» Old Goa
Half a dozen imposing churches and cathedrals and a fragment of a gateway are all that remain of the second capital of the Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur and the Portuguese capital that was once said to rival Lisbon in magnificence. Wracked by cholera and malaria epidemics, eroded by monsoon rains and choked by creepers, Old Goa has declined from a vibrant city of over a hundred thousand souls to little more than a handful of potent architectural relics.
Old Goa is still the spiritual heart of Christian Goa, and its most famous building is the Basilica of Bom Jesus, which contains the tomb and mortal remains of the peripatetic St Francis Xavier, credited with introducing Christianity to much of South-East Asia. Also of interest is the Convent & Church of St Francis of Assisi, which has gilded and carved woodwork, murals depicting scenes from the saint's life, and a floor substantially made of carved gravestones. The largest of the churches is the Portuguese-Gothic Se Cathedral, dating from 1562, which houses the so-called 'Golden Bell', whose resonant peal can be heard thrice daily. Other gems include the Church of St Cajetan which was modelled on St Peter's in Rome and the Royal Chapel of St Anthony. Not a single secular building remains standing, so don't say God doesn't work in mysterious ways.
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