Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A block farther along the pedestrian drag, stop at the picturesque corner (where the
building comes to a triangular corner). The steep road climbs into Coimbra's historic
ghetto (no Jewish community remains) and the wonderful and recommended
À Capella
As you stroll along, you'll know it's graduation time if students' photos are displayed
in photographers' windows. Check out the graduates decked out in their traditional uni-
versity capes (displaying rips on the hem—left side for family, right side for friends, back-
side for girl- or boyfriends) and color-coded sashes indicating their field of study.
• The pedestrian street ends at Praça 8 de Maio with the...
Church of Santa Cruz:
Enjoy this church's impressive facade. Notice the low-key
white wires on the statuary—they're electrified to keep pigeons from dumping their cor-
rosive loads on the tender limestone. Go inside; it's the most active religious spot in town.
The musty church is lavishly decorated with 18th-century tiles that tell the stories of the
discovery of the Holy Cross (on left) and the life of St. Augustine (on right; the church is
of the Augustinian order). The pulpit is considered one of the finest pieces of Renaissance
work in Portugal. St. Anthony of Padua is known as St. Anthony of Lisbon around here.
