Goa's "tits"? A don't mind the "bits", morsels of pao. haha
Eugene Sent from my iPad > On Feb 24, 2019, at 1:28 PM, Goanet Reader <goanetrea...@gmail.com> wrote: > > By Armand Rodrigues > acrod...@bell.net > > Dozing under a banyan tree in the noon-day sun, one's > thoughts can stray well into the past, in Goa. Some > flashbacks are presented below. > > MEDICINAL > > * From time immemorial, panaceas for all ills have been our > potent local brews. Whether made from fermented coconut > tree toddy, the juice of cashews (the fruit) or unusual > plums called 'jambul', the preventative and curative > attributes of these liquors are legendary. > > * In Goa, herbs, roots and leaves have been age-old remedies > for colds, constipation, loss of appetite, blood pressure, > muscular pains, wounds etc.. Long before chlorophyll was > used in toothpaste, we used guava and mango leaves or neem > tree twigs, to brush our teeth. But, many a secret remedy > was taken to their graves by our ancestors. > > * Leeches were used extensively to control blood pressure > problems. Yes, you lay in bed after the leeches were > applied, while they went to work. In the process they > contributed a "thinning agent" to the blood. A brine-bath > caused the leeches to relinquish their grip when it was > time to get them off. > > * Dry-cupping was used effectively to "pull out" chills in > the back. A vacuum was created when a cotton ball in a > goblet was ignited, and when the goblet was applied to the > affected parts it sucked out the chill. > > * An effective cure for jaundice was branding a person with a > red-hot spoon and applying the yolk of an egg to the > blister. > > * In parts of Salcete, the remedy for whooping cough was a > special brew actually concocted from the hindquarters of a > fox. > > PARANORMAL > > * In conjunction with the above remedies, a panacea for all > ills was the "removal" of evileye. Chillies or alum, hot > coals and a suitable invocation for divine intervention, > formed part of the ritual. > > * Being possessed by the devil was not an uncommon > phenomenon. Exorcists of all stripes were always on hand to > offer their services. Many Catholic and Hindu priests had a > good clientele. > > * Occasionally you would find that, because of acrimony, a > deceased person had put a curse on a plot of land. Bad luck > was said to invariably follow the new owner of the land. > Certain measures had to be taken to appease the soul of the > deceased and neutralise the curse. > > CONVEYANCES > > * Up until the thirties, many rich folks used palanquins, on > the shoulders of four bearers, for transportation. > > * In the late 1930s, Goa had an airforce of exactly one tiny > 'plane. The short, grass landing strip was on the hill > immediately behind the railway station in Marmagoa. The > interesting little 'plane had a sharp ploughshare in its > rear, instead of a wheel. When it landed, the plough dug > deep into the field and stopped the shuddering 'plane from > going over the cliff. This was like the 'planes on aircraft > carriers today, except that ours made deep furrows in the > field, that had to be promptly refilled. During the > monsoons, flying was out of the question as there was no > way to "arrest" the 'plane on a waterlogged field. > > * During the war, gas (petrol) was in very short supply. > Buses were converted to use steam. A boiler occupied the > passenger space next to the driver, and the steam > contraption provided good, alternative motive power. > > * In the '40s and '50s bus and car parts were virtually > unavailable either because of the war or because some > vehicles were relics of a bygone era. Some cannibalisation > of older vehicles was possible. But the village blacksmiths > came to the rescue, more often than not, by forging parts > on their primitive anvils, using goat-skin bellows and hot > coals to heat the metals. How they managed exact tolerances > is nothing short of amazing. > > * Then there was the railway. The bridges, like the one > across the Rio Sal at Margao or the one near Sanvordem, had > very low clearances. > > * Sad to say, quite a few firemen got decapitated as they > were shovelling coal from the tender behind the engine, > quite oblivious of the approaching danger overhead. A > stationmaster named Antonio Gomes, who lost a brother in > such a mishap, is credited with coming up with an idea that > solved the problem. A string of loose canes was hung from a > trestle, a fair distance from each bridge. A delinquent > fireman got a gentle early warning tap on the head. > > * Up to the early 50s, when people from Africa went on six > months' leave to Goa, their heavy trunks followed them home > by bullock cart, from Marmagoa, and arrived a day or two > later. Many from Bardez and Ilhas got theirs on narrow > boats propelled by a bamboo pole. > > * There was a time when Arab dhows were the workhorses that > carried cargo to and fro on the Arabian Sea adjacent to our > coastline. During the monsoons they kept close to shore. > Time and again, the stormy conditions and huge waves caused > the aging ships to break apart and capsize, disgorging > their "valuable" cargo. Eventually, most items that floated > --- with parts of the hull --- ended up scattered on shore. > Then it was finders keepers, with beachcombers having a > field day! Some fishermen were even known to have "caught" > bicycles in their nets. > > FOOD & SHELTER > > * Catching a pig for slaughter was not always easy. In some > villages, the catcher's reward was the snout, trotters, > ears and tail. Some of these scraps were for the catcher's > dog that assisted in the chase. And, it was not unusual to > treat all the kids around to a piece of liver roasted on an > open fire. > > * Aside from coconut trees, there are other nut trees > (talgude) that are hard to climb. In some places if monkeys > were taunted enough, they would pluck the nuts and throw > them at you. Not necessarily the best ones, of course! > > * Did you know that if you waded into a river, at night, with > a pressure lamp a few inches above the water, fish got > attracted to the light and seemed stunned? All you had to > do was grab them and put them in your knapsack. > > * With the first rains, bottom-feeders in some ponds make > straight for the banks as if for fresh air. A machete was > the tool of choice for beheading them and then scooping up > the spoils. > > * Even more fun was getting behind fishermen's nets, in > waist-deep ocean water, and pouncing on escaping fish, as > the nets were being pulled in. Fresh mackerel, roasted in a > crackling fire on the beach, was always a treat for the > nose and palette. > > * How about the large mussels that cling to the rock-face at > the murky mouth of the Rio Sal, in Betul? Daring young men > would descend with coconut oil in their mouths and release > it when they reached a promising spot. With visibility > improved, they had to fight against time to pry the > shellfish loose, before coming up for air. And they had to > have clean-shaven heads or else risk a mussel clamping > their "floating" hair and trapping them in a watery grave. > > * Not many Goans know that our traditional old windows were > made with opaque fish scales in the slats. The scales were > imported mainly from the Far East. You can still find such > scales on the shores of Penang. > > * And, did you know that a Papal Bull granted to Portugal was > extended to cover Goa? It permitted people to eat meat on > days of fasting and abstinence, for a small "fee" based on > one's assets. This was a therapeutic benefit to our bodies! > > MORE GRISTLE > > * During World War II, three German ships (Ehrenfels, > Drachenfels, Braunfels) and one Italian vessel (Anfora) > sought refuge in our neutral port of Marmagoa. The > Portuguese allowed them to stay provided their radios and > transmitters were dismantled. But the Ehrenfels had a > secret transmitter. This spy-ship transmitted intelligence > covertly that resulted in massive losses of British ships > and submarines. In 1943, a clandestine British operation, > by a small group of retired officers from Calcutta, led to > the ships' solitary guardian crew setting their own ships > on fire! Most of the skeleton crew on the ships had been > lured to a Goan party on shore! Not till I read "Boarding > Party" by James Leasor, in the June 1980 Reader's Digest, > did I realise what had caused the blazing inferno I had > witnessed. The related film, "The Sea Wolves", starring > Roger Moore, Gregory Peck, and David Niven was filmed on > location. https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=tBwMAlHusYc > > * During WW II, imported goods were hard to come by. Sugar > and kerosene were rationed. The ingenious Goan improvised > with whatever basic material was at hand. Grease was made > by warming beeswax (old church candles) in coconut oil and > then allowing the mixture to cool. In order to feed > starving people elsewhere, the Portuguese mandated > "expropriation" of 50% of one’s rice yields, for a fixed > payment. Landed gentry hardly felt any ripples. However, > poorer folks who ploughed, sowed and harvested the fields, > on a 50/50 sharing basis with the landlords, now ended up > with only 25%. Fair-minded owners split the cash payments > received, with the cultivators. > > * Goan high-grade manganese ore was in great demand by Japan > and Germany (for the Volkswagen) in the '40s & '50s. On an > average day, forty ore carriers were loaded by conveyor belt. > > * If you grew up in Goa in your formative years, chances are > you were sent to "Kantaram Escol", where a "Mestre" drummed > Sol, Fa, Do, Re, Mi into your head and cultivated singing > the scales. Since a false note was related to hearing, > one's ears got twisted until the correct note emerged! > > * One of the traditional rituals before a wedding was the > "Bhikareanchem Jevonn" (the beggars' meal). The invited > beggars mumbled prayer after prayer, invoking happiness on > the couple, and hosts were flushed with pride for being > kind to the poor. The fatted domestic pig had been > slaughtered, shaved and quartered on an improvised mat made > of coconut leaves. The beggars feasted on the choicest > parts -- and on other tasty dishes-- while the bride, groom > and helpers ate the meagre meat on the bones, a meal called > "addmass". A lesson in humility, perhaps. The meal was > served on "plates" made of jackfruit leaves held together > by coconut leaf ribs. Coconut "fenni" flowed freely and > elicited a praying frenzy. Alongside the "plate" was a > local "beedi" and a matchbox. Leftover food was wrapped up > in the leaf plate and taken home. (We knew about a > doggy-bag long before it was adopted by the West!) > > * Then there was the old purification ceremony, practised by > some, of bathing the bride-to-be in coconut milk a day > before her nuptials. Friends and relations brought simple > gifts like a comb, curry-pot, knife, ladle or piece of > cloth, for the bride. These were presented in improvised > songs, by the older women. (Makes one wonder if present-day > bridal showers originated here) > > * The origins of the last two customs are lost in the sands > of time. It is conceivable that they were vestiges of some > Hindu rituals. > > * There was a time when the village tailor and his assistant > could be hired for a day or more, to come to the house and > make made-to-measure shirts, pants or dresses from only a > picture. You supplied the material, thread and buttons and > he did the rest. Because buttons were expensive, where it > did not matter some were made of rolled cloth, by the > assistant. > > * Carbon paper was unheard of at the time. To transfer a > design/pattern you poked holes in it, placed it on the > fabric and brushed ash or flour over the holes. Then all > you had to do was to connect the dots! Charcoal was the > chalk of the day. > > * In some villages, a village tradesman such as a barber was > allowed to use a community field to grow paddy for himself. > In return, he had to give the “gavnkars” a shave or haircut > free. > > > > > > > At this point the Angelus bells jolted me from my reverie. > -- > Armand (Armando) Rodrigues, b. 1930 in Entebbe, Uganda, > studied in Goa and Poona, and worked for the Uganda > Government from 1947 to 1968 in capacities ranging from clerk > to CEO(E), and the Canadian government from 1969 to 1994. He > knows Konkani, Portuguese, English and Swahili. Canada-based > Rodrigues says: "I had emails/phone calls from several people > in Canada and even from Australia, Portugal, Jamaica and > England, after my article about the ships set ablaze in > Marmagoa during WWII." See http://bit.ly/WWIIGoa > > Debate this issue, post your feedback and suggestions to > goa...@goanet.org and also to the author (address above). > > Goanet Reader is compiled and edited by Frederick Noronha > (fredericknoron...@gmail.com) whom you can contact to share > any interesting Goa-related writings....