Goa
"Goa", the name unfolds thousands of images of endless beaches with swaying palms, lush green paddy fields and a God-given atmosphere to match up. The same magic happened to me when I was told that I have to travel to Goa, on some official business, clubbed with a meeting. The only saviour under these circumstances was my die-hard policy of ‘all work and no play is bad for my health!’ What better place to live this philosophy than ‘the land of Gomant’?
So there I was in the next Konkan Kanya Express also called the CST-Madgaon Express, chugging away to the land of fish curry, boiled rice and feni, to the land of happiness, peace and content. Well, (for those who've come in late - Old jungle saying!), October-end might not be particularly the right time for a person to be in Goa if you are planning a vacation or even a honey-moon, as temperatures touch around 32 degrees Celsius by mid-afternoon. As for me, I was there for work and couldn’t complain, could I?
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The train I took was the best available, as it leaves CST Mumbai at 2230 hrs daily and drops you at Old Goa (Karmali/Carambolim) by 0930 hrs next morning, that is if the train is on time! Although my hectic day and cosy berth in the train were far too luring for a perfect slumber, a group of unreserved students’ group bombarded our coupe with lullabies, which prevented the sleep goddess from being effective for nearly half the night. Who said, Indian journeys are not always adventurous? Mind you, they could be worse…
If you choose to be in south Goa then the best place to get off would be Madgaon (1130 ETA). My work took me to Panjim and hence, Karmali was the destination. The moment I stepped out of the small (almost petite!) station, a horde of taxi drivers assailed me, ready to take me to the main city. Disentangling myself from these drivers, I eventually shared my Maruti van (taxi) with a few other commuters, for a sum of 50 bucks to Hotel Fidalgo at Panjim.
Fidalgo, to your utter surprise is an all-vegetarian place, close to the ever-flowing Mandovi River and in the heart of Panjim City. On reaching Fidalgo, it dawned on me that Goa was not a place for young executives like me, as the place immediately mesmerises you and I almost forgot my motive for being in the place.
With a great effort of eliminating thoughts of all the silvery beaches, temples, forts and rural piazzas that I could visit and lists of all the things I could buy running through my mind,I hoisted myself behind a PILOT! Yes, a pilot with a bike under us! These bike pilots are omnipresent at any main square of the town and would obligingly scoot you anywhere for a hefty sum. Fortunately, they are quick and efficient and surely cost less than rickshaws, who charge atrocious amounts of money for even short distances. Sprinkled in-between the course of my work, I could visit the lovely beaches of north Goa, but sadly missed photographing them due to lack of a good camera. Unfortunately one cannot download pictures in jpg. format from one's brain (Billy, are you there?). Take my word, the beaches of Goa are worth a visit, at least once in your lifetime.
You can take a pilot for about 200 bucks starting from Vagator to Miramar, placed approx. 30kms from each other. Vagator is best viewed from the hillock, which shoulders the exquisite beach. Toddy palms sway away in mild resistance to the fierce winds that blow across from the Arabian. On the way you pass the lush green paddy fields which were then already harvested and presented a picturesque countryside. You find gypsy tents on the way selling ethnic artifacts and handicrafts and exotic looking stuff. For me, as for most Indians, it was just window shopping (without windows!), not a buying spree. The prime concern PRICES, of course! The clothes sold by roadside gypsies are far too expensive for an Indian customer who knows the going rates and finds bargaining futile!
However, if you are the happy-go-lucky buyer, then liqour is the stuff to buy here. Goa offers you a wide range of red and white wines right from Vinicola's to Chougule's. And that’s just what I did. After a bottle of Vinicola's Wine, I went straight for Pasoa, a sweet liqueur made from passionflower. Beers, Champagne, local brews of rum, these liquors and liqueurs can fill your mini bar. What matches with drinks are Cashew nuts; Zantes are the final name for quality in cashew nuts.
Contrary to the shopper, if you are the adventurous type just clamber down the Vagator hillock, trek a bit and there you are on the Bay Watch set of Goa - The Baga beach. This place is the foreigner’s hide-out and you see hundreds of them basking under the hot afternoon sun, taking a dip, getting messaged or just gazing into the oblivion (Portugal anyone!).
The same coastline takes you to another gypsy odyssey, Calangute. Here you come across the flea market. The gypsies along with our desi banjaras from Saurashtra and Rajasthan sell clothes with large, gaudy prints for huge sums of money. You could buy anything and everything from jewellery made from bones to electronics to film roles, suede jackets, camel-hide accessories and what have you. You can empty your pockets at Calangute. Moving away from Calangute, I was constantly chasing the good old Ra (Sun God in Egyptian), which kept on threatening me by inching down gradually, finally to Fort Aguada, which has the Taj.
Facing west, on your left you have the Taj village, which is a favourite haunt for Honeymooners with economic packages and cozy cottages to offer! Behind you lies the majestic Aguada Resort again managed by the Taj group. Standing at the lighthouse, you are almost leveled with shrieking Pariah Kites and several Brahminy Kites who compete with them for fish. It is a bird watchers’ delight. While on the topic of birds, I must warn you, not to miss out these wonderful creatures – first during the journey to Karmali and then along the several small fishing villages in Goa. On both the sides of the railway, you get premium sightings of white breasted kingfishers, small blue kingfishers, rufousbacked shrikes, white ibises, emerald doves, black drongos, Indian rollers, little green bee-eaters and I could go on endlessly...
The last beach on the coast that day for me was the ever-busy Miramar. It is a favourite haunt of domestic visitors and is crowded till late into the evening. You can relax on the soft clean sands and gaze away into infinity. Here, in the backdrop of the fading light you can see cormorants flying away to the east, while behind you, egrets rush towards their roost: somewhere else the kites shriek endlessly for a morsel of fish and above you, the Brahminys glide in circles even as the first star of the evening appears out of nowhere.
Then you feel the first hunger pangs and grudgingly plod towards the first eating joint on the beach, the Foodlands. Foodlands at Miramar is popular and you could try their exotic sizzlers. However, the food that Goans thrive on is primarily fish and rice. Fish markets of Madgaon and Panjim offer you a plethora of freshly caught seafood, right from shrimps, jumbo prawns to tunas as large as three feet in length. But, I stuck to the greener pastures (this time) and to my delight, Goa offered plenty of veggie stuff right from the typical pav-bhaji to idli-wada-sambhar at Shiv Sagar and sol kadi, patole and raw kaju cooked in coconut paste, topped with gulab jamun at Kamats.
For those who fear treading different grounds, there is a Gujarathi restaurant close to the Mandovi River in the heart of Panjim, which explains the general popularity of Indian cuisine. The Tato's at Madgaon and the Shiv Sagar at Panjim are over-crowded during the peak hours and make your stomachs secrete plenty of acids before they let you in for any kind of sumptuous meal!
As I lap down my large portions of food, far away on the horizon I could see dainty little fishing boats bouncing up and down taking in the last catch of the day... ", and I thought to myself, what a wonderful life to live. Work and pleasure for them go together..."