Sunset at Margim Beach
This weekend, Sean and I took a quick trip to Goa, the state south of Maharashtra (where we live). We decided to take a train down there and fly back. We had both been curious about train travel and the scenery along the way. Our train left Mumbai at about 2:00 pm on Friday, scheduled to arrive Goa at 12:10 am. We were very disappointed to find that we were booked in separate berths (4 people per berth, 2 lower and 2 upper for sleeping), and that the only person who could have traded with Sean so we could be together just said no when we asked. We were able to sit together for about 3 of the 10 hours. Then, not only were we separated, but we were forced to lay down on our upper bunks because the other passengers in our berths were all asleep, at about 7:00 pm. The good news is I read an entire book on the ride. I slept for about 30 minutes. Our train got in late, at about 12:45, and I think I have now had my fill of Indian long distance train travel.
At the train station, we got a taxi and discovered our hotel was about an hour away. We arrived at 2:00 am and discovered the friends we were meeting were still out, so they came to get us on their rented motor-bikes and and we went to a bar for about half an hour. Sean and I were incredibly exhausted and sticky/sweaty from our very long train ride. We finally made it to bed at about 3:00 which may be the latest I have gone to bed in a few years. Two is the latest I think…
Next morning, we woke up and sat on the porch of our lovely little hotel. It was called Villa Ludovici and it was just a house converted to a small guest house with about 5 rooms for rent. It is run by a lovely woman who sat and talked with us about the area and about where we were from and our travels. She made us some fresh coffee, eggs, and toast and we relaxed and enjoyed the cool breeze. The to other people staying there that weren’t from our group were also very personable and nice.
Nirmal, one of Sean’s animators, drove him to get his own bike on Saturday morning. Next thing I know, the two of them arrive back on one bike with Nirmal driving. I assumed there had been some trouble with Sean getting his own bike since he didn’t have his license with him, let alone an Indian driver’s license. As it turns out, they had rented him a scooter which Sean had quickly crashed into a parked car. The car’s owner threatened to call the police on him, so Sean had to pay him off (500 rupees ~$10). He scraped up his toe pretty badly in the “accident” and Nirmal drove him back on the newly rented bike. Then he went back for his own. After we all got a good laugh at Sean’s expense, it was agreed that Jenny, one of the girls in our group, would drive me on the 3rd bike and Sean would ride around with Nirmal. (When he returned the dented scooter, they tried to charge him but Nirmal let him know the brakes were not very good and that they shouldn’t rent that bike out anymore)
Sean on the scooter
Goa is an extremely laid back, relaxed region of India. Everyone just sits on the beach, eating, drinking, getting sunburned (and smoking a lot of pot, but that wasn’t on my to-do list). There was a huge amount of tourists, mostly European and Russian. Every foreigner I saw was pink with a sunburn. I kept saying to Sean that it was the weirdest collection of people I had ever seen in my life. Goa was a Portuguese colony until about 50 years ago so you can really see the influence there in the buildings, the names of things, the general feel of being there. That is another reason it just felt like we weren’t in India anymore.
So we headed to the beach, where even when “crowded” is NOTHING close to the crowding on the beaches I am used to in Los Angeles. We sat at a beach shack, ate some food, played Uno. Just generally relaxed. I loved it! Beer was forced on Sean a couple of times. We are not beer-drinkers but they locally brew a couple of beers there so somehow Sean ended up with a bottle a couple of times. I had a couple of sips and was happy to see it was rather weak tasting. At this shack (Jackson’s Shack) we opted for some local food options: I had the Goan Sausages and Sean had the Beef Chilly Fry. Mine was quite tasty and I discovered what I though was shrimp (based on texture not on taste) and was happy with the surprise until I was told it was just pieces of fat. Until then, it was really good! Sean’s was super spicy but tasty no less!
A beautiful view down the beach. Look how secluded.
Next we headed up to a beach in the north of Goa called Margim, about 45 km from where we were staying in Candolim. This was my favorite place we went It was extremely secluded, absolutely gorgeous, just so fun. We had met a man in our hotel that is a kite-surfer and teaches at this beach. We all took a beginner lesson, which didn’t involve getting in the water, but just learning to use the kite. It was really fun and different.
After our lesson, we went to a market held every Saturday night. It was absolutely packed but I found lots of fun goodies. Sean and I make a good bargaining team. I finally found some silver bangle bracelets that I had been wanting, along with some souvenirs.
We left the market at about 11:00 pm and headed back to the beach to a restaurant. We got some dessert and just sat (chilled is a perfect term, but not one that I would normally use). The atmosphere was great and there were little booths with curtains that made for a quaint little sitting area.
We finally got to sleep about 2:00 and were back up at 9:30 to eat another yummy breakfast at the house. Our flight was at 7:00 pm but the rest of our gang had flights at 4:00 so we went to the airport with them and hopped on an early flight. Last night I didn’t make it till 10:00 before heading to bed to catch up on my sleep.
We had such a fun time. This kind of trip is more up my alley than Sean’s, but I think he had a nice time (except for being dirty the whole time, but that is just beach living). I thought for a moment about staying on a couple of days on my own because I enjoyed it so much, but decided it wouldn’t be as fun without Sean. My favorite part was relaxing and enjoying the ride on the scooters.
Now I am on to planning our trip this weekend to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. Originally we had planned to fly in Delhi and then head to Agra, but we have changed plans. Now we’ll fly to Jaipur (in Rajasthan, an area we would like to see more than Delhi) and go to the Taj that way. Can’t wait!
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Sunset at Margim Beach
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Villa Ludovici
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Sean and the kite (and Phillip the kite-surfing teacher)
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The beach from Jackson Shack
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Drew, Shreya & Phillip the teacher, A kite surfing lesson
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A look up the beach
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Nirmal and his kite (that kite was really big, just very far away)
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A beautiful view down the beach. Look how secluded.
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A view of the berth on the train. That top one was mine.
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Sitting in the shack, hanging out.
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Uno and beer
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Beach view
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Sean “asleep” on the train
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Sitting on the train (I am sweaty all the time here)
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One of the dogs relaxing at the villa
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At Bottlebay in our curtained off sitting area.
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The sign at our place
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Sean on the scooter
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Some woman doing yoga on the beach.
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Sunset
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Sean doing his kite.
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The patio at our “hotel”