Travelogues

I wanted to go to Goa from quite sometime but everytime the plan got anywhere close to packing of the bags something or the other shot up and i had to let it go. This time after a couple of trips to Himachal by road and a bad bad backache which actually turned out to be a slip disc i was not only mad but frustrated. Confined to my room with only dish tv, broadband and my cellphone it was like saza-e-kalapaani with five star amenities!!!! how long you think i would last??? matter of fact my family was shocked to see me last for 20 days before i actually popped some pain killers, grabbed my car keys and set of to delhi to catch a flight to goa. Ofcourse had to take my family along as a token of small bribe. This one had to be a family holiday.

From Chandigarh to Delhi it takes good 5 hours because lot of road works are going on so no matter how fast you are, its better to start early and keep sometime in hand. The flight to Goa from Delhi takes approx 2 hours 20 mins and it wasnt easy for me to sit for that long because of the backache. I really thanked god when when we touched down at Goa airport. It was around 1800 hrs. By the time we came out and took a pre-paid taxi to the hotel Estrella Do Mar it was 1830 hrs(read my review on the hotel in hotel review section). The cab charges were 700 Rs and the drive lasted little over an hour. We checked in and after freshening up came down to the hotel's dining area. The plan was to eat in the hotel and head for our rooms as it had been a long day since we started from Chandigarh in the morning around 0700 hrs.

Being a foodie and a bit of drink to power up fella it was party time. we had tiger prawns, chicken 69, fried rice and squid with long island and few other cocktails. The hotel's food was good to taste but quite expensive including the cocktails. By the time i finished my 7th long island it was time for bed. Our tariff plan included complementary buffet breakfast which is served from 0700 hrs to 0930 hrs. Me and my wife really werent interested in the breakfast but my father-in-law did go for an early walk on the beach and feasted on the breakfast which had bread, butter, eggs, juice, cornflakes, uppma, poa etc. when i left Chandigarh i left my pills, my diet plan and everything behind. Goa isnt a place to follow that, here i came to do what i wanted to do and i started by purging my blood with alcohol.

Day 1- I woke up around 1000 hrs and after a shower and change headed straight for the beach. The sun was high up in the sky and the sand has really heated up to walk barefoot so i thought best thing to do was relax in the shade and start with something like chilled beer and sandwich. By 1400hrs the breeze too had died down, the beach dogs had hid under whatever shade they could find and the chutes of the excited tourists taking the ride over the sea, were starting to fold on the Calangute beach. BY 1500 hrs even the gora tourists felt the sun burn on their bodies so quickly headed for the hotel. We also went back to our rooms to let the afternoon sun mellow down. In the evening on advice of the locals we took a cab to the local flea market. It was saturday evening and the last flea market for the season so it was a not to miss thing. The market was 10 mins by taxi from hotel towards Anjuna beach. By the time we arrived, the market was in full swing. So many shops selling the local stuff, clothes, jewellry, ornaments, spices, paintings & photos, sculptures & handicraft, shoes & chappals and loads of other items. Beyond the stalls were food stalls and live band playing goanese, english and hindi songs. Since the whole place was so lively and amazing we decided to stay bit longer and it didnt turn out to be a bad decision at all. After the local band their was a performance by African acrobats which really heated up the atmosphere with stunts like fire ring jumps and balancing glass bottles and juggling tricks. It was indeed superb. By the time the evening ended it was 2300 hrs and we headed straight for our hotel. The hotel too was quite and the light breeze was inviting so i took my bottle of tequila and headed for the beach again under the moonlit night. Next 3 hours i spent on the beach with my wife looking across the sea, the breaking waves infront and the deserted beach. God it was like we could go on and on and on.

Day 2- The start was the same, get up at 1000 hrs, no breakfast, a quick beer and we jumped into a taxi for a sightseeing tour. Our first stop was at the cathedral of St. Francis in Old Goa. The archeological museum is also worth a look. It has on display portaits of governors and vice roys of Portugal who have held office in Goa before the Goa liberation. Various other sculptures found in and around Goa showing Hindu, Portugese and English history are also on display. From the cathedral we went straight to the shive temple of Manguheshu on