I mentioned in a previous post the four attractions of Vitoria: 1) eating the regional fish stew more appetizingly called Moqueca, 2) visiting one of the beach towns just outside of the city, 3) visiting the 16th century Convento de Nossa Senhora da Penha and 4) visiting the Garoto Candy Factory.
My husband and I recently did number three. We took a morning and wandered around what turned out to be a nun-free convent.
The Convento da Penha is surprisingly not a convent at all. At least, when I heard “convent” I imagined a group of grumpy yet ultimately tender hearted women wearing black and all possessing phenomenal singing voices. I’m not Catholic but I saw the groundbreaking documentary Sound of Music and it’s contemporary follow-up Sister Act.
Unfortunately, there are no nuns there today, nor have there ever been. The paintings of monks everywhere only confused me further. Clearly, “convento” has a different meaning in Portuguese.
Because there was no soaring soprano, we had to be entertained by history and an interesting yet disturbing “Wall of Miracles.”
The Wall of Miracles. People who have had their prayers answered by Nossa Senhora da Penha will post thank you messages on her wall. (No kids, Nossa Senhora is not on facebook. There’s an actual wall.)
It’s a lovely concept that ends up being darn creepy. Many people have said thank you with pictures of the gaping wounds and mauled limbs that were saved. Or with locks of hair. Few things creep out like 30 year-old locks of hair. Gross!
One of the older “thank you” walls, comfortingly free of human hair.
The city of Vila Velha is just across the bridge from Vitoria. For those who know Rio, the relationship between Vitoria and Vila Velha is more like Zona Sul and Barra than Rio and Niteroi.
People who live in Vila Velha talk about the low cost of an apartment by the beach and those in Vitoria say “Yeah, but you have to live in Vila Velha at least an hour away from anyplace you’d actually like to be.”
Here’s one of the Convento’s original telephones they’ve successfully restored. There’s a fund accepting donations if you’d like to help with the restoration of the original snack bar.
It’s worth visiting the Convento if only for the spectacular views of Vitoria and Vila Velha. My only complaint is that after spending an entire morning there, I still don’t know which Mary sighting Nossa Senhora da Penha refers to. Can anyone help me out here?
Next stop on our tour of Vitoria, the Garoto Candy Factory tour! Our tour is scheduled for a week from Monday. We’ve been instructed to wear long pants and no jewelry. Sounds more hardcore than my tour of Hershey World.
