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“crescent shaped bay to find glistening water and coconut palms” |
Arriving after a long train ride and trying to figure out which was the easiest way to get from Margoa train station to Palolem Beach, we opted to share a 6 seater rickshaw with our new aussie friends. It looked pretty rickety, having only 3 wheels, but with "Jesus" written across the windshield how could we go wrong. It took about an hour and a lot of "I think I cans" to get this mobile up those hills. Wendy and Gavin were sitting backwards with no clue at the many tragic accidents we missed. Wendy only could sense the danger by our facial expression. After awhile I stopped looking forward.
We arrived to the crescent shaped bay to find glistening water and coconut palms that flowed up to the sand. Accommodations options are bungalows on stilts or on the ground. Imagining trying to climb the ladder to our room late night, we decided to bargain for one on the ground getting a bungalow with an attached bathroom (makeshift room with drain and plastic floor covering and shower spout), for 350r/night. The hammock on the porch was a big selling point too.
Goa is a tourist fantasy land. Laying in the sun all day with vendors offering pineapples, coconuts, cashews... walk by your towel all day. Optional activities are ayurvedic massages (300r/60min), boat cruise on massive wooden canoes, watching for dolphins from shore, yoga, reading, and my favorite doing nothing. It was the perfect place to recoup from our midnight arrival into Mumbai, travel stress, 12 hours on a train, and leftover Mauritius' stomach-mayhem. So nice, that we decided to stay for 5 days. We spent our days reading LOTS, our sunsets with seashell Texas Hold-em (byo-shells 30 for a buy-in), and our night avoiding fireworks shot off from under our dinner tables.
Many of the vendors and bungalow operators in Goa are from the north of India and Nepal. They come for the season Nov-May (leaving when the rains start). This year was a bad season, as it seems terrorist threats made many Israelis not come, Israelis being a huge source for tourism in India. I guess the beaches are usually filled with hundreds more. This was good for us as it drove prices down, but bad for the shop keepers all complaining about breaking even. To guard against the terrorist threats, the India government provided Palolem beach with four armed guards that strolled up and down the beach, mostly just checking out the skimpy bikini'd europeans. I think it is very possible that Wendy and I were the only Americans on the beach, we met a few Canadians, and there was a rumor about another New Yorker, but none ever surfaced.
Goa was relaxing and fun, we almost felt sinful enjoying fake India so much. However, this gave us an good opportunity to finesse our bargaining skills. We learned that it is bad luck for India to not sell to their first customer, so you can get better deals in the AM. So shop early.
We were sad to leave fantasy land, but excited to head to Kerala, India's southern most state.
previous travel blog entry
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