Saturday 8 March 2008

EIGHT - Old Goa - brief visit

There was not much to see in Old Goa except the two main churches, and a museum of Christian Art, which we missed because it closed just as we made it to the entrance.
The basilica holds the remains of St Francis Xavier in a high tomb. The ceiling of the basilica is made of white painted wood, and in size, is just like a small English cathedral, but with wooden buttresses. Not much decoration except wooden figures carved on a pulpit which are like ship figureheads.
Upstairs in another building was a display of strange images, which reminded me of surrealist paintings. For instance, a long, angular wooden table disappearing into the distance, with arms coming out of one end, and in another, a bulbous sacred heart again with arms coming out and waving. To add to the strangeness, each big image, which are in oils I guess, seemed to be covered with sticky-back plastic. There are about 12 or more of these paintings, with no information but they seem to be, maybe, of 1950s vintage.
In addition there are some lovely wooden carved figures of saints, which must have been removed from their original site. Life size and just plonked down anyhow, so you could touch them.
Later we stopped at the one and only bar and had a cold beer, where I did another drawing. The cows here often walk about in the road, braving the driving skills.

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