COIMBRA - Portugal - page 299

Spain. The three front altars are each worth a look. The main altar is a fine example of
Gothic styling. The 16th-century chapel to the right contains one of the best Renaissance
altars in the country. The apostles all look to Jesus as he talks, while musical angels flank
the holy host. To the left of the High Altar, the Chapel of St. Peter shows Peter being cru-
cified upside down. Note that the local limestone is soft and therefore quite weathered.
On the right, just before the transept, is a murky painting of Queen Isabel (St. Eliza-
beth) with a skirt full of roses. This 13th-century Hungarian princess—with family ties
to Portugal—is a local favorite with a sweet legend. Against the wishes of the king, she
always gave bread to the poor. One day, when he came home early from a trip, she was
busy doling out bread from her skirt. She pulled the material up to hide the bread. When
the king asked her what was inside (suspecting bread for the poor), the queen—unable to
lie—lowered the material and, miraculously, the bread had turned to roses. For this aston-
ishing act, she was canonized as a saint in 1625.
The peaceful cloister (entrance near back of church) is the oldest Gothic cloister in
Portugal. Well-maintained, though its walls are decaying, the courtyard offers a fine,
framed view of the cathedral's dome. A tomb from 1064 in the cloister belongs to Coim-
bra's first Christian, post-Reconquista governor.
Edifício Chiado Museum —Originally the site of Coimbra's first Chiado department
store, this refurbished building is notable for its construction—it was one of the first
buildings in Portugal to be built around an iron framework (like the then-revolutionary
American skyscrapers). It now houses an eclectic assortment of artworks and textiles
donated by local collector José Telo de Morais.
CostandHours: €1.70, Tue-Sat 10:00-13:00 & 14:00-18:00, no mid-day break April-
Sept, closed Sun-Mon year-round, Rue Ferreira Borges 85, tel. [phone], www.cm-
coimbra.pt .
VisitingtheMuseum: Take the elevator up to the top floor and walk your way down,
noticing the exposed iron beams. The third floor has ceramics, drawings, and a collection
of silverware. The second floor has 17th- and 18th-century furniture as well as religious
paintings and objects. The first floor holds oil and pastel paintings from the 19th and early
20th centuries. The ground floor houses temporary exhibits.
▲▲ Fado Music —Portugal's unique, mournful traditional music, fado, is generally per-
formed by women. But in Coimbra, men sing the fado. Roving bands of male stu-
dents—similar to the tuna bands in Spain's Salamanca—serenade around town for tips
and the hearts of women.
FadoaoCentro is reputed to have the best fado singers in Coimbra. This all-male en-
semble of current and former Coimbra university students sings fado in the unique local
style. They offer three shows daily—two short, half-hour shows at 12:30 and 15:00 (€5),