The Goan Holiday - January 14th 2007

After a scrumptious breakfast at Camp 69, we hit the beach. The day was to be dedicated to Morjim beach. We gave some money to a beach shack called Golden Eagle and asked them to care of our belongings. That money was to be used to pay for our lunch.

It was time to conquer the sea. I am not a swimmer and was really scared at first of getting into the sea with the waves crashing on my head. But then I slowly got used to it and enjoyed frolicking in the water for quite some time.

We waded through water till we reached the end of the beach and waded back to Golden Eagle because by then our stomachs were screaming with hunger.

Like many shacks on the beach, this one was owned by a Russian, which was obvious when we went through the menu. Each item on the menu had a Russian translation for it. I had Mojito for the first time here and I haven’t had a better one anywhere since.

With our tummies full, we were getting sleepy and what better place to take a nap than the beach beds. So here we were, lying on our beach beds talking, watching the few people on the beach and at peace with ourselves.

The next day was photography day!!!

Technorati Tags: Morjim, Mojito, Goa, beach

The Goan Holiday -January 13th, 07

What do I do when I have slogged for over a year and need a break desparately? I go away for a week to GOA!!! So from Jan 13th to Jan 20th, yours truly was enjoying the sights, sounds and tastes of this wonderful state of India.

We divided our trip in two parts, wherein the first leg was spent in North Goa and the second leg in South Goa. We decided to take the train from Mumbai to Goa and were aboard the Konkan Kanya express at 11:00 in the night from Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus.

As the eventful journey began, we decided to switch off our mobile phones and keep it that way for the rest of the trip. So for a week we did not know or care to know about whether the world other than Goa existed or not.

We arrived at our destination Pernem at about 11:00 in the morning. We were to stay at Morjim and Pernem was the nearest station. Haggling and negotiating forms a major part of a Goan holiday and we were at it since the time we landed in Goa. We haggled with the rickshaw fellow to take us to Morjim who finally agreed on Rs. 250 for the 30 – 45 mins ride.

We finally reached our abode-to-be for the next 4 days – Camp 69.

This is the oldest establishment at Morjim and is a perfect place for a peaceful holiday. It boasts of log cabins with ensuite bathrooms surrounded by palm trees on all sides. We were the only Indian revelers at this place and on the beach as well.

The Morjim beach is just across the road. We checked in, made ourselves comfortable and hogged at the hotel’s restaurant. This place was never dull when it came to food. I have not eaten such food anywhere. I mean, how exciting can an egg biryani get? But the chef managed to create wonders with this simple dish as well.

After filling up our rumbling tummies, we head straight to the beach. We walk and we walk and we walk along the entire stretch of Morjim and Ashwem and amazingly we never felt the distance. It’s a beautiful stretch of white sand and pristine blue waters.

Later that evening we hired a bike from Francis and head to Anjuna for dinner. Dinner was had at Zoories – a beautiful restaurant on a cliff overlooking the sea. It was Saturday and we HAD to go to the famous Saturday night market at Arpora. The market is an interesting sight in itself peppered with stalls selling trinkets, clothes, leather, silver, food and alcohol – all in one huge space. The stalls are leased by Indians and Europeans alike. The Saturday night market can be called a hagglers paradise. The sheer joy of getting something at 50% its cost cannot be explained.

The day ended with a bike ride from Arpora to Morjim through the eerie roads of Goa.
Goodnight Morjim J

Technorati Tags: Morjim, Camp 69, Saturday night market, Arpora

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