Online Paper

Newsletter Signup

Name*
Email*

Goa is breathless and mesmerizing

Nestled along the warm and boundless blue of the Arabian Sea, Goa is breathless and mesmerizing. I was longing for a beach holiday for sometime, and so ultimately when I received the invitation from Goa Tourism to visit this little speck of paradise, I simply couldn’t refuse it. The invitation was godsent.

The first thing I did was drop in at my travel agent’s office for my air tickets. But I was politely told that there were no seats available for the next 15 days, this being the peak tourist season in Goa. So ultimately the Travel Consultant with great difficulty managed a rail ticket for me. I would have to travel to Pune by train, and from Pune by road to Panaji, the state capital of Goa.

The journey was indeed tiresome. It was evening by the time my bus reached Panaji’s Kadamba Bus Terminus. Though I was dead tired, the sheer salubrious air of Panaji invigorated me. I hopped into an auto-rickshaw and straight away went to Miramar beach, which is where my hotel was located.

Miramar beach is just 4 kms from Panaji city center, and my hotel, Miramar Residency was located right on the beach. After checking in, I straightaway rushed to the bathtub and had a warm shower. The shower made me relaxed and I lazily lay on my king-sized bed for an hour or so.

When the clock struck 9’o clock, I thought it was time for dinner. I was hungry as well. The bellboy told me that room service was available. So I called up Foodland - the in-house restaurant of Miramar Residency -- and ordered a traditional Goan Thali comprising of King Fish curry and rice. But before grabbing my dinner, I wanted to have a sip of the vintage Goan wine Feni which is made of cashew and about which I had heard a lot from my friends in Calcutta. I ordered a bottle of Feni and it arrived in my room in no time.

After a sumptuous Goan meal, I finally rested for the night. I left my windows open so as to allow the sea breeze in. That night I slept like a log. The sea breeze was blowing at full blast and since I was a little inebriated with Feni, I felt as if I was floating in thin air.

After a good night’s sleep, I woke up to the chirping of the birds. I could clearly see the red molten ball slowly rising up across the Miramar beach horizon. It was truly an ethereal setting, but I could not spend much time at the beach since I was scheduled to go on a sightseeing trip of Panaji city.

My car came bang on time and I hopped into a brand new Maruti van. We first visited the Boca De Vaca Spring that is located right in the heart of Panaji city. The Spring is located next to the Mahalaxmi temple.

The most fascinating aspect of Boca De Vaca Spring is that no body actually knows the source of the water, and I was told by my guide - Krish that this particular Spring is 700 years old, which is indeed mind-boggling.

Our next stop was Dona Paula, which is about 7 kms away from Panaji city. The drive is beautiful and there are Portuguese style villas/houses on either side of the road.

Dona Paula is a secluded bay that offers a magnificent view of the Mormugao harbor. This idyllic rocky tourist attraction lies at the spot where the Mandovi and the Zuari Rivers meet the Arabian Sea. It is easily one of the most popular spots on the itinerary of tourists visiting Goa.

We could see a few ferries taking passengers across the bay. The more adventurous ones were busy with water sports activities. By the way, water scooters, boating, parasailing, yachting, windsurfing and fishing are available in this area.

There is a romantic legend behind the name Dona Paula. Dona Paula is the village where the lady of that name, Dona Paula de Menezes is believed to have loved, lived and died - a gory death in the second half of the 18th century.

The fishermen of the area have a marvelous collection of ghost stories about Dona Paula. On moonlit nights, they say - on pitch dark nights, say others - at the stroke of midnight, she rises from the sea and roams the area, wearing a string of pearls and nothing else.

So off we zipped towards the sleepy fishing village of Wadwad, leaving the narrow lanes and by-lanes of Panaji. Wadwad is just 8 kms away from Panaji, and the drive was beautiful. We encountered a steep hill, and once we crossed that, we reached Krish’s place.

His father who is all of 75 years came out to greet us and offered me a glassful of Coconut water. And then we started our conversation.

Krish’s father, Namdev Phadte nostalgically recalled that he went away to Mumbai in 1944 for higher studies. In those days he used to travel by ship. His passion was photography and he got an opportunity to work under the tutelage of the well-known Parsee photographer, Nusarwanjee. Their he came in touch with Raghubir Mulgaonkar and began learning the art of painting with pencils and watercolour.

Namdev Phadte can speak chaste Portuguese. He had spent nearly 35 years with the Portuguese administration at Goa. He nostalgically recalled that in those days the Portuguese Government had brought cameras to shoot a film on Goa but alas there was nobody with the skills to operate those cameras.

With the passage of time, the Portuguese in Goa somehow came to know about Namdev and he was soon summoned to shoot the film on Goa on behalf of the Department of Tourism under the Portuguese rule. The film was done in the Portuguese language and was extensively sold in Portugal.

After the Portuguese left India, he started working from his modest home at Wadwad as a painter. Today because of his hard-earned reputation as a painter he is often requested to paint portraits of people from Goa as well as foreigners who visit Goa. But due to old age he takes a lot of time to finish his portraits. Nevertheless, once they are finished, each work of Namdev is a masterpiece as I discovered for myself.

After an eventful day, I finally got back to my hotel at Miramar beach and freshened up, and like every other Goan, I went out to have my fill of Feni at a local bar located very close to my hotel.

The following morning I got up late, and so I really had to hurry everything. That day I was to go on a whistle-stop tour of the world famous beaches of North Goa.

Our first stop was at Fort Aguada. Fort Aguada is just 10 kms from Panaji. This magnificent fort was built by the Portuguese to keep a watch over enemy ships. There is a lighthouse built by the Portuguese just adjacent to the fort. From the northern ramparts of the fort you can see the turquoise blue Arabian Sea right below. The Governor’s residence, Caboraj Niwas can be clearly sighted on a clear sunny day.

Fact File:

Getting There: Dabolim Airport in Goa is well connected by regular flights from Mumbai. One can reach Mumbai by Indian Airlines, Jet Airways and Kingfisher etc… from Mumbai and take a connecting flight to Goa.

There is another alternative: From Mumbai you may travel by Konkan Railways to Goa (Karmali / Margao).

Accommodation:

In Goa you will find a wide range of accommodation starting from budget to 3-star, 4-star, 5-star and 5-star deluxe. Many domestic tourists prefer government accommodation and so Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) has set up hotels and resorts in all the tourist spots of Goa. The rates are competitive without being too extravagant.

For further information and reservations,
please free to contact:

Goa Tourism Development Corporation Ltd,

Trionora Apartments, Dr Alvares Costa Road,

Panaji, Goa- 403001 Tel: 0832 2424001/ 02/ 03

Fax: +91-832-2423926 / 2420779

Email: reservations@goa-tourism.com

Written By:

Subhasish Chakraborty

Travel Writer

B-14/148, Kalyani, Dist: Nadia,

West Bengal-741235, India.

Telephone: 91-033-25022279

E-mail: subhas.chako@gmail.com

Add A Comment