Old Goa
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The city of Velha Goa ( Old Goa English, German " Old Goa " ), originally just called Goa, is situated in the western Indian state of Goa on the left bank of the river Mandovi; Velha Goa was formerly the capital of the Portuguese colony of Portuguese India.
Goa is a very ancient Hindu city, in its present state it was founded back in the 15th century. Since 1510 it was the capital of Portuguese India; In its heyday it was one of the 300,000 inhabitants.
After some malaria epidemics in the 17th century and the first half of the 18th century (especially in 1738 ) attracted the majority of the population into the former suburb of Panaji; However, as the seat of the Viceroy of Portuguese India, the city remained until 1759 consist, as the capital of the colony until 1843 - when today Panaji the capital was and at the same time as Nova Goa ( ie " New Goa " ) went down in history as Goa as Velha Goa ( ie " Old Goa " ) was called and lost its meaning (the name, however, remained to receive today).
Velha Goa, which was formerly known as " Rome of the East ", is now a partially derelict and reclaimed by the jungle city that still houses many relics of the former, imposing style of the Portuguese colonial architecture. It is included by UNESCO in the list of world cultural heritage.
Foreign tourists and Indian pilgrims today come in droves to Velha Goa - whether to admire the gigantic facades and gilded altars of the well-preserved churches or to make a pilgrimage to the grave of St. Francis Xavier, the famous missionary in the 16th century, whose remains are kept in the Basilica do Bom Jesus.
Among the most famous monuments of the city, at least the following are mentioned:
- The cathedral Sé Catedral, founded in 1511 by Afonso de Albuquerque, which is the largest building in the city
- The Basilica of Bom Jesus, which houses the tomb of St. Francis Xavier
- The monastery of St. Francis of Assisi ( a converted mosque in 1661 )
- The Church of St. Cajetan, a small edition of the St. Peter's Basilica in Rome