Just back from Goa..was there for 4 days and nights...Thought i would have a peaceful time in pristine, Goa , supposedly in full bloom during monsoon. Having been there twice earlier during "Peak Season" time of Oct- Feb., I was looking forward to some nice break in Sussegad Goa or "Goin" as it is spelt in Konkani.. Was in for a nice jolt to see Goa teeming with tourists, the place having become so commercialised that it seemed that i was in Lonavala. TO make things worse, it rained pitter-patter for a few minutes,everyday. The biggest shock however was the cost of Beer!!!! Costing Rs. 34 in Wholesale wine shops, it costs anywhere from 50 - 75 bucks in different places.. Places which used to offer the same old Kingfisher beer for 30-40 bucks a year back, are charging a min. of 50 bucks.. and this is supposed to be monsoon - "Off-Season".. About the rest of Goa, less said the better.. The best that can be said about them is that, they still are maintained
neat what with a million tourists visting them...mostly of the Go now, pay later with Credit Card variety.. Time has come to discover new beaches up and down the coast. While it is commendable that the Goan Govt. are doing a good job of maintaining the place neat and clean, but the crass commercialisation has resulted in the de-mystification of the pristine old Goa, till now untouched by all the urban human emotions, beliefs and behavior which has sounded the death knell for so many hundreds of such places around the world.. My pals who have been visiting Goa for more than a decade gave up on the place even before me.. It took me at least 3 trips in as many years to come to the same conclusion... Well, the situation is not as bad as it may sound.. there still are places and people who still retain the traditional Goan attitude and touch. But this evokes more nostalagia than they ideally should...:-)
Having created a gloomy picture of Goa, i will also highlight some of the the
highlights of my trip [Bajia-fication of english :-) ]. Goa may take another 100 years to get the same polluted air as BBY. Bombay ladies will never have the natural gait and feminine grace of Goan women...Beer in goa still tastes special (though it's the same stuff that you get elsewhere). The sea food in Goa is still special (though i got one bad prawn dish, this time)..The rice in Goa (even in a restaurant) is still close to the home made variety...It is still possible to just park your bike below a tree, off the road and indulge in some good time pass- doing nothing...The NH-17 highway is cool. A club/pub/disc actually feels like one...still. One can still find scantily clad women (of all shapes and ages), roaming around unconcerned about the rest of the world..starting with you.
Yup, Goa still is a far cry from the other holiday spots... me thinks it's got a lot to do with the guys who ruled them for 450 years and their geography.While Goa's atmospherics may and most
probably, will get 'commercialised', one just hopes that the Goan people's attitude don't....
- Vijay Kumar
http://vijayk.rediffblogs.com/
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