YOUR LIFE - TRAVEL: WAY TO GOA
GENTLE FOLK IN LAND WHERE THE GOOD LIFE COMES CHEAP
WE swerve past a cow, two moped riders and just miss a dog sleeping under a tree at the roadside.
Abel, the taxi driver, is talking about his wife, their first baby, which is due in February, and the fact that everything is becoming so expensive here ...
Which is odd, because we've just stopped off for two large Kingfisher beers at a gimcrack bar in the little village of Chandor down the road and it cost me just 60 rupees, about 75p.
"Ah yes, sir," says Abel, who has become worringly talkative behind the wheel after his beer break. "But last year it would have cost 50 rupees."
Abel is Indian, but Catholic, as are around
70 per cent of the people who live in Goa. The landscape is dotted with huge churches incongruously surrounded by swaying palms and on a Sunday morning the roads are lined with smartly-dressed Goans on their way to Mass.
The reason for visiting this tropical outpost of the Roman church can best be seen in Chandor, where we have just been. Across the village square from the church is a huge mansion which wouldn't look out of place in the hills above Lisbon. ![Falk AdSolution]()
![]()
The Braganza House was built 400 years ago when the Portuguese ruled Goa - they left in 1962 - and is beautifully preserved and furnished by
the family which has lived in it for generations. A small contribution will get you a guided tour of its grand ballroom, library and drawing rooms filled with an antiques roadshow of chinese plates and furniture acquired when Goa was on the main trade route from the Far East to Portugal.
By most standards, the Portuguese were fairly benign rulers, allowing freedom of worship and intermarriage with the gentle locals and freedom of worship.
Which is why we are heading to a Hindu temple at Chandranath, perched high on a thickly-wooded hilltop with spectacular views across the surrounding countryside of rice fields and coconut groves. As the taxi wheezes up the winding road, startled monkeys scamper back into the undergrowth and black crows soar into the sky.
After climbing about 100 steps we finally reach the top, wheezing more than Abel's taxi, and the shrine of Chandreshwar,
an incarnation of Shiva who is worshipped as Lord of the Moon. His statue is sited so that it is illuminated every full moon, when Hindus make the long climb to hold a festival.
But it's the sun, not the moon, which brings thousands of holidaymakers to Goa every winter, and it's time to head back to the beach.
North and South Goa are very different. The northern resorts have grown rapidly over the past few years and while this area was once a chill-out Nirvana for hippies, much of it is now packed with hotels, bars and even casinos.
South of the state capital Panaji - a dusty, ramshackle, bustling little town - you'll find fewer hotels, wider sandy beaches and a far more laid-back atmosphere.
I stayed at the Leela (www.ghmhotels.com), arguably one of the best hotels in Southern India and yet still a bargain, considering the standards. It is
perched on Mobor Beach which stretches for miles along a spit flanked by the River Sal, where blue fishing boats bob at anchor and kingfishers dart along the bank.
On my last evening I take a sunset boat ride down the river, past the higgledy-piggledy fishermen's huts and the Hindu shrine on the Beful headland.
Out on the open sea, the sun, by now a huge orange ball, slips slowly below the horizon and a school of dolphins glide past the front of the boat.
EATING AND DRINKING
GOAN food is based around the humble coconut - its oil, its milk and the sap from the palm which is used for vinegar and other flavourings. Local spices such as cumin, coriander and turmeric are also widely used. Fresh fish, including kingfish, pomfret and prawns, make delicious curries. Most restaurants will serve up Goan dishes, although if you just fancy tandoori
chicken or a vegetable masala, they are easy to find. The beach bars between Cavolissim and Mobor are great value and often put on live music and fireworks to go with your meal. Try Mike's Place or Sam's Place between the Holiday Inn and Leela Hotel.
While the North has beach raves and discos, the nightlife in Southern Goa is fairly low key. You'll be happy with a nightcap on the beach, listening to the Arabian Sea lapping on the shore.
SHOPPING
ON the beach I met Camilla, one of a brightly-dressed band of women who sell everything from silk wraps to quite good quality Indian jewellery. They are not pushy, and it's fun to sit and haggle. Cavolissim itself has plenty of shops and stalls which are open late into the night. Incongruously, it also has a huge department store.
NEED TO KNOW
WHEN TO GO: The
monsoon season runs from June to September. The best time to visit is anytime between now and the end of April, after which it becomes very humid. There is virtually no rain at all during the winter months and temperatures hit around 30C every day.
COSTS: Goa is one place where it's not worth booking an all-inclusive holiday. Frankly it's hard to spend your money here and in seaside village restaurants a good two-course meal of soup and curry, with beer (wine can be expensive) can cost as little as £4. Taxis are cheap - about £1 for a 15-minute ride. The confident (or deranged) can hire motorbikes for about £8 a day.
LANGUAGE: Although Hindi is the official language of India, in Goa they speak Konkani, which is very different. However, even small kids on market stalls have a fair command of English. In the villages, many older people have a smattering of Portuguese.
HEALTH:
Take mosquito repellent, although Goa is not in a malaria-endemic area. Avoid salads in restaurants and fruit from market stalls.
VISAS: You will need a visa to visit India. Some package tour firms will arrange this for you at extra cost, otherwise contact the Indian High Commission on www. hcilondon.org. Currently a tourist visa costs £30. For some reason, Indian nationals living in the UK aren't allowed to travel on British charter flights.
GETTING THERE
GOA'S Dabolim Airport is a 10-hour charter flight from the UK, or one hour from Bombay by domestic carriers such as Jet Airways or Indian Airlines.
Greaves Travel offer a 10-day package to Mumbai and Goa, with accommodation at The Oberoi in Mumbai (4 nights) and The Leela in Goa (6 nights) from £1,579.
The price includes: International airfare on
British Airways in World Traveller (Economy), internal flights on Jet Airways; Greaves personal shopper service, taking you to the best shops to find fantastic bargains. Hotel accommodation sharing double/twin room or room only basis at The Oberoi /Mumbai. The Leela /Goa is room plus breakfast. Private transfers, sightseeing and excursions as per programme. More details from India Tourism in London on 020 7437 3677 or www.tourismofindia.com
(MIRROR)
Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free.
http://www.goa-world.com
http://www.live365.com/stations/61664 Live Konkani Music
http://www.mahableshwar.com/
Addresses:
Post message: gulf-goans@yahoogroups.com
Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
List owner: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
URL to this page:
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/gulf-goans
YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
- Visit your group "gulf-goans" on the web.
- To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
- Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.
