PORTUGAL : Coimbra
Coimbra is since 1290 one of the oldest university cities in whole
Europe with about 17.000 students. Coimbra is the intellectual and
spiritual centre of Portugal. The city is the main administrative centre
of Central Portugal. Coimbra is set by the Mondego River, about 40 km
east of Figueira da Foz, a neighbour coastal city with several beaches,
summer and seaport facilities on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
Coimbra is situated at 120 km south of Porto and 195 km north of Lisbon.
Coimbra has a population of 150,000 inhabitants and a total of 435,000
inhabitants in its Greater Metropolitan Area. It is considered the third
most important city of Portugal, after Lisbon and Porto, and plays a
role as the capital city of the central part of the country.
Coimbra has the oldest university in Portugal. It was founded in Lisbon
by Dom Dimis in 1290 and moved back and forth between the two cities
before finally moving to Coimbra in 1537. Coimbra had the only
university in Portugal until the 20th century. The university has
preserved its ancient academic traditions, as seen in the black-caped
students, in the soulful tones of the “fado de Coimbra” (traditional
song sung to the sound of guitars by the students) and in the Queima das
Fitas, a boisterous celebration of the students’ graduating year
(Burning of the Ribbons).
Fine buildings, especially the celebrated Baroque library, are
commonplace in this historical town, which is in fact one of the four
most historic towns in Portugal. There are two cathedrals, countless
churches and antique mansions, including one that houses the Museu
Machado de Castro on Rua de São João. The mansion, once an archbishop’s
palace, is beautiful in itself and serves as a wonderful setting for
hundreds of sculptures, paintings, ceramic objects and items of
furniture.
