The Jerónimos Monastery: Majestic.

The Jerónimos Monastery is an important historical building in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It was built in 1501 and completed in 1580 to commemorate the voyage of Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama. During our trip to Portugal, we visited this World Heritage Site. When I bought tickets (EUR 12 per person for ages 13-65, EUR 6 per person for ages 65 and above) at the ticket office a few hundred meters from the monastery, I was amazed by its hundreds of meters long "facade" (photos 1-2). I was attracted by its grandeur and the hope that its 30 pairs of towers, which are tens of meters high and seem to reach the sky, give people the hope to get rid of all the burdens of the world... While queuing to enter, I carefully observed that its exterior is made of polished and smooth white (ivory?) granite, which makes it particularly tall and holy. There are dozens of groups of wonderful reliefs at the entrance (photos 3-4)... Entering the monastery, I saw that the inner hall is spacious and holy, and the Gothic hall in the middle has a high vault (photos 5-6). The altar in the middle of the hall is decorated with gold and green carvings, and there is a statue of St. Jerome made of red glazed porcelain next to the altar. According to the "homework" before the trip: The monastery is a perfect combination of Gothic and Renaissance styles, and it is called Manueline architecture by later generations. Many important historical figures are buried here, such as Camões, the greatest poet in Portugal. The Lisbon Treaty, which is of milestone significance in the development history of the European Union, was signed here...