"A Dream Come True" – For a girl who has grown up loving sea & sand , sun & tan, the goa trip with her beloved was indeed a "dream come true". Goa is supposed to be a laid-back city with people who love relaxing near beaches but for me it was all exciting from the beginning.
We were scheduled to leave for Goa on September 3 at 12.30PM flight. The day started on a very tensed note for me as we had to do puja on account of Ganesh Chathurthi and then leave. After our Ganesh Puja we started off to the airport and i must say the new airport was simply awesome !! It was huge yet beautiful. I spent most of time ogling both the food and place at the airport . After enjoying the airport to my eyes content and enjoying the food to my stomach's content we were ready to fly !!! Our flight was moving among the clouds. Despite the severe ear pain and the nausea I was undeterred and kept clicking pics in the flight looking outside the window. One look thru the window you would know we are above the clouds and one look at my face you would know that I am already on cloud 999 :-) !!
The flight had reached Goa around 40mins ahead of the schedule much to the happiness of my greed to spend more time there. Pranita (Phani's cousin) who is now my sister came to receive us. Soooo sweet of her !! Our resort had sent us a pick up and 3 of us went to Bay Watch Resort. The place had a homely feel to it. The floors, bedsheets etc were simply immaculate.
After refreshing and resting for a while we all set out to Colva and Sernabatim beach which were around 5mins walk away from our resort. Sernabatim was less crowded but Colva was happening. We had a long walk from Sernabatim to Colva enjoying the sun and the shells on the way. The sunset at Colva was really awesome. No camera would capture the beauty better than our eye. You just have to purely get lost watching the beauty there. After enjoying the sun set, playing in the beach and seeing off Pranita we started our walk back to the resort. By then it was dark and the crowd lessened. As we were approaching our resort the place had become more and more isolated leaving just me phani and yes the beautiful half-moon ;) It was indeed a romantic stroll on the seashore, in the moonlight, holding hands and engaging in sweet nothings. Our exciting day came to a sleepy (rather sound) end after a pleasant hot shower bath and sumptuous dinner.
Our Day 2 started off on a very confusing note. Firstly we woke up late, secondly we dint decide where to go how to go etc. After hassling and toying with so many ideas we finally decided to go North that day. Pranita arranged a cab for us but he wasnt allowed to take us as he was not from that village. Politics Again !! So we finally got into Norbert's cab by 1.00PM. Norbert was soft-spoken and was talking incessantly about Goa, its roads, the development, the tourists etc. Phani had been a patient listener while I was lost looking outside the window with an ocassional nap. Aguada Fort was the first one we saw that day. Its a big fort with a light house and was mainly constructed to help navigation of ships. The fort is surrounded by sea and its a great view looking at the Arabian sea from the fort. From there we moved to have a quick bite. Norbert took us to a very nice restaurant where the food was simply awesome. Phani was so impressed that he paid an extra tip for the food. After filling our stomachs we moved to the popular Calangute Beach. I have heard so much about beach and the shopping there that I was wondering if i was more excited about the beach or the shopping. The place was happening with a lot of varied crowd and lots of street shopping. Calangute is a beauty in itself. It seemed aggressive and the waves dint die at the shore also. It had a good number of eating joints and there were lots of people who were relaxing there with chilled beer and hot pakodas. From Calangute we moved to Baga Beach. Baga had a mountain towards the right which gave it a very natural look. The scenery there was also beautiful with the Aguada fort seen in a distance somewhere in the middle of the beach. From there we reached the Panjim City's Shopping center. The supposed to be busy center was very isolated with many shops closed as there was the immersion of Ganesh idols going on that day and it was a holiday. After buying a couple of things our friends wanted we moved to the Miramar beach. This beach is in the city center. It also had a beautiful view and it was very near to the main road. From there we reached Dona Paulo a point from where almost all the important cities of Goa are seen. This point is also known for its film shoots. After reaching our resort from there we had a musical dinner with Baretto Brothers playing our fave music and singing for us while we were munching.
Day 3 was our Sightseeing day by our resort. It was scheduled in the noon from 2.00PM. We had a relaxed morning with a wonderful body massage in the resort's Spa and then a yummy lunch. The resort team has arranged a cab for us which took us to Mangeshi Temple, Old Churches in Goa and to a Cruise on the River Mandovi. The cruise was the best part of the day. The sunset was beautiful and we had a nice musical and dance show by a couple of local dancers. They have treated us with Goan folk dance, Marathi dance and a Portugese number. The DJ was intermittently inviting the couples and guys to shake a leg to his bollywood beats.
Day 4 we wanted to completely relax and yes that's what we did the whole day !! We had a wonderful time spending together hovering around the resort, getting to know a lot of things about it, spending near the pool, engaging in sweet nothings etc. At around 4.00PM the resort team took us to the Goa Go-Kart. We were given a complimentary 10 laps. It was my first experience and i must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Back from Go Kart we spent time in Sernabatim beach just to have fun and play games like kids in the beach. The day ended on a sad note for me as we were leaving the next day :-( !!
Day 5 I woke up feeling nostalgic already even before leaving the place. We had planned to spend sometime with our new friends Preetha and Sunil. We couples went out to the near by beach, had some pics taken and had lunch at the beach hotel Furtado's. It was raining rather drizzling that day and it was the time it did after we went. Phani was especially excited about it as he wanted it to rain and I dint want that to happen. We came back to our room, packed everything, got into the cab which was waiting for us to drop at the airport. The return journey for me was the saddest part...frankly i dint feel like coming back. When we got down at our Hyderabad airport we were left with a lifetime memories of Goa
Goa is definitely a place for those who enjoy beaches and like to relax. All the beaches there have a unique beauty which cannot be replaced by another. Every beach is unique in its own way. The place has a different feel to it unlike other cities. The moment you step in you will feel as if you are disconnected from the rest of the world. No huge buildings, no crowded shopping malls, no big hoardings and posters and above all no irritating traffic jams. The roads and lanes are also narrower than what we see here with lots of Cocount and other green trees grown fully. It's so natural and serene there. Don't forget to take a romantic stroll with your partner in the moonlight on the seashore, playing in the beach as if you were still a child, posing in the beaches with the Goan outfits etc. These are a must for people like me who want to have fond memories of the trip ;-) All in all I would rate Goa as an excellent romantic getaway !!!
