Carnival :- How Civilised!

 The end of February - after our return - was warm and very pleasant, but was followed by some horrible weather, with particularly cold evenings. We spent a lot of time planning future migrations; and then it was Carnival time! As usual the theme was well known, but the posters with programme were not published until two days before the start. As you can see the theme was "Ancient Civilisations", so the staff in charge of hotel sheets were worried!

First prize for festive decoration went once again to Claire, the Sandras and helpers at the Blue Rock. Those pillars were a masterpiece! On the night of the opening procession it was very cold, and the marching bands exposed less flesh than normal, but by the first Friday the weather had improved, and it was pleasant sitting outside The Rock late at night watching passers-by who had been to the "Murgas" show. A magic interval was when two middle-aged men went past identically clad in Lycra matador outfits (complete with augmented codpieces). We cheered "Ole" and asked if they had lost their bulls. They then produced from under their capes battery-operated bulls the size of chihuahuas, switched them on and performed "veronicas" and other moves!

Here on the left is one of the performers the next night, when they were both back for the fancy-dress dance. This time they had some of the regalia of the Policia Local, half-mast trousers, odd socks and very unpleasant false teeth. Ruth refused a kiss! He approched the other (witch) punter and demanded to see her papeles. She gave him a screwed up tissue! There was a wonderful array of dress. Particularly memorable was a band of "mummies" each one carrying their tomb on their back, and a line of slave girls tied together and dragging their restraining boulder behind them! Julian at the Rock looked worried when later a group of (genuine) Guardia Civil walked past and we cheered and complimented them on their costumes! See more of the glories of the night on this short slide show!

Taking the Long Way Home

Well, this is how we got home 22/3rd February:
04.30 IST - picked up by taxi at Panjim hotel
05.00 IST - arrived at Goa Airport - far too early! Foul coffee and a rat sighting.
06.30 IST - Go Airways flight - full
07.30 IST - Arrived Mumbai domestic terminal. Found how to get free shuttle between terminals, which is done with huge security and within the airport grounds.
09.00 IST - Got inside the terminal to find closed BA desks

10.15 IST -  Checked in and told our planned seats weren't going to work as flight was nearly full. Changed them! A very long wait in the terminal, but beer at non-Goan price and all the shopping opportunities at joke US-dollar prices! Watched a lot of Bollywood!
13.40 IST (= 08.10 GMT) - BA flight on 777 but older plane, and this time virtually full. Bliss and rapture: Argentinian red wine flowing freely after 3 weeks wine-free! Rest of service excellent too, though only a choice of 200 entertainment options this time.
18.00 GMT (= 23.50 IST) - arrived Terminal 5. A bit of a queue at passports but out in time to visit M&S Food, and have two fast pints of Adnams!
19.45 GMT - Out into real world - cold! First rate National Express coach service to Stansted
21.30 GMT - Shuttle to Hilton, supper in room!
04.30 GMT - Shuttle to airport, quick bag drop, wait with baited breath to see which gate was in use!
06.30 GMT - Ryanair flight - almost full - to Fuerteventura. Disgraceful passenger behaviour from shouting and swearing "white van man" golfers! Service not quite what we had experienced the day before!
10.20 GMT - Arrived Fuerteventura
11.00 GMT - Dave Windows picked us up and we went home with a diversion via Lidl's!
12.30 GMT (= 18.00 IST) - arrived home!

Total elapsed journey time: 37.5 hours

"It's Panjim - but not as we know it!"

..because its proper name now is Panaji!

With a few days spare before flying from Mumbai we pondered visiting other coastal places or spending time in Mumbai itself; but decided we were not in the mood for serious Indian city, and wanted to get more of the old Portuguese colonial flavour, so booked a taxi to the state capital, and took advice on a place to stay for two nights.  Ellie recommended the Afonso Guest House, which is very well situated for wandering round. It took about 1hr 40 mins in the taxi on a Sunday afternoon, and you pass over one of the two huge rivers that define Panaji's geography.

The hotel is the heart of the Fontainhas area, which has numerous colonial-style buildings in little streets, and pretty Catholic chapels. Our room was on the ground floor of the old town house, and was comfortable enough with a good bathroom, although hot water is obtained by ringing a bell! There is a fair amount of domestic and street noise, as one might expect! In the morning there is breakfast with fresh Goan white rolls on the roof:- very altmospheric!. For the price one could go to a bigger hotel, and the owner (now widowed) runs a tight ship - especially in refusing unsecured bookings; but we would stay there again!



Bob suffered deja vu!

In theory the sights of Panjim can be covered easily on foot. In practice you need to watch your footfall all the time, as the pavements are in a state, and the gullies are very deep. Also crossing the road is a nightmare, with motorbikes and tuk-tuks appearing from nowhere. A landmark, and very impressive is the Church of the Immaculate Conception. We visited the market - which is in a new building and very colourful and well organised.  There are nearly as many mobile phone stalls as spice vendors!



Some of the buildings suggested in the guide as points of interest were being renovated, so yet more verge jumping and mad road crossing! A distinctly weird statue in a prominent position celebrates Abbe Faria - one of Goa's sons, and allegedly the father of hypnotism! This remains in place, whilst that of Vasco de Gama, formerly atop a column in the municipal gardens, has been removed since independence! 

In the river there are several large steamers moored and used as casinos, and there is a popular evening river boat trip.

Wandering around is obviously a hot and sense-battering experience, so we sat for a long time in a bar beside the river near the ferry, which plies continuously back and forth

As well as the wide river Mandovi there is a narrow creek, and we ate on both nights in restaurants with balconies overlooking it. Firstly we went to a very modern and European-friendly place on a corner by the bridge. As we ate we saw smoke rising from a spot halfway across and were intrigued:- road accident, roasting chestnuts?? It was in fact part of a shrine set up in the balustrade, with both Christian and Hindu iconry. A very Goan phenomenon!

On the second occasion we were initially the only customers, and they lit up the tandoor specially for us. It was an excellent meal including the Goan dish Chicken Xiacuti - based on coconut milk. Later a group came in speaking Spanish, and we got a bilingual conversation under way. It turned out that the two girls were flying like us the next day to Heathrow with BA.

So a good few Honeybees were consumed before we retired early for the monster return journey - see next post! 

So - Goa - the verdict:

Plus points:

• Exquisite beach and sea
• Warm weather
• Mellow fellow tourists (mostly)
• Cheap everything
• Varied cuisine
• Tolerance towards alchohol etc
• Friendly workers

and the other side:- not much, but includes

• Price of getting there, visas, jabs and insurance
• Need for eternal hygiene vigilance
• Insensitive tourists brought in on packages (especially from Russia)
• Absence of decent wine
• Beach sellers & beggars various

We will be back!

..and in our free time..

This really was a "chill-out" holiday rather than serious travelling, so we spent most days on the beach. Palolem is not a working town:- you can buy basic holiday needs from kiosks on the beach (include major displays of toilet rolls), or the range of shops on two roads, but there is not even an ATM for cash. This meant a couple of walks to the outskirts of Chaudi and back, jumping in and out of the verge. One Saturday we went to the town proper in an auto-rickshaw (tuk-tuk) to see the fruit and vegetable market. We also located the Post Office, tentatively putting our postcards into a rusty cylinder, but it seems they did arrive! There is also a "supermarket" which was worth a visit! We looked into a recommended breakfast place and decided it was too dark and crowded, so tuk-tuked back to the German Bakery - a place rather different from our German Bakery on the prom in Corralejo!

The Live Music scene is interesting, and also not dissimilar from Corralejo's, with the same artists appearing at different bars on different nights - and some of them very good! These bars are all on the beach, and some light a bonfire when there is activity. On our first such evening we were joined at the table by a young, well-off and well-educated Goan couple. and found ourselves invited for a full-day boat-trip and picnic on Honeymoon or Butterfly Beach in a few days' time. It was a very generous offer, and we got excited about it, but then got worried about the etiquette, and so pulled out citing (truthfully) our need at the time to be close to a toilet! We will never know what we missed.

A couple of bars away from the beach show films at night. All the usual suspects were shown, but we feel we selected the perfect match for a Goan bar in Mr Nice at "The Steak House". The film is projected from a laptop onto a sheet, and you watch it whilst eating your steak, Thai noodles or whatever, with the moon in the clear sky, and - later - not unrelated smoke and smells!

We did not, predictably, visit Silent Noise at Neptune Point, but heard the stories! Punters are frisked for MP3's, drugs and alcohol, so the clever way round pricey drinks seems to be to hide an innocent-looking bottle of spirit-laden Coke in a spot outside. Ah, to be young again!!

Creatures Great and Small

 1. Sacred Cows

It's a cliche, of course, but the first time you see a maniac driver slow down to move round a slow moving cow in the middle of a busy road it come as a bit of a shock! The beasts also roam on the beach, and in and out of shops and restaurants. Nonetheless avoiding the cowpats is less trouble than avoiding the dog poo in Corralejo!

2. Goan Pigs
Do your own research on the history of this former Portuguese colony! Suffice to say that the majority of the local population is Catholic - with no taboo for either beef or pork, and you find both on the menu - along with plenty of fish (pomfret and kingfish predominate). So there are plenty of pigs wandering around freely. In fact we spent a long time on our balcony watching the sows and piglets in our "garden". They co-exist quite happily with the many crows - particularly around the rubbish tips! (The anti-bacterial hand gel got a fair old pasting!)

3. Beach Dogs

We thought the large number on the beach would be a problem, but they are quite endearing and largely ignore humans, spending a lot of time sleeping under sunbeds. (They dig a hole in the sand!) In the evening they join the musicians on stage :- particularly three-legged Elvis - the dog, that is!

4. Flying things
We caught sight at a distance of some large exotic birds, and regularly saw flocks of cormorants, but not having done the river trip

missed out on many twitchers' delights.

This beautiful butterfly was found dying on the beach by Dick and Jane, and was moved to a tree at The Nest where it revived.

We should also note that mosquitos did not trouble us thanks to tropical strength repellant in the evening, and the electric liquid thingy left behind by mistake by the last occupant of our room.

5. Dolphins

On our last day there was a great deal of boat activity out in the bay. They were taking tourists on trips circling round a pod of dolphins. Suddenly from our sunbeds we saw at least two dolphins leaping from the sea no more than 50m from the shore. Magnificent - and free!

6. Itinerant Rupee-Hunters

Now that Palolem has become popular there is no avoiding the very many people who walk back and forth along the bay in search of money, and it is a relentless stream, to which one needs to develop a harsh strategy. There are:

• Basic beggars, keen to show you their afflictions or an official statement thereof
• Women in beautiful saris or shalwa kameeze with jewellery, or offering pedicures
• Men with baskets of fruit on their head, or newspapers, garlands, sarongs ...
• Younger men with knock-off DVDs
• Boat-folk offering trips
• Performers, such as these tightrope walkers, who should be at school, and are allegedly - by design - older than they appear!

7. Saga Louts

We spent everyday at the Office, often accused of late arrival or temps' lack of commitment! We did not, however, join the Works Outing which involved a glorified "booze cruise" starting Up North. It sounds great fun, good value and even educational! After their return that evening Beer O'Clock deteriorated to the point where "Passing a Tissue with your Toes" took hold. There are photos but no permission to publish! So, if you are involved send an email (ask D&J) and Greyrocks will send them.

Here is a 5-minute slide show of our Goa trip (with music)
.. oh, and for regular readers we are experimenting with allowing comments - just in case you feel moved!

Goan Bananas and Coconuts!

Why Palolem? Well - mostly because Dick and Jane are here! The consensus is that development has greatly spoiled the state as a whole, but mostly in the North. We are very far South! The Lonely Planet Guide says that the village's nickname is Palaga on account of loud British single-sex groups, and there certainly is some of that; (In fact last night there was an invasion of bimbos in neighbouring rooms!), but this is harsh! It has a 2km beach - fairly wide - and at the two ends - away from the easy vehicle access - it is very civilised!

Behind the whole beach are tall mature coconut palms, and amongst and in front of them are the restaurants, bars, kiosks and "resorts" - collections of beach huts of varied sophistication. All of this is completely dismantled in May or thereabouts, only to be reconstructed in October. The motivation is the monsoons, but it does also mean the holiday companies are fended off. It would make a better account if we were staying in a crude beach hutraised on stilts, and indeed some are very luxurious with full bathrooms; but we asked D&J to find something a tadge better, and we are therefore across the road in a solidly built guest house.

In both directions from our beach are plenty of others. Bob walked over one headland and found two very quiet ones - including Patnem.

The bars here provide free sturdy and very comfortable sunbeds. On arrival we were introduced to The Nest (or, as we know it - the Office). It is run by Mohan and his English wife Ellie. This has become our hub for beach life. The list of "What's not to love in Goa?" is a very short one. (It might get an airing at some future point). On it is the total lack of wine worth paying the price for! The compensation is Kingfisher beer - as sold in many a British curry house! 33cl for 50rupees (0.75 GBP) or 66cl for 70 or even 60! There is a cheaper brand (Kings) but that is less attractive!

At 5.30 pm or so the clan of Office British long-stayers (and hangers-on like ourselves) assemble for Beer O'Clock. A major topic is "Where to eat?" With real resonances of Paleohora this can be a long discussion, because the choice of places is huge, and the differences between their menus and their quality quite small. So there might be report on runny dhal at X, small portions at Y, or slow (even for Goa) service at Z. As two of the Office contingent are restauranteurs from Devon we have a lot of fun with gastronomics!

We might also have on the agenda "Bad behaviour by Russians". This is significant because there are a lot of them about. There are direct flights from Moscow to Goa, and now there are Russian-orientated bars, menus etc. We will hold off the full stereotyping whinges about them for the moment, They are not popular!

Or we might discuss"How to get here more cheaply" - a topic that is starting to interest us!

And then the sun sets, we go off to our variously hot or cold showers! Some might return for the night shift and the magnificent Honey Bee:- local brandy that is very moreish. We have developed signals for ordering:- flapping hands means Kingfisher - the same with buzzing is Honey Bee! easy and very silly!

And.. a few days ago there was Bollywood filming further down the beach, which caused a flurry! The film looked dire! We watched take after take of one minute of mass dance in bizarre costume. The location catering looked good, though!

The Reward of Loyalty

We are currently wallowing in the tropical sunshine of Goa! This is thanks largely to thirty years of shopping with Sainsburys and then Tesco, so that we have accumulated a vast number of Airmiles. These can only be used on BA flights starting and ending in UK, so we have spent a lot of time planning for three weeks away from home. We flew from Fuerteventura to London Stansted on Feb 2nd, arriving in the afternoon and expecting to see some English countryside on our coach journey to Heathrow. We had forgotten it is dark by 3.30! It was also raining and bitterly cold; and within half an hour we had thrown a tantrum about British rip-offs! This is normal, we have found! This time it was a Spectrum  internet station which ate a pound coin and refused to play ball, and when the man at the Information desk dragged himself away from a Polish conversation he told us we would need to ring a 0870 number for a refund! Grrr!

.. but National Express let us get on an earlier coach than booked (and is half-price for over 60s!) and we got to Terminal 5, where we found Adnams real ale, M&S supper ingredients and a wonderful BA employee, who did what we were not permitted to do until the next morning and issued us with boarding passes. We took the shuttle to a hotel and back next morning for a bit more frustration. Despite the stunning surroundings BA have a barmy baggage drop system which is slower (if you are unlucky) than ordinary check-in procedures. However, when we boarded all this was forgiven!

We had one of the new 777s, a third full! This made for a very comfortable 8 hour flight - particularly with use of the seat-back entertainment system offering a menu of about 600 films, TV programs, audio and music tracks. We arrived in Mumbai shortly after midnight, and procedures there were predictably slow and inefficient. We spent an age trying to find the free shuttle bus to the domestic terminal, each transit through a door requiring three police to consult about us and then grudgingly allowing us through. We walked around outside the terminal looking for a beer and gave up, then took a taxi to the terminal seeing probably enough of Mumbai to last for a while. More confusion at that terminal, no beer, and a wait until 3.20 am for check-in and an expensive couple of beers. The flight with Go was full, and there were very few Europeans on it. At Goa we waited until sunrise then took a taxi down South to Palolem. Just over an hour of hooting and hairy manoevres, and here we are!