Getting Goa

Day 5/6

The past couple of days have been spent in Goa, which is many things, but heres two.

1. A lot bigger than I imagined.

2. A name that will conjur up images quite a lot different to what i've found its reality to be. 

Panjim is one of the main cities, quite sweet with a Portuguese influence, narrow streets, painted buildings - albeit rather a lot less neatly finished or cared for than virtually anywhere in Portugal itself or even some places in Brazil.

We arrived by train and when we got to the centre wandered around in the dark for a few minutes until a nice helpful man wanted to help us find somewhere to stay!! We followed the man who uttered something about being 'just a social worker'! I've found in India this isn't a bad idea as they know where to head, even if they do clearly get a cut from the hotel/guesthouse you end up staying in. You feel more secure having somewhere in advance I guess, but you don't need to book ahead, not in low season at least. 

The best way to scope out places worth a visit or a stay are from

+Condé Nast Traveler and the local websites, in Goas case both Burp Goa and Whats up Goa have been good. I've also found once a guesthouse gets into the +Rough Guides or +Lonely Planet they maintain their standard. I've not found this to be as much the case anywhere else I've been. So these books are useful for accommodation in India too. 

Afonso guesthouse Panjim - with a frank and helpful owner!

The latest in the trepidations involving transport came this morning when it seemed I'd lost all knowledge or ability to ride a moped. This saw me swerving like a piss head along the street, every Indian aghast. More than likely a sight to behold!! Back to the buses then.
We headed to Baga - North Goa after venturing to the jaded Anjuna 'trance hotspot' (slightly further) last night. Which, by the way, saw us dropped off on a roadside with a 45 minute walk to 'the beach' which was actually lots of rocks. Although there may have been a beach just further down it was dark and I was past caring. Sometimes the pursuit becomes so much the focus that the product is irrelevant!

Beach between Calangute/Baga

        

So today is Eid, the end of Ramandan. The beaches of Calangute and Bagga were packed with Indians getting hammered head to toe (fully clothed in some cases) by the sea. In high season this would be replaced by westerners getting hammered, off drink and drugs. 

A couple of thoughts to finish:

- Nothing is where u think it will be and at least double the time you think it will take to do virtually everything. 

- Someone will always help...usually not for free. 

After a month in Northern India (Delhi, Leh, Jaisalmer, Jodphur, Agra) 2 years ago, I'm beginning to form comparisons. But I'm not there yet, so I'll leave that for another post.