Old Goa- A city of Churches

Old Goa is a city of churches. It was the former capital and the principal city of Portuguese eastern empire known as the 'Rome of the East' and the 'Pearl of the Orient'.
As per some of the information from here and there, the monuments of Old Goa are considered to be the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in the world.
The famous churches of Old Goa includes Church of St. Cajetan, Church of St. Francis of Assisi, and Basilica of Bom Jesus.
Both the churches are under some renovation except Basilica of Bom Jesus.

Church of St. Cajetan: It is a beautiful and calm place. The greenery and the garden are really soothing. 
The Church of St. Cajetan as it is popularly known, (originally called The Church of Our Lady of Divine Providence) and the Convent of St. Cajetan were built by Italian friars of the Order of Theatines, (known in Portuguese as Clérigos Regulares da Divina Providência). Although the church altar is dedicated to Our Lady of Divine Providence, the church is named after the founder of the Theatine order, St. Cajetan, a contemporary of St Francis Xavier.

Church of St. Cajetan

The main Altar

Church of St. Francis of Assisi:
The Church of St. Francis of Assisi was built in 1661 by the Portuguese in the Portuguese Viceroyalty of India.
There is a museum too in Church of St. Francis of Assisi.It was established in 1964 and reorganized in 1981–82. Housed in the convent portion of the church of St. Francis of Assisi, antiquities displayed in 8 galleries include the objects from the prehistoric and early historic period to the late medieval period. The importance of this museum lies in the display of the portrait paintings of governors and viceroys, wooden sculptures, pillars, capitals, postal stamps likewise many other objects which belong to the Portuguese period in Goa.The showcases have been provided to display the important objects the pedestals are prepared to display the heavy stone and wooden objects. The portraits are displayed utilizing both natural and artificial light. { courtesy:google}

Basilica of Bom Jesus:
The Bom Jesus Basilica, perhaps Goa's most famous church and among the most revered by Christians worldwide, is partially in ruins but still a model of simplicity and elegance, and a fine example of Jesuit architecture.
This is the only church in Old Goa, which is not plastered on the outside, the lime plaster having been stripped off by a zealous Portuguese conservationist in 1950.
Located at Old Goa, 10 kilometres east of Panaji, the Bom Jesus Basilica is a World Heritage Monument. The church is called "Bom Jesus" meaning 'good Jesus' or 'infant Jesus' to whom it is dedicated. The façade has on it, at the top, the letters, "HIS" which are the first three letters of Jesus in Greek.
On the southern side is a chapel with gilded twisted columns and floral decorations of wood, where the sacred relics of the body of St. Francis Xavier are kept. The interior of this chapel is richly adorned with wooden carvings and paintings, depicting the scenes from the life of the Saint. {courtesy: google}

Basilica of  Bom Jesus

body of St. Francis Xavier

Coffin of St. Francis Xavier

The main Altar

Apart from the churches, one of the best parts of Goa are the ferries. They are of great help for locals to transmit from one place to another on a daily basis along with their vehicles mounted on these ferries.

Ferries in Goa

Dolphin See-sighting:
One should takeout time to go on this wonderful trip of Dolphin sightseeing. There are these local boats to take you into the deep sea waters for an amazing sight of dolphins playing in water.
Visit them during daytime as during sunset, the Dolphins are rare to find. But anyway you will enjoy the sea sailing during sunset watching the beautiful sunset, the changing colours of the sky, the moving water, the hilarious waves sometimes scary too...