Visiting Santa Catarina
Visiting Santa CatarinaA few kilometres from Turquel, my home town, Santa Catarina is a nice small town belonging to Caldas da Rainha, that, recently has been embellishing its common spaces.
Small and simple, it is a progressive place that deserves that classification as “Vila”
I went there to join a couple of friends in their marriage.
It has a nice altar, but I couldn’t read anything about it. So far…
Yes I did!
It comes from the 16th century, in Manueline style with Baroque details.
The altar, of course…
Pillory
Discreet, the pillory testifies the importance of the village in medieval days (lost with time).
Recent development allowed the promotion to “vila” (small city), after many decades as a village.
War memorial
Excuse-me for some emotion, but only now I saw this simple monument in my neighbor Santa Catarina. I was there several times, followed the garden by the church, but never noticed, until now, this statue. It was a shock to find that, in such a small town, five men were killed in the war where I’ve been… without any casualty.
Five men here, plus three in my Turquel, plus a few thousands elsewhere… I was lucky!
Garden
Adjacent to the church, there’s a small but nice garden.
It’s a good place for pictures, and, being in a marriage, the official photographers (and us) took good advantage of it.
Sightseeing
If you approach from the west, you may stop in the descent, in a clearly visible sightseeing point one quilometre distant, from where you may enjoy the nice agricultural landscape that surrounds the village.
It is also a picnic area.
