A LIVELY VISIT TO PORTUGAL TOMBS
BATALHA, PORTUGAL – Brilliant sunshine decorates the undulating countryside, bringing out its rural best, making you glad to be alive. So, of course, Diogo said, “Shall we visit the dead?”
He had three tombs in mind as we drove north of Lisbon, each with a story. One, to my surprise, contains a boyhood hero I’d lost track of. The others represent an epic Portuguese royal love affair that ran a sticky course from steam heat to tragedy to the macabre. “You must know this gentleman,” Diogo Cabral, a Portuguese friend showing us around, nods toward an inscription that is simple although the setting is regal: “Henrique o Navegador.” Why, it’s none other than Prince Henry the Navigator, or Hank of the High Seas as I used to think of him. He hasn’t been with us for a long time. Almost 5 1/2 centuries have passed since he was filed away (1460) in this vault in this chapel in this Dominican monastery of Santa Maria da Vitoria in the small town of Batalha. But I am pleased to stand beside his sepulchre, pat him admiringly – actually his marble effigy – while offering a silent “Thank you, Hank” prayer for his imaginative soul. continue reading »
March 10 1999 | Portugal and Travel | No Comments »
