BRAGA
GPS : N 41º 32' 39''; W 8º 25' 19''
Braga has a vast cultural heritage, whose ex-libris is the Bom Jesus do Monte Sanctuary, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2012 it was distinguished as the European Capital of Youth. With the title of UNESCO's Creative City, in the Media Arts category, in 2019, it was elected second Best European Destination of the Year.
The climate in Braga, because it is located between mountains and the Atlantic Ocean, is typically temperate Atlantic, with four well-defined seasons. Winters are mild and rainy. In cold years there is snowfall, with average minimum temperatures of -3 ° C. Springs are typically mild, with large openings and gentle winds. Summers are hot and sunny.
Autumns are mild and rainy.
The municipality of Braga is densely populated, with 989.6 inhabitants / km² and 181 494 inhabitants (2011), is one of the most populous in Portugal and is one of the youngest in Europe. The majority of the population is concentrated in the urban area, where the density reaches about 10 000 inhabitants / km².
In terms of air transport, it has an aerodrome, consisting of a helipad and a runway (950x25 meters) used by airplanes with a maximum capacity of 25 passengers. The nearest international airports are the Porto Airport (50 km), Portela Airport (350 km), and in neighboring Galicia, Vigo Airport (125 km).
Braga is an extremely dynamic city, with intense economic activity in the areas of commerce and services, teaching and research, civil construction, information technology, and new technologies, tourism, and various branches of industry and handicrafts.
The secondary sector is quite diversified, but it is marked by companies linked to technology, the metallurgical industry, civil construction, and wood processing. The software industry is the new industrial force in Bracarense, considered by many to be the Portuguese Silicon Valley. This success is mainly due to the University of Minho, which since 1976 has trained professionals in this area. Also important are industries related to religion, Braga is an important center that produces images of saints, vestments, and bells.
At the top level, the city has two major universities, the
Portuguese Catholic University and the University of Minho.
The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte is a Portuguese Catholic shrine in Tenões, outside the city of Braga, in northern Portugal. Its name means Good Jesus of the Mount.
This sanctuary is a notable example of a Christian pilgrimage site with a monumental, Baroque stairway that climbs 116 meters (381 feet). It is an important tourist attraction for Braga.
The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte in Braga is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The design of the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus, with its Baroque nature emphasized by the zigzag form of its stairways, influenced many other sites in Portugal (like Lamego) and colonial Brazil, like the Sanctuary of Congonhas. As the pilgrims climbed the stairs, (by tradition encouraged to do so on their knees) they encountered a theological program that contrasted the senses of the material world with the virtues of the spirit, at the same time as they experienced the scenes of the Passion of Christ. The culmination of the effort was the temple of God, the church on the top of the hill. The presence of several fountains along the stairways gives the idea of purification of the faithful.
The new church (built 1784–1834) was one of the first Neoclassic churches of Portugal.
This church was elevated to a Minor Basilica status on 5 July 2015 by Pope Francis.
It was built in the 17th century and modified over the centuries.
Palace
This aristocratic palace, with large lounges with luxurious ceilings, and the Baroque gardens reveal the daily life of the eighteenth-century nobility, as well as numerous references to the lives of the other inhabitants of the space: servants, slaves, chaplains.
The striated floor of the ground floor, which was particularly unusual, allowed the carriages to enter the building in order to disembark the passengers and proceed to the stables.
garden
The garden, formed around 1750, is considered one of the most important historic gardens of the Baroque period in Portugal.
Museum
This institution allows contextualized knowledge of everyday life from the 17th to 19th centuries, through collections of decorative arts pieces (furniture, jewelery, ceramics, glass, textiles, etc.), musical instruments and means of transport, national and international. foreign.
Braga is an extremely dynamic city, with intense economic activity in the areas of commerce and services, teaching and research, civil construction, information technology, and new technologies, tourism, and various branches of industry and handicrafts.
The secondary sector is quite diversified, but it is marked by companies linked to technology, the metallurgical industry, civil construction, and wood processing. The software industry is the new industrial force in Bracarense, considered by many to be the Portuguese Silicon Valley. This success is mainly due to the University of Minho, which since 1976 has trained professionals in this area. Also important are industries related to religion, Braga is an important center that produces images of saints, vestments, and bells.
At the top level, the city has two major universities, the
Portuguese Catholic University and the University of Minho.
CHURCHES
Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte
(WORLD HERITAGE)
GPS: N41.55245; W 8.38147
This sanctuary is a notable example of a Christian pilgrimage site with a monumental, Baroque stairway that climbs 116 meters (381 feet). It is an important tourist attraction for Braga.
The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte in Braga is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The design of the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus, with its Baroque nature emphasized by the zigzag form of its stairways, influenced many other sites in Portugal (like Lamego) and colonial Brazil, like the Sanctuary of Congonhas. As the pilgrims climbed the stairs, (by tradition encouraged to do so on their knees) they encountered a theological program that contrasted the senses of the material world with the virtues of the spirit, at the same time as they experienced the scenes of the Passion of Christ. The culmination of the effort was the temple of God, the church on the top of the hill. The presence of several fountains along the stairways gives the idea of purification of the faithful.
The new church (built 1784–1834) was one of the first Neoclassic churches of Portugal.
This church was elevated to a Minor Basilica status on 5 July 2015 by Pope Francis.
BISCAÍNHOS MUSEUM
Palace
This aristocratic palace, with large lounges with luxurious ceilings, and the Baroque gardens reveal the daily life of the eighteenth-century nobility, as well as numerous references to the lives of the other inhabitants of the space: servants, slaves, chaplains.
The striated floor of the ground floor, which was particularly unusual, allowed the carriages to enter the building in order to disembark the passengers and proceed to the stables.
garden
The garden, formed around 1750, is considered one of the most important historic gardens of the Baroque period in Portugal.
Museum
This institution allows contextualized knowledge of everyday life from the 17th to 19th centuries, through collections of decorative arts pieces (furniture, jewelery, ceramics, glass, textiles, etc.), musical instruments and means of transport, national and international. foreign.
SÉ (CATHEDRAL) - BRAGA
The Cathedral of Braga (Portuguese: Sé de Braga) is a Roman Catholic church in the northern city of Braga, Portugal. Due to its long history and artistic significance, it is also one of the most important buildings in the country
SANTUÁRIO DO SAMEIRO
41° 32′ 30.62″ N, 8° 22′ 11.39″ W
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sameiro or Sanctuary of Sameiro (Portuguese: Santuário de Nossa Senhora do Sameiro / Santuário do Sameiro) is a sanctuary and Marian shrine located in Espinho, in the surroundings of the city of Braga, Portugal.
History
Its construction was initiated in XIX century, by Father Martinho da Silva, in neoclassical style. Artistically not have much interest except the silver tabernacle that we can see on the main altar and the image of the patron saint, held in Rome by the sculptor Eugénio Maccagnani and brought to the sanctuary in 1880.
History
Its construction was initiated in XIX century, by Father Martinho da Silva, in neoclassical style. Artistically not have much interest except the silver tabernacle that we can see on the main altar and the image of the patron saint, held in Rome by the sculptor Eugénio Maccagnani and brought to the sanctuary in 1880.
MONASTERY OF TIBÃES
41° 33′ 20.71″ N, 8° 28′ 45.75″ W
The Monastery of St Martin of Tibães (Portuguese: Mosteiro de São Martinho de Tibães) is a monastery in the parish of Mire de Tibães near Braga in northern Portugal. It was the motherhouse of the Benedictine order in Portugal and Brazil, and it is known for its church's exuberant Rococo interior.
