If I could go back to any of the holiday destinations I have been to through out my life, Goa would be on top of my list. This op isn’t particularly about Goa itself I would say it is more of an honest opinion of what I saw and did. I cannot tell you their religions or beliefs, I cannot tell you their history, or any geography details, as I went for a holiday not a research trip.
Panaji is the capital of this west Indian state. (I’m bright for knowing that) Don’t you think.
How can I describe Goa….Palm trees swaying in the gentle breeze that is coming off the endless coastline of sandy beaches. When you take a dip in the beautiful sea it is like stepping into a warm bath. The temperature ranges from 21 deg. C during winter to 35 deg. C in summer. The monsoon season is from June to September. So I wouldn’t advice anyone to go there then, unless you are into that kind of thing. I would personally say February is your best bet to visit.
The people in Goa are so friendly and are more than willing to help you. I felt quite safe walking around. I am not saying all parts of India are safe, but in general Goa seemed ok.
Goa only has one airport that is in Dabolim
What is there to see and do once you are there….
Churches, forts, wildlife centres etc. but that is not my kind of thing. I prefer mixing with the locals and of course going to the famous Anjuna market which is held on a Wednesday.
This particular market sells an array of things at unbeatable prices. You can buy beautiful throws fantastic ornaments, incense sticks galore and still come home with change of a £50 note. That is if you know how to barter.
Don’t think that you have gone back to the 1960’s when you see hippies at the market, I believe Goa was a place that a lot of hippies went to and stayed there for good. They have a few stalls set up selling hand crafted jewellery, flower power jeans etc.
My main fascination was the things the Rajastani women sold, beautiful materials, unusual jewellery I was in my element. One Rajastani woman was wearing a very unusual headdress, comprising of silver chains, pendants etc. I said to her I would like to buy one like that for my daughter…who at the time was studying hair and beauty..The next thing I knew she had unclipped it all and she sold it to me for £6.
Another place I visited was the Arvalem waterfalls the waterfall is 24-metres high and a sight for sore eyes. We booked this as a trip. We all went in landrovers and parked up ready to walk to the waterfall. One thing I must say about the walk to the waterfall was (and it wasn’t mentioned) the walk was totally unsuitable for the elderly or young children. You had to climb over fallen trees, big rocks etc.
Once you got there though it was fantastic. There were little monkeys coming around you for scraps of food they were practically tame. The water at the bottom of the fall was though ice cold…but every one of our party went in for a dip and their photo taken under the gushing water.
Panaji itself was a very interesting town to visit if you like to see life as it really is. Which I do. There are children begging on the streets, there are people with no limbs shuffling up and down.
I did go into the main market and see goats as thin as rakes waiting to be slaughtered for what could be my next evening meal. The meat that was hanging up for sale looked like Eccles cakes if you know what I mean (flies)
On a more merry note there were proper shops and my husband got some fantastic bargains. Tailor made trousers £12. Shirts £5.
Our hotel was situated in what I call the sticks, I pick places like that so I am not by a load of tourists. Our shall I say local pub was a thatched roof thing on four tree trunks over looking the beach. You had to sit on empty barrels and join in with the locals.
Don’t be alarmed when a local stands up and has a wee by the table or should I say barrel.
My husband loves fishing and one of the locals took him out to sea for a day fishing. (He caught a baby shark) He did put it back though. The rest of his catch he took to the local pub thing and straight away the owner cleaned his fish and cooked it there and then for us all to enjoy.
One place you will always be welcome at when you visit Goa are the Childrens schools. If the children of Goa don’t own a pen they cannot start school. So what I did the week before I went to Goa, I went to the cheap shop and bought loads of pens,pencils and paper.
The head teacher was more than pleased.
I also crammed my suitcase with my childrens old clothes, if you saw the look on their faces when you gave them a t.shirt etc. your heart would have melted. If ever you go to Goa please do as I did.
Having my youngest daughter with us I thought food may be a problem, hot curry etc. I was wrong the hotel and other food places we visited were more than willing to cook a chicken breast/leg or whatever with no spices. All you had to do was ask.
One night crab was on the menu and of course my hubby wanted crab..the next thing you knew 3 live crabs were placed on the counter and my husband was asked to choose which one he wanted for dinner. He chose the largest and thoroughly enjoyed it.
The prices over there as I said before for gifts etc are fantastic…The same applies to food and drink, a 3 course meal for three people came to about £12-£15 pound with drinks.
Driving over there….forget it taxis are cheap.
I can’t think of much more to say except yes you may go to Goa and not see what may be called poverty, that is if you stay as a tourist lazing by the pool all day, and yes prices for you will be higher. Try it out go there see for yourselves the other side of life. Good out ways the bad.
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