated on the banks of River Mandovi the church is believed to be built by St. Francis Xavier and is perfectly styled in Doric architecture. The church is considered miraculous by its believers and is a source of abundance of handwritten scripts related to the famous saint.

Church of Our Lady of Rosary: One of the oldest churches in Goa, this church was built in 16th century and thus holds behind a strong historic significance. The church is located on the spot where Alphonso de Albuquerque witnessed the conquest of Goa in 1510; it beautifully displays a fusion of renaissance and Gothic architectural styles.

Whenever on your Goa holiday packages you want to head for a spiritual experience head towards these ancient cathedrals for a divine ambiance. Some other famous churches worth a visit are Chapel of St. Catherine, Church and Convent of St. Monica, Church of the Carmelites and more. Other than the laid-back beaches and comforts of lavish beach resorts these churches are great rejuvenating destinations with spiritual ambiance.


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