PILGRIMAGE TOUR GOA

PILGRIMAGE TOUR GOA itinerary

Day 01: Arrive Goa - Bishop’s Place

Welcome to India- a country where hospitality is a way of life; to a culture steeped in tradition, a land where history lives in music and dance. You will be received by our representative at the airport and proceed to your hotel for checking in & relax.

After freshening up, you will proceed to Old Goa, a historical city in North Goa. Once the capital of Portuguese India in the 16th Century, the city was abandoned in the 18th Century Plague. Today the remains of the city are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After, we will visit The Bishop's Palace, also known as Patriarchal Palace, situated in Altinho and overlooking the capital city of Panjim. Bishop’s Palace is renowned for its architectural splendor and as the residence of the Archbishop of Goa. Mass will be celebrated during the day.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: no meal

Day 02: Reis Magos – Mapuca

Today morning after breakfast, you will drive to the Goan village of Reis Magos, the Portuguese name for the Three Wise Men. The village is famous for two of Goa’s famous structures; the Reis Magos Fort, and the Reis Magos Church – the first church in Bardez. We will then visit St Jerome’s Church in Mapuca. Later, we will drive to the town of Mapuca in North Goa, which is known for its very colorful weekly Friday Market, that goes on from early morning to late evening. Here is where the Our Lady of Miracles Church is found, originally built in 1594 by the Portuguese army. Believed to have been built on the site of a Hindu temple, this church was dedicated to Saint Jerome, who was venerated as the Patron Saint of Librarians, and is still often called St Jerome's Church. The building caught fire in 1961 and a large part of it was destroyed. After its renovation, the church was rechristened and dedicated to Our Lady of Miracles. Both Hindus and Christians offer their prayers here, especially on the Church’s Feast Day on the third Monday after Easter, a fine example of the peace and harmony between the two religions here.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast

Day 03: Pilar Seminary

Today after breakfast, you will proceed to visit the Pilar Seminary where the magnificent Procession of Saints takes place on the Monday of Holy Week. Set on a small hill just south of the capital city of Panaji, the Pilar Seminary is known for its quiet ambience and the spectacular views of the countryside. The Capuchin monks founded the Seminary in 1613 when they established a center of learning along with the Church. The beautiful old Church at the Seminary has an exquisite baroque stone-carved doorway and the cloisters are decorated with 17th century frescoes. We will celebrate Mass here. The new seminary, which opened in 1942 for training of priests lies at the top of the hill. There is a small museum, which houses fragments of pottery and temple sculpture excavated from the site. Here it will be possible to see a copy of the first Marathi translation of the Gospel. Following our visit to the Seminary we will have lunch at a local spice plantation. We will have the afternoon at leisure before returning to our hotel in the late afternoon.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast and Lunch

Day 04: Se Cathedral - Church of St Francis

The morning, after celebration of Sunday Mass in a local Church, will be at leisure with an opportunity to enjoy the local beaches. In the afternoon we return to Old Goa to visit the Se Cathedral, one of the most ancient and celebrated religious buildings of Goa. This magnificent 16th Century monument to the Roman Catholic Rule in Goa under the Portuguese is the largest Church in Asia. The Cathedral is dedicated to St Catherine of Alexandria on whose feast day on 1510 Alfonso Albuquerque defeated the Muslim army and took possession of the city of Goa. Hence it is also known as St Catherine’s Cathedral. Adjacent to the Cathedral is the Convent and Church of St Francis, the former Palace of the Arch Bishop.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast

Day 05: Rachol Seminary – Margao

Today you will proceed to Rachol Seminary surrounded by the remains of a moat of an old Muslim fort and once home to the Christian Art Museum. Initially, the complex, built by the Jesuits between 1606 and 1610, consisted of a hospital and a school for the poor besides the college for the trainee priests. It also housed what was only the third setup of a printing press in the subcontinent. Fr Thomas Stevens (said to be the first Englishman to set foot on Indian soil) set up the press, which managed to bring out some sixteen books, including the first translation of the Gospels into an Indian language. The Seminary also has a church, built in 1576, dedicated to Saint Ignatius of Loyola - the founder of the Jesuit order. It is said that fragments of Saint Constantine’s bones, brought from Rome in 1782 are enshrined here along with a small glass vial which once contained a little amount of the Saint ́s blood. Mass will be celebrated here. After we will explore Margao, the commercial and cultural capital of Goa. Margao grew initially as the settlement surrounding the ancient Damodar Temple. After the demolition of the original temple it was replaced by the Holy Spirit church and church grounds. The western side of the Church developed as a market place, still famous today. People from all over Goa congregate at the special market to buy spices and dried fish to be used during the oncoming rainy season. The settlement grew on the eastern side with the church at its core and extended outwards. Today bones of Saint Francis Xavier are found in the Espirito Santo (Holy Spirit) Church. The Church stands in the old market square as one of the finest examples of the Indian Baroque style. Originally built by the Jesuit missionaries in 1564, it was destroyed in 1571 by the Muslim army soldiers before being rebuilt in 1645.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast

Day 06: Visit the relics of St Francis Xavier – Panaji

Today the group will visit the Bom Jesus Basilica for the opportunity to see the relics of St Xavier, which are kept in a silver casket, elevated inside the Basilica and are exposed (being brought to ground level) generally every ten years, often for only one month. return to Panaji and have the day at leisure to explore the Capital. The city’s architecture is the surest sign that Goa evolved independently of the rest of India. In the small old quarters of Fontainhas and Sao Tomé, winding alleyways are lined with Portuguese-style houses, boasting distinctive red-tiled roofs, wooden window shutters and rickety balconies decorated with bright pots of petunias. It is here in Panaji that the Church of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception is found, one of the oldest churches in Goa, which dates to the year 1540. Evening visiting the Church for evening Prayer.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast

Day 07: Anjuna Flea Market

Today you will drive to the village of Anjuna to visit the famous Anjuan Flea Market. Strategically situated on the sandy stretch overlooking the Arabian Sea, today's vast and bustling market sells locally produced apparel, spices, tea, coffee, jewelry, hand-made toys and souvenirs. After, we will take a tour of Panaji city center, Goa’s state capital since 1843.

Overnight in Goa

Meal: Breakfast

Day 08: Depart Goa

Today well in time you will transfer to Goa airport to catch the flight to onward destination.

Meal: Breakfast