Braga-Bom Jesos-Penya-Gimarais
Description:
09:00 Departure from Porto to Braga.
A significant part of the attractions of Braga is concentrated in the small Old Town. The road here passes through Arco da Porta Nova. The first gates appeared here in the XVI century, and in 1772 a baroque design was installed in their place. In the center of the Old Town, in the middle of the Gardens of St. Barbara stands the cathedral. Its construction began in 1089, and ended in the middle of the XIII century. Particularly noteworthy is the Chapel of the Kings, where Count Henrique and Countess Teresa, parents of the first king of Portugal, are buried. Excursions to Braga allow you to visit not only the cathedral, but also the Palace of the Archbishop, also located in the Gardens of St. Barbara. The three wings of this building were built in different eras: the eastern is a model of Gothic style, the western and southern are Baroque. Currently, the Archbishop’s Palace houses an archive, a university rectorate and the City Library, numbering 10,000 manuscripts and 300,000 books.
Brahe has many churches. Among the most interesting are the Misericordia (Misericordia), built in the XVI century. in the style of the Italian Renaissance, built at the same time the Chapel da Conceiçao (Capela da Conceiçao), built in the XVIII century, San Joao de Souto (Sao Joao de Souto) and Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz), the facade of which is decorated in the spirit of rococo. The most famous landmark of Braga, the Church of Christ on Calvary, is not in the city itself, but 6 km away. There are chapels, statues, fountains, symbolizing 14 stops of Jesus Christ on the way to the place of execution. To the entrance to the temple on the hillside rises a ladder, with the XV century. surrounded by gardens.
13:00 Lunch in one of the restaurants in the city (not included in the price).
15:00 Visit to the city of Guimarais.
One of the main attractions of the city is the towering on the hill Castelo de Guimarães, or Castelo de San Miguel. To date, most of the towers and gates of the fortress, built in the form of a heraldic shield, have been preserved. In the western wing, the chapel of San Miguel in the Romanesque style survived, in which the first king of Portugal Afonso I was baptized.The rest in Guimarais will allow you to enjoy the atmosphere of the medieval city, with which several legends are associated. One of them explains the name of the main square of Largo da Oliveira.
During your stay in the city or excursion to Guimarais, you can visit the Paso dos Dukesh Palace, which was built in the XV century and belonged to the Dukes of Braganza. In the appearance of this building, the features of the Burgundian style are guessed. The palace was in desolation for a long time, but in the 1930s it was restored. Currently, it houses a museum, the exposition of which presents furniture, porcelain, faience, tapestries with images of scenes of conquest by the Portuguese of North African cities.
18:00 Return to the hotel.