A Time Capital

Capital cities are political, administrative, often cultural, and sometimes geographical centres of their respective country or region. Belem has never been any of that - a fishing village that grew to become a Lisbon suburb but was never considered central to any physical location. Notwithstanding, in an Einstein-induced time-space continuum, Belem would be seen as one of the most glorious capitals in the world: the capital of the Portuguese Golden Age. It was there that hungry, impatient ships raised their sails to dart over the ocean in search of discoveries and conquests - and it was there that they returned, content, heavy with gold, ivory, copper, textiles and spices that turned a small country into a mighty Empire. When Portugal "gave new worlds to the World", it did so by bringing them to Belem to be reposited in the Jeronimos monastery.

Jeronimos was built in the early 1500s, a brainchild of Manuel I who ruled between the years 1495 and 1521 - arguably, the most influential king in Portuguese history who was unofficially known as "the Renaissance King". While Portuguese exploration of the world began in the 14th century and picked up speed in the first quarter of the 15th, it was Manuel's vision, boundless ambition and strategic planning that turned that exploration into a powerful Empire-building tool. Providing spiritual foundation for an otherwise completely practical quest was the cornerstone of Manuel's master plan, and that required Pope Alexander the VI's validation. Hence Jeronimos, whose construction began in January 1501 - the glorious monastery was meant as Manuel's personal pledge of allegiance to Rome, even if it took a whole century to make it complete. Besides, the King wanted Jeronimos to serve as a visual proof of his geopolitical theory, according to which the worldwide centres of power had throughout history gravitated westward - from Pharaohs' Egypt to Greece, to Rome, and now Portugal was destined to become the next seat of greatness. Manuel saw his country and himself as a unifier, and that vision was to be reflected in the about-to-be-created magnificent building sitting right on the ocean. He therefore instructed his architects to design a new style that would incorporate architectural elements from all the newly discovered countries and cultures - Arab, African, Asian - as well as traditional European.

The result of their efforts was so distinct and unique that it became known as "Manueline architecture". As an aside, the "Renaissance King" left an imprint not only on arts and design: apart from sponsoring artists, playwrights and such, he also overhauled the country's legal system and redefined the relationships between different religions in Portugal - all that as he was redrawing the map of the world.

To finance the above-mentioned and many other projects, Manuel needed to obtain and harness resources from yet-to-be-discovered overseas lands - and, for that, he relied on what would nowadays be called his "elite operations squad" of handpicked sea captains. Indomitable adventurers, experienced military commanders, ruthless conquerors - the king needed them to risk everything in order to gain everything, and that's what they did, step by step. First came discoveries: in 1498, Vasco de Gama found a route to India, and just two years later Pedro Alvares Cabral reached Brazil. After a few years spent on settling down and building forts, the military followed, the undisputed leader among them Alfonso de Albuquerque who within 8 years captured Oman, Goa and Hormuz. Hated by the conquered as a butcher, he was hailed as a hero in his own country and rewarded by the king with a title of "the Viceroy of Goa". A monument in his honour was erected in Belem, just a stone throw from the Jeronimos

Almost any other public work of art in Belem celebrates the Golden Age and those who made it possible as well - from the Monument to the Discoveries featuring a giant ship and its crew (on the cover photo), to the tombs of Vasco de Gama and Luis Camoes (Portugal's most distinguished poet, "the Voice of the Golden Age") inside the monastery,

the "Alley of Conquests" in the nearby park 

or a floor mosaic depicting a Portuguese version of a 16-century map of the world.

The only exception - a place of interest not related to the history of discoveries - is likely an old bakery shop known as Pasteis de Belem...