Goa'dalli Gaamparu !!!

Author: Raghu & Santhosh. Inputs from Nagi.

March 17, 2005 - Thursday.

We were all looking forward to this one heck of a trip. Preparations had started off in right earnest with Djinn sending out a detailed invite on this trip to Goa (Gopakapattana in the epic Mahabarata; Govapuri or Gove in the epic Ramayana) and then it was QQ to create a well crafted detailed itinerary. Nagi D was ready with his Video Cam to shoot us in action.

Ravi D was dilly dallying on this one citing some constraints (roofing ceremony of his house in Mysore!). Sanjay excused himself saying he had training to attend.

Ultimately it was the 5 of us – Nagi, Santhosh (Mr QQ/QQ), Madhu (Mrs. QQ), Dany (DD) and Raghu (Djinn). Tickets had been already procured in advance by Nagi.

8:30 pm it was; near RV Dental College in Jayanagar IV block. That was the rendezvous point.

Madhu forgot to get the football and the Frisbee. Consequently, Nagi and Madhu went back to QQ villa to get the same.

Circa 9 pm we boarded an “ordinary” PAULO bus. For a sec we thought it was a googly looking at the bus. Another half an hour and we were at the PAULO office, Race course road to board the “real” AC sleeper VOLVO coach. We found time to have our dinner (dosas and fried rice!) at Sanman followed by Nandini flavored milk.

The night journey was uneventful except for the fact that Djinn spent a relatively sleepless night in the upper berth, being tossfully assaulted by the person sleeping beside him (AC sleeper had sleeper berths where two people had to sleep beside each other)

March 18, 2005 - Friday.

We woke up early as the bus slowed to halt at a place near Karwar (7:00 am). We did our pees’ but not the poos’ here. A girl in the bus started screaming that “How dare you break my bone”, probably at her boyfren. She later screaming out for help, which she refused when some kindred soul tried to help her. We wondered how anyone would are break a bone, and what kind of a person would retort quipping “how dare you”.

The bus wound its way around the ghat roads. We could smell the sea around us. We also had a good view of the Project Seabird naval base.

Around 10:30 am we landed at a spot near Goa Medical College. This was supposed to be close to Donapaula. Henceforth we took a local taxi from medical college to the ITC guest house.

We arrived to a warm welcome from the ITC guest house caretakers (Anand, Sukanya, and Mrs. Rosy). After our cursory poo break and a quick shower we gorged on a breakfast comprising of omlettes, aloo parathas with yoghurt.

And then we arranged for a taxi to pick us up to get on with our Goa Dhamaal!

Our driver cum tour guide for the next two days was Tony. We framed a draft plan: tour N.Goa (1^st day); S. Goa (2^nd day) and take a relaxed heritage tour by going to the old churches in and around Old Goa.

Tony bhai took us in his Maruti van to a shop which sold tickets for the local Ferry “Paradise”. We bought the tickets and a bottle of local Goan port wine.

Tony bhai drove us through the clean and well maintained roads along the Miramar beach, Kala academy and Inox Theater.

Around 12 pm the d-men entered the Mapuso flea market. This market sells a lot of stuff from junk jewellery to skirts/tees/shirts to vegetables etc. We shopped for some time here. Djinn bought a nice short skirt for his friend/beau Sh… and so did QQ for his wifey. Nagi bought sunglasses for himself.

We left for Wagator beach where we had a ball splashing around in the sea with its gentle waves. It was hot and humid alright.

We played football under the blazing sun; the team of Djinn/DD dribbled and did some great passing around to ultimately beat the QQ/Nagi team 3 nill. The “CHEER” girl was busy poking at the crab holes; there were a lot of crabs – small ones, medium ones and the biggies to give her company in the beach. Mrs QQ new short skirt tore while coming back, because of the inferior quality.

Then it was time to visit another beach - Anjuna beach in the afternoon. This was more relaxing, we were hungry; so had some light stuff and downed Bacardi breezers and some chilled beer. Then it was click-click time.

Then we were off to the Calangute beach – lots of phirangs relaxing in the shade and one female in the buff was getting massaged by a local lass. We again splashed around in the sea. A note of highlight was Mrs QQ screaming in fear when DJinn passed by her in the water. She confused him for a shark. Her scream was shrill like the movie stars whom she despises. Everyone compared Mrs QQ with the heroine from Spiderman Kirsten Dunst, who also screams, to her anger. Mrs. QQ went crab/oyster hunting on the beach.

It was 5 pm and time to move on. Off to sail in the local ferry ~ Paradise Cruise. Tony cautioned us to wear our shirts while boarding the cruise to which Nagi said “Yes, otherwise if girls faint seeing our beautiful gym bodies, it will create a lot of trouble”. This is a triple deck ferry. This started off a bit late on its way to show us the landmarks of Goa from the water. There was a MC hosting some kind of show on the ferry which comprised of Goan music, dance. He seemed to invite all and sundry to come and dance. We locked our gaze on to a pretty girl in a blue dress. NagiD filmed her while she was dancing away. The whole thing lasted for an hour.

We found Tony bhai waiting for us outside as we boarded our taxi. We asked him to take us to a nice place to eat. We wanted to eat good, tasty ethnic Goan food.

So, Tony bhai took us to Moti Mahal. We ordered Coconut fenny and chicken vindaloo, some rice. Nagi and Mrs. QQ opted for a vegetarian course. The verdict on the place: the ambience was there...but the food was just about ok. All food except the Goan tasted sweet. Another note of observation was Mr QQ in abstinence, and not touching much alcohol except for coffee liquer.

Dinner done, we headed back to our shack for a good night’s sleep.

We had a few rounds of port wine before hitting the sack. It was a nice room with a/c turned on full blast. Nagi was missing his sandhu aka chinumari and so had a lengthy chat over phone with her before signing off.

March 19, 2005 - Saturday.

We woke up in the morning around 8 am and completed our ablutions. No bath, we decided. For breakfast we ate bread and butter and paav with some curry. Then it was time for some strong coffee.

Tony bhai was waiting for us outside the guesthouse as we marched outside dressed appropriately for the beach. It was a very sunny morning. We walked though our plan for the day with Tony. Fort Aguada it was, the first place for the day.

The d folks admired the cleanliness in and around the city and the well maintained roads. NagiD was heard and seen pointing at all the road signs as we went along. There were very less or no traffic lights. We drove over the Mandovi bridge and saw the new Legislature along the way. We could also smell the smell of fish as Tony showed us the local fish market. Madhu argued that the fish food that her mother prepares does not smell (as it typically does!) and we were arguing about it as we went along. Finally it was decided that Djinn would go to Mrs. QQ’s house in Mysore and do a rigorous test. Tony explained how Charles Sobhraj escaped from the Fort jail moved around in disguise in the local area before being nabbed again by the cops in a bar.

In some 20 mins we arrived at Fort Aguada. We walked inside the ramparts of the fort which had housed Charles Sobhraj. QQ scaled one part of the rock wall ala spidey with no support and no ropes. Nagi captured all this on his camcorder. Mrs. QQ had to follow suit and so she did. Some more Clik-cliking there and we sat on the fort wall to savor the splendid view of the sea from that height. We also happened to have an ultimate dudey darshan. This phoren item in a nice tight bustier and sarong was accompanied by an Indo guy. This drew a nice comment from Mr. QQ as well. Then it was refreshments time and we drank yellaneeru and soda.

Tony bhai told us that the next pit stop would be the Pilar Monastery. This is the place where aspiring priests study. It was a nice half an hour drive in the hot afternoon. We arrived at the monastery to find the doors closed to our dismay. But, some kind soul opened the doors and let us in. Established by the Capuchins sect, the Pilar Monastery flourishes as an important religious and educational centre for Christian missionaries. The first place we visited in the premises was a museum housing some stone pieces from the Kadambas and satavahanas period; some palm leaf manuscripts; as well as Christian paintings showcasing different saints – Lucy, Agnes, Marie etc. There is an interesting stone sculpture of Krishna Jesus (Jesus looking like Krishna!) sitting on a bench with one hand on a human skull and the other on a globe in a pensive mood. There are some coins of various countries collected by the resident priests that were on display.

The history of Goa is also traced in some writings in the museum;

“Goa's history stretches back to the 3rd century BC, when it formed part of the Mauryan empire. Later, at the beginning of the Christian era, it was ruled by the Satavahanas. Control eventually passed to the Chalukyans of Badami, and then the Kadambas. Goa fell to the Muslims for the first time in 1312, but the invaders were forced out in 1370 by Harihara I of the Vijayanagar empire, whose capital was at Hampi. Goa was the ideal base for the seafaring Portuguese, who arrived in 1510. Afonso de Alburqueque sailed up the placid waters of the Mandovi river and wrote the beginning of an entirely unique chapter in Indian history. For the next 4 hundred odd years, the distant land of Portugal ruled Goa and created here a synthesis of Indo-Portuguese culture which pervades all facets of life: from architecture to food and liquor; from song and dance to exquisitely carved furniture. St Francis Xavier is the patron saint of Goa.”

We went upstairs to the roof of the museum. The view from the top was superb.

We also visited the church of our Lady of Pilar, a fine example of 17^th century architecture.

Then it was time to take our leave and leave for the next place to visit. This time; tucked away in the meadows of interior Goa is a place - Big Foot at Salcete, is the place that truly deserves a visit. With a miniature village called Ancestral Goa, a nature walk, the Big Foot legend, an Art Gallery and Handicraft Center occupying some nine-ten acres. Buying tickets of Rs. 20 (cameras and videocams cost extra); we went in to experience Goa (as the place promises!) Little structures show a fisherman, a coconut chopper, washer-women, potters, bangle sellers, the village barber and many more. The process of distilling cashew 'feni' is displayed. The place simulates a little village complete with a typical farmer’s hut; a Portuguese house and a tavern. There is a “peeing” beehive in the place. It also houses a horizontally etched monolithic sculpture of Sant Mirabai in the premises. It also houses a lot of botanical specimen – fruits, vegetables. The Big Foot Legend, talks about a devout guy, who through his generosity attained a boon from God. This guy left his footprint behind while standing on one leg and meditating (God apparently wanted to test him and made the stone very hot; flaming hot and still he did not give up!!), on his way to heaven. According to belief, if one stands on his footprints and makes a wish, it would be fulfilled. So we did!

Then it was time for some more refreshments; we were thirsty as the sun in the late afternoon blazed. Kabbina haalu!

Time to make a move! The last stop for the day was the beautiful Colva beach. This was again a drive through the streets of Goa. We also saw the local cricket ground along the way. Tony regaled us with his Mumbaiyya brand of Hindi.

The Colva beach is a popular beach in Goa as we could see quite a number of people. We wanted to eat something and then relax in the beach. We headed to a beach shack and downed cocktails – concoctions of pineapple, orange, rum, vodka. A little rice, a beef platter and some vegetables for Nagi D. However DD was having a bad day with his stomach.

After some time of relaxing we stripped and headed towards the water for loads of fun ’n’ frolic.

DD and Djinn dribbled around with the football for some time. Then it was diving time to catch the flying disc as it flew around. QQ did uthak/baithaks on the sand as Djinn and DD did some squats and pushups. Then it was “palti hodiyodu” time. Then the head spinning “urulu sevey” across the sand into the water. QQ stood first in this exercise. Nagi spent time in the sea trying to learn floating and succeeded to a little extent because of coaching from Mrs QQ. It was 5:30 pm in the evening when we decided to wrap it up. We wanted to do parasailing. It was a costly affair though. There was one boy (from Hubli and a fan of Puneet Raj!) who took off along with each one of us to control the movements of the parachute. This was good ride, rising up in the air, but very very short lived.

6:30 pm and it was time for us to get back into the car. We took a bath in the Sulabh restrooms. Mrs QQ blasted the Sulabh owner for not keeping the bathrooms clean, with the poor man blinking his eyes. On the way back Tony talked a lot, and finally Nagi quoted “Ek baat aata hai, ek baat jaata hai!! Magar vishwas bahut mukhya hai”, his favourite dialogue.

We wanted to go to a massage center. As luck would have it; the shops were closed as it was late in the evening. We went to the Anjuna church but found that this was closed as well. This is a beautiful place in the heart of the city.

We headed back to our guesthouse for dinner. We bid adieu to Tony bhai who said he would not be available for Sunday as he had some other engagement.

Dinner was a sumptuous experience with the course containing the local favorite pork vindaloo, dhal and rice. We also toasted to each other with a glass of feni. Nagi D was feeling a little heady and retired to his room to talk with his wifey.

We were tired and were fast asleep in no time as we hit our pillows.

March 20, 2005 - Sunday

It was Velha Goa or Old Goa this day on the itinerary. A predominantly Catholic village, Goa Velha is marked by many crosses and chapels. The numerous bars and upcoming restaurants in the village is only one of the characteristics which lend it that typical Goan touch.

Breakfast comprised of Aloo parathas with yogurt for breakfast. There was a new driver who would take us around for the day.

A quick shower and we were ready. We started off with a visit to the famous Basilica of Bom Jesus. This houses the body of St. Francis Xavier. The main altar is very beautiful with exquisitely carved sculptures. There is a monstrance containing the toe of St. Francis which the local populace worships. The side altar hosts our Lady of Hope sculpture.

The next church we visited was Se Cathedral, opposite to Basilica of Bom Jesus. We were not able to see much of the interiors as there were Sunday services in progress. We had maaza and coke to quench our thirst. DJinn and Nagi were doing everything in opposite to Mrs QQ. They did not want to see any places which Mrs QQ wanted to see.

In the same campus we visited the Church of St. Francis of Assisi. Mention must be made of a mural painting of a lady pressing one of her exposed breast to squirt milk at a tired and hungry Jesus!. Beautifully etched high vaulted ceiling.

Attached to the church is the Convent of Church of St. Francis of Assisi. This hosts a museum which we visited. Mrs QQ commented that here unlike in Mysore most of the paintings were well preserved. DJinn and QQ remarked over the remarkable sculpture of Betal. This sculpture of Betal had a scorpion on the stomach and had it’s penis and balls hanging down almost half the length of the leg (yes, even the balls); further there were bells tied to the balls. DJinn wanted something similar on himself.

The driver to took us on a long drive to visit the Mangeshwar temple at Priol-Ponda. We saw a lot of lorries stalled on the road; and they were being hauled by huge cranes. To Mrs QQ’s dismay, we ran to the Mangesh temple barefoot, over the hot tar road. Mangesh temple looks very new, even tho it is almost 3-4 centuries old. A priest describing the temple to visitors took pride in showing the Belgian glasses used in the temple.

We rode back to Old Goa, to visit the Tower of the churt of St. Augustine. This church is in ruins, and a lateral half of the tower has collapsed. A lot or restoration work is being done at the church. This is one of the most beautiful of churches.

Our next stop was the Museum of Christian Arts hosted at the Convent of Santa Monica. This has a lot of silver ware used in the church services. Influence of hindu art on Christian art form in Goa is well depicted by the various artifacts on display. Trimurthi of Hindus is also displayed here albeit in the form of Christian cross.

Leading further from this art museum is the Church of our Lady of the Rosary. This is a vaulted structure, looking more like a fort of defense than a church. We climbed the church tower, on a winding staircase to have a beautiful view of the Goa. Mrs. QQ also found a secluded place in the church where large no. of rats were resting.

From here we drove a little farther to reach the St. Cajetan Church. There is also a ruined Adil Shah gate in the church premises. Further ahead was the Arch of the Viceroys. We had some juice and boti for snack here. An island could be seen from here, which we decided to forego for lack of time.

The last church we visited was the Church of Our lady of the Mount. This is a smallish church with not much artwork or decoration. A Guy from Bagalkote serves as the caretaker for the church and lives in it. This is the biggest church, but all in ruins; there were supposedly 200 odd rooms here. It was earlier notorious for thieves and the black elements of society who used to kill, rape and pillage here. This church is also unique in terms of the view it offers. Situated on a mount, this is the only church from which all the other churches/cathedrals of old Goa can be seen. We took a lot of group photos. Mrs QQ was able to collect a lot of cashew fruits and geru beejas here.

After the heritage tour we were back in the city wanting a massage for our tired backs. After a lot of search we found this small shack of a place. We checked in and got ourselves massaged. Nagi D was disappointed. He was expecting the masseur to get “nitgeys” (which is the snapping sound when one bends the fingers and presses them!!) out of him which she didn’t. It was an ok kind of experience. And that’s about it. Initially nagi was afraid on seeing the masseurs confusing them for bazaari women. QQ abstained and accompanied Mrs. QQ to a hotel as she was hungry.

Willing to taste Jamun with Rabdi speciality we visited Sher-e-Punjab. Similar to the south Indian Anand Bhavan, photos of the spectacled owner is hung behind the cashier, which d men concluded as proof the hotels genuine inheritance. Dany bought a lot of wines, fenny for the folk back in bangalore and coorg.

We then drove to Dona Paula beach. Mrs. QQ made the d men to agree for a moped ride in the sea. There was not much excitement in it as the bikes were slow and driver did not treat us to bumps over waves.

Further on, we reached the Dona Paula watch tower. Dona & Paula, lovers from earlier had a pact to commit suicide here. Even though the tower is not very high, the craggy rocks around would have helped kill them. We had a beautiful view of the sunset which Nagi missed capturing in his camcorder.

We returned to the guest house and packed our stuff after dinner. Reaching the PAULO travels office, we were told that the bus had left. Nagi lesson learnt - "If return tickets should be booked earlier, need to confirm at the destination". We took a taxi to reach Margoa (some 30 kms away) to catch the bus. The taxi driver was a speeding bullet in the traffic and took us to Margoa well before time.

Dany completed his task of account settlement and analysis in the bus. We were happy that the whole trip had been a blast and cost so less.

March 21, 2005 - Monday.

Come Monday, we are back in good ole Bangy by 10:30 HRS.

Author : DJinn and Mr. QQ, with inputs from Nagi.