Travelogues

The party never ends discovers Jude Cardozo as he checks out the hottest night spots around town during the peak season and winds his way through a veritable treasure trove of entertainment options

Come December and the 'susegad' land of 'choris pav' and 'feni' (local specialities) undergoes a startling transformation to become a 'hot-n-happening' destination and quite literally one big party zone. When asked to pen a piece on the party scene in Goa I was more than willing to do so. For the past five years the festive season to me, had just been a stressed out blur of nights merging into days as the leisure activity manager of Taj Exotica. Here was my chance not only to reacquaint myself but also indulge in some 'wild-on' partying while previewing what one can expect from Goa this December.

All roads seem to lead to Goa and almost every chartered flight too. While flight tickets are on everyone's wish list, these are among the most elusive to obtain during this period next only to train tickets, which once again are next to impossible to come by. This leaves party animals the only other option of driving down to Goa from different parts of India. And if you haven't booked your hotel rooms in advance at least you'll have a roof to sleep under… the roof of your car that is. That's right! I am talking about the frenzied period from December 20th to January 5th, which is at the absolute peak of the party season, when every one from heavy weight industrialists to models, filmstars, corporate head honchos and the likes head on to Goa for their annual binge of hard core partying. Add to this who's who list some thousands of 'average Joe's' peppered with the usual smattering of ever present foreign tourists and what you've got is a huge cauldron of hearty revelers. Goa's party scene caters to a plethora of interest's right from the psychedelic rave parties to the traditional ballroom dos.

Pit Stop At Nine Bar

I start off with getting on my bike and heading over to Nine Bar. This place is great for a healthy dose of early evening parties and is located at Vagator Beach in north Goa. It is open between 5 pm and 10 pm and is packed to the tee during this time. Situated atop the hill overlooking the beach it is the ideal location to watch a sunset and dancing the night away underneath the open heavens. Sipping on a cocktail I watch, as the place is heaving with people of all sizes, shapes and colours gyrating to popular trance music. Sensing that I had, had my fill I moved out.

A Little Bit O Heaven On Earth

My next stop was Paradiso located at Anjuna Beach. Described as the arguably the biggest nightclub in India by the Lonely Planet, the entire place is sculpted out of clay, set in a natural cave with special florescent tribal art highlighted by strategically placed UV Lights. The clay also provides the most effective acoustics and absorbs sound ensuring that the village is not disturbed by the music that normally lasts all through the night. According to Nandan Kudchadkar, the young suave and debonair owner of Paradiso, "Paradiso is a meeting ground for crossing cultures and is a hot favourite hangout on full moon nights where the reflection of the moon creates an illusion of it being a pathway to the heavens" Paradiso is situated on a cliff at Land's End at Anjuna Beach and comprises of three levels. The uppermost level is the viewing gallery to the Arabian Sea, while the level below it houses the club with the DJ console and dance floor. The third level accommodates a rustic Goan market recreating the ambience of the typical Goan villages that existed 40 years ago, when the hippy movement first started in Goa.

Nandan took over the nightclub in 2001 and has been managing it ever since. DJs from all over the world perform here with the most recent being star performers from countries like the United Kingdom, Germany, Slovenia and even Greece. Nandan explains, "Paradiso has also become common ground to exchange music and experiment with unreleased sounds and variations of music which is then released in the international market the next year" Paradiso is planning a party on 30th December which will be essentially be a preview to the main event the following day. On the 31st December, Scandinavian dancers, Caribbean concert crew and cage dancers are some of the acts planned along with a host of international DJs. "We are also going to have one of the top DJ's in the world who we have managed to