Goa - Church of Saint Cajetao in Old Goa

Monday, April 13, 2015

Located very close to Viceroy Arch in Old Goa, is the Church of Saint Cajetao.

Church of Saint Cajetao

The design of the church is very similar to St. Peter Church in Rome. This church was built in the 17th century. It was built of laterite blocks.

History of the Church

The church is white washed. It has got two twin towers at the entrance and a dome in the middle. The pillars on the outside of the church are beautifully carved.

Dome

In the church premises is a well, which is currently covered. 

The main altar is beautiful and so are the other altars and the pulpit. The carvings are wonderful. The Stations of the Cross are actual paintings in the church.

Main Altar

On the inside of the dome colored white and has writings on the inside of it.  

Goa - Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Old Goa

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

The Church of St. Francis of Assisi  was built by the Portuguese in 1661. Not sure about the history of it. 

Info on St Francis of Assisi 

This church is no longer in service due to the restoration work going on in its premises. 

Church premises

The church though small in comparison to the others it has beautifully carved pillars, the Altar and the Pulpit is also beautiful. 

View of the Church from Main Entrance

Stone vessel for Holy Water

This church has got beautiful painting and also this stone structure for holy water.

Painting

Cross in the church premises

Goa - Rachol Seminary near Rachol Fort in Raia

Friday, October 31, 2014

After visiting the Rachol Fort. We decided to visit the Rachol Seminary.

We were first hesitant whether we should go in or not, as we were wearing shorts. When one of the locals informed us about underground dungeons. Underground Dungeons in Church premises a fact little bit difficult to digest and so we headed to see it. Had anyone stopped us on our dress code, we had planned to say that we were passing by, so just stopped by to pay it a visit. We are tourist. Who would like to be a tourist in his own country?

The Rachol Seminary is one of the biggest Seminary in Goa. It is also called  Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol.  It is called Seminário de Rachol in Portuguese and Raiturchi Patriarkal Siminar in Konkanni.

The premises houses a beautiful garden in front of the Church, the new seminary building and of course the old seminary building. Note that all the three structures are white in color. 

In fact all Churches and Chapels in Goa are painted white, except for a few in Old Goa. 

The Church was under renovation. The renovation was being conducted by ASI i.e Archaeological survey of India. Though the Church is open to public, we couldn't take any snaps there as the workers were busy restoring it. The premises was filled with bamboo scaffolding. It was dark  and also dusty to add to it. What snaps should I take now? I better come back when it is restored so take some good snaps.

All that stood in the church is the Reredos and the Pulpit. Both were painted golden in color with a few statues nearby. There were no pews in the church. 

On the first level stood the musical instruments covered under a sheet. One of the musical instruments being a piano and the other a windpipe for voice modulations. 

We then followed one of the workers who was working on setting up the roof, a narrow stone spiral staircase led us to the top. The staircase was so narrow that I had problems while climbing up and down. We finally reached the Church Bell and then the top. The top offers a very beautiful view of the place. Again we had to do a lot of balancing up there due to the repair work, so we couldn't take photos.

At the Entrance of the Old Seminary there is a small photo frame informing about the history of  it. It was built around 1609 to 1611.

We then started walking around the the old seminary building. The old seminary building is in the shape of a square with a two badminton courts in the middle surrounded by chickoo trees and other vegetation.

We then met up with one of the Brothers there. A Brother is a person who is in the process of becoming a Priest. He showed us around in the Seminary.

The Walls of the Seminary have got paintings of Priests. Some of the paintings were visible, others were not so visible. Again their identities were missing. As per the Brother even he was not aware as to who they were. 

The Old Seminary was a storey tall which is still occupied by Priests and Brothers. Best part is all the four sides are identical. So you will feel like you have seen it , but you haven't.

Photography is not allowed in the premises so I couldn't take photos here. The Seminary all  houses a collection of old coins and crockery along with a unique photo frame structure. 

The Brother should us around the entire Seminary. He then took us to the top most point of the Seminary from where we could see a beautiful view of Shiroda, the Zuari River, the fields and the hills in  a distance on a rainy day. There was a brown patch of land, where some guys were playing football. A per Brother they are all Brothers who are playing football there, as it is a source of exercise for them. He also told me that they even plough fields here along with fruit plantations. The place houses both Mango, Chickoo and Coconut trees along with a couple of vegetable plantations. 

We then asked him about the underground dungeons, as that was the reason why we landed there. He informed us that they are below the badminton courts. 

He came with us to the court, there are two opening to lead to the dungeon, but as it was around 5:30 PM on my watch and it was getting darker we didn't go in. He informed us that there is no lighting in there and that we need a very good torch to go in there, plus to add to it, it is occupied by bats and snakes. So going in there was not a smart thing. 

On the badminton court, there are small grilled openings from where we see inside i.e below, water is filled in it and it is so deep down, so I can imagine how deep is this place. 

We then thanked Brother for showing us around in the premises. This was his last year, come 2015 , he would be a Priest. A matter of great honor for his family and also for him to serve the Lord. 

Church of Our Lady of the Sea

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

In the Nani Daman Fort, or more accurately, the St Jerome Fort, lies the Church of Our Lady of the Sea.

Perched in one corner of the Fort, protected by its thick, strong, more-than-a-storey tall walls, the church is almost invisible from the outside. The Church itself is a small structure painted beige; the pillars are painted green and to complement the overall look, the doors of the church are painted brown. The name of the Church is written in Portuguese, “Virgen Do Mar,” literally meaning Virgin of the Sea.

Church of Our Lady of the Sea in Nani Daman Fort premises

An inscription, “C 1901 R 1966,” is placed right above the main door of the church. I guess C refers to construction and R to renovation. This might possibly refer to a section of the church which might have been built at a later date, because the main church and the fort on which it resides are nearly 400 years old.

Outside the Church stands a beautiful Grotto of Mother Mary. There is also a statue of Our Lady of the Sea nearby besides a Cross, painted red, atop the Church.

There are two beautifully painted bells, silver coloured, on the right hand side of the Church. These bells have a little artistic work adorning them. These bells are rung to announce the commencement of prayer services and to intimate the community about the death of one of the residents.



Grotto



When I visited the Church it was afternoon. Since no services are held in the afternoon, the bells remained silent.

A part of the Church is used as a school. I had no intention of disturbing the students studying inside. I inquired at the School Office if I could get to see the Church from the inside.

A lady named Odeth accompanied me to see the Church. As I stepped inside the Church, I felt relieved from the strong heat outside. The atmosphere was soothing and nice. It felt really nice to visit a church so beautiful.  

Church of Our Lady of the Sea

I guess the clay tiles, also known as Mangalore tiles, which were used to roof the church had played their part in keeping the place cool.

Inside I saw paintings displaying the events that are commemorated in the Way of the Cross. These 14 paintings were placed in wooden frames painted dark brown. The Way of The Cross prayer services commemorate the key events that took place as part of Christ’s death and resurrection.

In the church there is a pulpit. A pulpit is a speaker’s stand in the church. In the old days, the Priest used to stand in the pulpit and preach to the people. It serves as a mini gallery suspended from the walls of the church. The pulpit here was made of marble; the edges were painted golden. Its roof had a dove and other decorations carved in it. The Church also has huge chandeliers hanging inside.

The Church Bell

The Church had statues of Mother Mary and Jesus placed in Canopy Altars on the right and left hand sides of the main altar. These were made of wood and painted golden and were beautifully decorated. The carving must have taken years to be completed. 

The main Canopy Altar, placed behind the altar of the Church, was also made of wood and stood around two storey’s tall. Like most of the other standout elements here, it was painted golden. All the pillars were beautifully carved and even the minute details were clearly visible from where I took this photo. One could clearly see the image of Our Lady of the Sea in it.

Inside the Church

The locking system of the doors was old too, as I remember having the same kind of locking system on the main door of our ancestral house in Goa. It consisted of a huge wooden beam, known in Konkani as an adam, which is more than a metre long and with a thickness of 4 x 4 inches. This beam, with a large knob on its head, rests within a cavity in the wall on the inside of the structure. When one wishes to latch the door, one pulls this heavy beam, holding it by the knob, out of the cavity and stretches it across the door. Most old houses in Goa are equipped with this mode of door latching system. You might find it quite outmoded, but try pushing a heavy wooden door, that is barred using one of these huge beams. It is very difficult, I assure you.

Masses and other prayer services are held at this church every day. Prayers are held in English and Portuguese. I have been to Goa so many times but I have never attended a Portuguese prayer service. 

The Pulpit

In fact, Portuguese is actually spoken here. Odeth told me that she herself is very fluent in the language. However, the language is not widely spoken by the younger generation.

If you ever visit the Nani Daman fort, make it a point to visit the Church. It is right inside the fort; there is no way you can miss it. If the church is closed, ask the school office and they will open it for you.

The visit to this church introduced me to the Portuguese way of designing churches.

Cathedral of Bom Jesus

Friday, May 18, 2012

Looking at the window pane, you would never believe that this Cathedral, completed in 1603 AD, is around 450 years old. It seems like it was only just put in place. It is only when you take a look at the entrance that you realize that the Cathedral is really very old.

The walls have been painted beige in colour with white borders. The wooden glass windows have been painted dark brown while the door is dark brown in colour. 

Entrance to the Church

I wondered if the painters had forgotten to paint the entrance of the Church. Or maybe they had been paid just to paint a few portions. Or perhaps the painters did not know what colour combination to be used for the pillars and the art work created 450 years ago.

The main door is painted brown in the beautifully carved arch. The work on the pillar next to the arch and the other art work next to the door is amazing. This I have noticed is common at all Portuguese churches. There is a beautifully designed logo above the main door of the Church.  

View of the church from the side

Again as in all Portuguese Churches, this too had a pulpit, canopy altar and the 14 paintings of the Stations of the Cross. The pulpit of this church was beautifully carved; the minute details were clearly visible as was the image of Christ carved on it.

The main altar and the side altars were also beautifully carved and painted in blue, white, red and golden colour. All the altars were made of wood.

The Main Altar with Canopy Altars placed next to it

The roof of this church was very high and there was a mezzanine floor to accommodate additional crowds in the Cathedral.

The walls inside were also painted beige. The painters who had worked on it have done us a favour by leaving the old artistic work made by the Portuguese artisans as it was to ensure that we would be able to see the splendid work for ourselves.

The Pulpit

They made a mistake in painting the outside though. They should have kept it the way it was to represent its past glory. Or at best they should have painted everything white, in the manner of the Churches in Goa which were also built by the Portuguese.

The inside ceiling was whitewashed and supported by wooden arches. At the entrance of the Church there was another crest painted on the ceiling.

The caretaker of the Church told me that he had been posted in Daman for 25 years and looked after the historical sites here on behalf of the Daman Municipal Council. Services are held in the Church in English and Portuguese.

Inside the Church

The caretaker introduced me to Frankie, who used to stay in Mumbai a long time ago. Twenty-five years, to be precise. Once he came here to visit his in-laws. He liked this place so much that he decided to settle down here. He lives on the outskirts of Moti Daman Fort.

Frankie told me that the current generation is not interested in looking after the church but is in fact interested in making money far away from Daman. The caretaker and Frankie and a few others usually come here to kill time.

I felt nice being inside this Cathedral. The art work on the pulpit, main altar and the side altars was amazing. Even the minute details were taken care of. And the best part of it was that it has remained intact for 400 years.