Goa!!!

The Resort - Old Anchor

Goa!!!…this post is 2 months late I know! We were in Goa in November. Writing about Goa isn’t easy esp. for me without wanting to pack my bags and go back! I’ve wanted to go to Goa for as long as I can remember!! Twice before trips to Goa were cancelled at the last moment…I don’t even recall why now…But well…this time I was just hell bent on making it…no matter what. I was getting kind of sick of always going to the hills for vacations and for just 2-3 days at a time…work not allowing more time off earlier.

Ever since I quit my last job I got busy planning this trip…saved a decent amount of money but I luvvv a trip where I can get to have fun and save money! Since we were going to Mumbai after Goa (see post about Mumbai trip) for a wedding, there was a lot of stuff I had to carry. Lucky for me Suchi visited Delhi a week or two before I was leaving and I packed a suitcase for her to carry back to Mumbai. But despite that I can never travel light so we ended up carrying too much and using just half the stuff we carried! (u could read a previous post on Packing …it’s a poem!).

Welll…I booked all my tickets two months in advance (remember I was taking no chances!) esp. with it being peak season and lucky for us my uncle had a time share scheme with Dalmia resorts so we got a decent package for their resort in south Goa (little did we know the difference between south and north and all the expense involved in commuting from one end to the other!!)…but we were happy with the deal…very economical and plus we heard it was near one of the more beautiful and secluded beaches…and trust me I wanted a quiet vacation….just the sun, sand, water and food…and wine! Okk beer too though I'm not a very beer person…

We took the Trivandrum Rajdhani to Madgaon which is around 17 kms from where the resort is. Now for those who need to know, this Rajdhani is not like the regular Rajdhani’s … this one is like a regular long distance passenger train. There’s no restriction on waitlisted people getting on and the journey is long and tiring though I must say everyone seemed to be in a generally good mood and ready to party right from the time the train left Delhi!... we had kids traveling with us so the less said the better! (Not our kid btw…he stayed home with nana – nani!) I am very fond of traveling by train and I was realllyyyy looking forward to the Konkan Railway section, having heard a lot about the tunnels and the scenic beauty…well the tunnels didn’t disappoint but I didn’t quite find the scenery anything spectacular. I lived in the north east and traveled extensively there…I’ve seen amazing places in the northeast and parts of Konkan and Goa reminded me so much of the north east. But….yes once we reached Goa…the first view of the sea left me in awe.

The minute we reached the resort after a short drive from the station…I was like let’s go to the beach right now. But of course we had to settle into our room first and after a shower we walked down to the beach (which was across the resort…a short walk through a nice shaded path) and I luvvd it…it was quiet…with a row of beach shacks and very few vendors. We took a walk and it was nice to note that there weren’t many people…mostly Russians and Europeans…and sum music played in the shacks… but nothing loud or blaring…we got back to the resort and had sum tea and snacks before taking another walk to check out nearby shopping areas…we found out that right beside our resort was a nice shopping complex and further ahead a mall (I’d call it mini mall after seeing the huge ones we have here in Delhi and most metros) and there was a little street market further down the road.

South Goa is not as commercialized or crowded as North Goa is and fact is North Goa remains more popular with tourists as it is closer to most of the places one is likely to see in their first visit to Goa. South is where most of the bigger resorts and 5 star hotels are located...with some of the best beaches. Panjim was around 35 kms from where we were staying. The best way to travel and move around Goa is of course to hire a two wheeler…u can hire it for the entire duration of your stay…that’s more cost effective. But we didn’t do that…we used cabs which in Goa is just too expensive…but then Rajiv wasn’t keen on a bike. We did have one trip of north Goa inclusive in the package and also a boat ride on the Mandowi river which we covered on our second day in Goa…we got to see places like the Mangeshi temple and Basilica of Bom Jesus (where the body of St. Francis is), visited Panjim market and shopped for a lot of wine. We kept a stock of beer back in our room too. Alcohol is cheap…but then everyone knows that about Goa!

Of course the bus driver took us for a ride in more ways than one…he took us to a store where we got wine and later discovered we’d paid them double of what the rates were! This by the way was still cheaper than what we’d pay here in Delhi.

The following day we took a cab to Anjuna Beach where the flea market is. By this time I was beginning to realize all about distances in Goa. Anjuna is up north and it took us more than an hour and half to get there. Our cab driver was an old timer and he kept us entertained with a lot of facts…and trivia about Goa…we gossiped a lot and time passed by. Anjuna was disappointing…for me at least…Goa’s not a place to shop as such. Anjuna reminded me of Janpath in Delhi ‘cept this was Janpath at the beach! And a dirty beach at that! After our beach in south Goa, north beaches were disappointing and crowded. I never felt awkward in my bathing suit down south but north had me thinking twice…hmmm!

Our cab driver took us to a place called Big Foot which I felt was a place kids would love to visit…that was also the time I missed my son the most! It’s a small museum kind of place which tries to depict life in Goa. It also has a story revolving around a stone shaped like a big foot…and legend has it that if u place your foot on it, your wishes come true. It also has the largest single rock carving found in India of Meera Bai. I picked up some lil trinkets there…ear rings and stuff like that.

On our way back we went shopping at madgaon market and picked up more wine! Some of it was for friends and family…we got both local Goan port wine and branded wine. Port wine is nice but way too sweet.

Evenings at the resort is when we got to do most of our socializing…there’s something about holidays which gets even strangers talking and wanting to know each other. The resort had few groups of vacationers, a lot of honeymooning couples and some foreign tourists. The evenings had different events…I liked the karaoke nite the most and we went to the disc a couple of times. Karaoke nite was fun coz of the people who were around…sadly few could carry a note but they had a good time attempting to sing though. That’s where I also discovered that Rajiv could actually sing very well (if he wanted to!)…he sang two songs and got a lot of appreciation for them and he was all set to sing a third but time had run outJ. Food at the resort was alright…I enjoyed breakfast most…I ate a lot while at Goa but then we spent the whole day moving around…big meals were justified!

On our third night we met Karen and Gerry who we shared some nice meals and lovely memories with (see post on Karen & Gerry) and other interesting people we met included a guy from orissa on a conference tour, two families (two guys who were best frenz had come with their wives and kids)…one from Delhi and the other visiting from the states, a maharashtrian family and a group of very cute school kids from Mumbai. I spent a nice afternoon in the pool with these kids…now I don’t know how to swim and these lil girls (all of 12 years!) decided they would teach me swimming no matter what. We had a fun time chatting and sharing stories…with some of them handing out phone numbers and insisting we visit them in Mumbai!

Our last night we had our dinner at the most popular beach shack near our resort and the food was simply yummy…and we spent the evening drinking on the beach…it was beautiful just watching the white waves…hearing them…in the dark…

Leaving Goa was truly sad…coz’ it was better than what I had expected it to be…and I had a wonderful time there…that’s the effect Goa has on you. What’s interesting is that I had my brother and his family and my cousin and his wife visit Goa after we came back and each of them had their own stories about the Goa they experienced…but we all agree on one thing - Goa is beautiful and a place you can really have a lot of fun. I’m hoping I’ll go back again and this time I want to go with good friends and share the whole experience and do all the things I missed this time in Goa. Friends who took us around Mumbai told us they would ensure we had a completely different but just as exciting Goa trip next time and I can’t wait for that!!!

Ps: First day at the beach I went in shorts and ended up feeling over dressed next to all the other Russian and European women in their bathing suits. Second day I got out my bathing suit and headed confidently to the beach. To my utter dismay…a whole family of gujjus (sweet people btw) were bathing in the water fully clothed!!! I ended up feeling awkward again!! I remember Gerry making a comment saying why don’t I see more Indian women around here in bathing suits like u?!! Welll…..

Never got around to learning swimming! Can barely float L but got tanned like hell…I was 3 shades darker when I got to the wedding in Mumbai. I got hell from people there…what have u done to urself??! Loll…I rem buying a lot of bleach…to get back closer to my normal skin tone! Some people luvvd the tan though ;-)…but a good sun block is an absolute must in Goa!!

Goa is famous for Feni (a drink made with cashew…or coconut), cashew nuts and something called Kokum (again made from coconut I think…used by my mom-in-law in fish curries) and like I said before alcohol is cheap :-) …

Don’t carry too many clothes…trust me u won’t need much anyway!

We didn’t experience any of the famous (infamous nite life) but then again…there’s always next time!!!!