The twenty pepper tax

Of that Portuguese golden past remains only the Pantheon of Kings and the graves of two of the key figures of that time, the captain Vasco da Gama who discovered the sea route to the Indies and the poet Luis Vaz de Camões, who masterfully described in the verse Portuguese epic, which rest on the side wings of the entrance of the nave of the church. What attracts us in this building apart from the aesthetic beauty of its facade and its interior is its intricate decoration carved in stone that refer to the findings of these new worlds, spices, new plants, exotic animals and the symbols of sailors, everything leads us to the Portuguese discoveries, in what would later be known as Manueline. The Jeronimos monastery is a vestige until today of an ex-libris of this nation of adventurer who dare to navigate the populated waters of legendary monsters and enchanting mermaids looking for other places, other cultures and of course coveted the wealth the kingdom craved for their meager coffers. It may not seem grand on the outside but it is a Dantesc monument inside their cloisters hide gardens, where one breathes the serenity desired by the monks for prayer and spiritual meditation, which in my humble opinion, should be very difficult to obtain since a person gets "lost" in thecontemplation of the architectural tracery decorating the vaults. What always fascinates me is that these visitors like me, were some of the most majestic and important personalities of the kingdom, walk on these same corridors and even though they are not already present, have left their mark on these very stones worn by time.