Wednesday 28 November 2012
Thursday 22 November 2012
The south pt.3
The nightlife is very mellow in Palolem. This is mostly due to a 10pm cut off point for loud music. A group of entrepreneurial young Indians have got around this by starting a phenomenon called 'Silent Noise'. Every Saturday night you can see different coloured beams of light being shot into the sky from behind the southern headland. Should you decide to follow these lights, over a precarious path across the rocks, you would stumble across a huge, weekly silent disco. The premise of this disco is that everyone is issued with a set of headphones with three channels on. There are three DJs effectively battling with each other. The wearers of the headphones can swap between the three channels depending on what music they want want to listen to. There was an (overpriced) bar selling (watered down) booze to ensure everyone stayed suitable refreshed. The crowd was hundreds strong and a mix of Indians and tourists, resulting in a very fun, festival vibe. The fact that there is no noise being emitted (except for the occasional whoop when a favourite song comes on) means everyone can party till 4am. We had a fantastic night out. The whole operation was really professionally done, and worth every rupee of the seemingly steep 600 rupee entry fee. Needless to say a quiet day in bed with lots of cold water followed this night out.
Another entertaining way we spent one evening was doing a cooking course with a local chef called Rahul. In the 3 hour session we learnt how to make a masala paste from scratch, which is used for the base for many curries. We progressed from that to making Aloo Gobi which is a Goan staple made from potato (Aloo) and cauliflower (Gobi). Next we made Mushroom Butter Masala, which also appears on Goan menus in different forms, such as the delicious Paneer (cheese) Butter Masala. Next came the Daal Fry, which most Goan's eat twice a day, at lunch and again at dinner. It is a watery curry made predominantly from lentils (daal), or sometimes chickpeas (channa). I have not been massively enamoured with Daal Fry up to this point but the one we made was delicious.
In addition to these three curries we learn how to make Roti bread (also called Chapati) from scratch, which was unbelievably easy and entertaining to do. We also were shown how to make a Vegetable Paratha, which is sort of like a mix between a naan and a pancake, with vegetables in the middle. As well as all of this we also learnt about different spices and herbs that are used in everyday Indian cooking. I hope we retain enough of it to actually cook some when we get home. Rahul provided us with a bunch of recipes, and his email address in case we do struggle. As we have been enjoying the Indian food so much it was only natural that we should want to try and recreate some of this when we get home, so being taught by an authentic Goan chef seemed the only way to go!
The weather has been glorious, with the exception of 3 days of monsoon like weather when we first arrived in Palolem. The days get clearer and hotter, with less humidity, and the nights get colder, though with amazing views of the stars.
After three weeks on and around the beach we are happy to be moving on to central Goa to see the Spice farms at Ponda.
We spent one night in Ponda, which is a bustling market town rarely frequented by tourists. Lonely Planet gives it a bit of a bad rap as there is not much to see, but we quite enjoyed it as we could integrate with the locals with less fuss and hassle than there has been in other places. The nighttime markets were fun with an array of fruit, spices, rice, flowers and livestock.
Early the next day we set off to the nearby spice farms. We are both glad we made the effort to do the trip as it was eye-opening and interesting. We saw how the spices that go into everyday Indian (and Western) cooking such as vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, different chillies, holy basil, lemongrass, turmeric and ginger to name a few. The guide was very well informed and clearly loved what he does. The tour was finished off with a hearty buffet of different Goan foods. Curried Okra appeared on the menu so I was happy.
We travelled back to the capital, Panajii, for the last few days before we catch the flight to Sri Lanka. We have come back here as it is the nicest place near the airport, we like the town and it has the best (and cheapest!) restaurants!
We have only really travelled on the local buses the whole time in Goa. They are great fun, very cheap, and easy to navigate...once you know how! There is always a bus to your destination waiting at the bus stand, and the journey always costs considerably less than 50p each. The conductor just shouts the destination over and over again, and you usually have to jump on to a moving vehicle. The buses are absolutely crammed with Indian people and on market day the stench of fresh fish can be overwhelming!
When we arrive in Sri Lanka on Saturday afternoon we are spending a few days in the geographical capital Colombo before heading to the cultural capital, Kandy and the hill country. We have absolutely loved India, but we are ready to move on to the next adventure.
Another entertaining way we spent one evening was doing a cooking course with a local chef called Rahul. In the 3 hour session we learnt how to make a masala paste from scratch, which is used for the base for many curries. We progressed from that to making Aloo Gobi which is a Goan staple made from potato (Aloo) and cauliflower (Gobi). Next we made Mushroom Butter Masala, which also appears on Goan menus in different forms, such as the delicious Paneer (cheese) Butter Masala. Next came the Daal Fry, which most Goan's eat twice a day, at lunch and again at dinner. It is a watery curry made predominantly from lentils (daal), or sometimes chickpeas (channa). I have not been massively enamoured with Daal Fry up to this point but the one we made was delicious.
In addition to these three curries we learn how to make Roti bread (also called Chapati) from scratch, which was unbelievably easy and entertaining to do. We also were shown how to make a Vegetable Paratha, which is sort of like a mix between a naan and a pancake, with vegetables in the middle. As well as all of this we also learnt about different spices and herbs that are used in everyday Indian cooking. I hope we retain enough of it to actually cook some when we get home. Rahul provided us with a bunch of recipes, and his email address in case we do struggle. As we have been enjoying the Indian food so much it was only natural that we should want to try and recreate some of this when we get home, so being taught by an authentic Goan chef seemed the only way to go!
The weather has been glorious, with the exception of 3 days of monsoon like weather when we first arrived in Palolem. The days get clearer and hotter, with less humidity, and the nights get colder, though with amazing views of the stars.
After three weeks on and around the beach we are happy to be moving on to central Goa to see the Spice farms at Ponda.
We spent one night in Ponda, which is a bustling market town rarely frequented by tourists. Lonely Planet gives it a bit of a bad rap as there is not much to see, but we quite enjoyed it as we could integrate with the locals with less fuss and hassle than there has been in other places. The nighttime markets were fun with an array of fruit, spices, rice, flowers and livestock.
Early the next day we set off to the nearby spice farms. We are both glad we made the effort to do the trip as it was eye-opening and interesting. We saw how the spices that go into everyday Indian (and Western) cooking such as vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, different chillies, holy basil, lemongrass, turmeric and ginger to name a few. The guide was very well informed and clearly loved what he does. The tour was finished off with a hearty buffet of different Goan foods. Curried Okra appeared on the menu so I was happy.
We travelled back to the capital, Panajii, for the last few days before we catch the flight to Sri Lanka. We have come back here as it is the nicest place near the airport, we like the town and it has the best (and cheapest!) restaurants!
We have only really travelled on the local buses the whole time in Goa. They are great fun, very cheap, and easy to navigate...once you know how! There is always a bus to your destination waiting at the bus stand, and the journey always costs considerably less than 50p each. The conductor just shouts the destination over and over again, and you usually have to jump on to a moving vehicle. The buses are absolutely crammed with Indian people and on market day the stench of fresh fish can be overwhelming!
When we arrive in Sri Lanka on Saturday afternoon we are spending a few days in the geographical capital Colombo before heading to the cultural capital, Kandy and the hill country. We have absolutely loved India, but we are ready to move on to the next adventure.
The south pt.2
We have opted to travel on foot as much as possible. Many tourists in this area rent mopeds to navigate the windy coastal roads. As neither of us have ridden a moped or motorbike before, the roads are pretty treacherous and we quite like how our faces look at the moment, we have decided not to get mopeds.
More often that's not we walk south to get to the quieter beaches of Patnem and Rajbag. It is baffling that more people don't make the walk down here. The beach is staggeringly beautiful, there is a handful of very good beach bars and there is a lifeguard on duty should the waves get a bit gnarly. And best of all, there is no hawkers (Indian people trying to sell you things). As nice as they all are, getting targeted incessantly as soon as you set foot on the beach gets pretty tiresome. The ones who we have spent time talking to are amazing really. It is almost exclusively young women who trek up and down these hot stretches of beach all day, everyday selling their wares. They aren't educated at school, and learn all manner of languages on the beach. A few I have spoken to even speak Russian! The only Russian I would want to learn is 'where are your bloody manners', but that's another story...
Although the women are treated well in India there is a glaring double standard in the way they behave, how they travel and even how they dress. Men only really dress in the more comfortable western style, whereas women wear thick, cumbersome (although admittedly pretty and colourful) saris. We have spoken to some young Indian couples living and working in Goa, whose relationships are the product of an arranged marriage. They all seemed fairly happy with their situation. Rather worryingly, one Indian man helpfully explained to me; 'in Europe the woman is the boss, but in India if woman tries to be boss of man, he slap her'! I think my expression said it all!
One hot day we braved the 10km walk north to Agonda. It is a route that takes you inland, uphill, through the jungle providing many beautiful views and photo opportunities. The walk was worth every sweaty step. The beach at Agonda is the same sized 2km strip as Palolem, but completely deserted. Beautiful.
Another day we got a rickshaw the 15km south to Galgibag, also known as Turtle Beach. Our main motivation for making this trek was that there is a restaurant on the beach recommended by Gordon Ramsay called Surya's Beach Cafe. It was very friendly, very rustic and very cheap. Although, we have however eaten better food in the places frequented solely by Indians, set in little udupis (cafeterias) on side streets in scruffy towns. Sorry Gordon!
The nightlife is very mellow in Palolem. This is mostly due to a 10pm cut off point for loud music. A group of entrepreneurial young Indians have got around this by starting a phenomenon called 'Silent Noise'. Every Saturday night you can see different coloured beams of light being shot into the sky from behind the southern headland. Should you decide to follow these lights, over a precarious path across the rocks, you would stumble across a huge, weekly silent disco. The premise of this disco is that everyone is issued with a set of headphones with three channels on. There are three DJs effectively battling with each other. The wearers of the headphones can swap between the three channels depending on what music they want want to listen to. There was an (overpriced) bar selling (watered down) booze to ensure everyone stayed suitable refreshed. The crowd was hundreds strong and a mix of Indians and tourists, resulting in a very fun, festival vibe. The fact that there is no noise being emitted (except for the occasional whoop when a favourite song comes on) means everyone can party till 4am. We had a fantastic night out. The whole operation was really professionally done, and worth every rupee of the seemingly steep 600 rupee entry fee. Needless to say a quiet day in bed with lots of cold water followed this night out.
More often that's not we walk south to get to the quieter beaches of Patnem and Rajbag. It is baffling that more people don't make the walk down here. The beach is staggeringly beautiful, there is a handful of very good beach bars and there is a lifeguard on duty should the waves get a bit gnarly. And best of all, there is no hawkers (Indian people trying to sell you things). As nice as they all are, getting targeted incessantly as soon as you set foot on the beach gets pretty tiresome. The ones who we have spent time talking to are amazing really. It is almost exclusively young women who trek up and down these hot stretches of beach all day, everyday selling their wares. They aren't educated at school, and learn all manner of languages on the beach. A few I have spoken to even speak Russian! The only Russian I would want to learn is 'where are your bloody manners', but that's another story...
Although the women are treated well in India there is a glaring double standard in the way they behave, how they travel and even how they dress. Men only really dress in the more comfortable western style, whereas women wear thick, cumbersome (although admittedly pretty and colourful) saris. We have spoken to some young Indian couples living and working in Goa, whose relationships are the product of an arranged marriage. They all seemed fairly happy with their situation. Rather worryingly, one Indian man helpfully explained to me; 'in Europe the woman is the boss, but in India if woman tries to be boss of man, he slap her'! I think my expression said it all!
One hot day we braved the 10km walk north to Agonda. It is a route that takes you inland, uphill, through the jungle providing many beautiful views and photo opportunities. The walk was worth every sweaty step. The beach at Agonda is the same sized 2km strip as Palolem, but completely deserted. Beautiful.
Another day we got a rickshaw the 15km south to Galgibag, also known as Turtle Beach. Our main motivation for making this trek was that there is a restaurant on the beach recommended by Gordon Ramsay called Surya's Beach Cafe. It was very friendly, very rustic and very cheap. Although, we have however eaten better food in the places frequented solely by Indians, set in little udupis (cafeterias) on side streets in scruffy towns. Sorry Gordon!
The nightlife is very mellow in Palolem. This is mostly due to a 10pm cut off point for loud music. A group of entrepreneurial young Indians have got around this by starting a phenomenon called 'Silent Noise'. Every Saturday night you can see different coloured beams of light being shot into the sky from behind the southern headland. Should you decide to follow these lights, over a precarious path across the rocks, you would stumble across a huge, weekly silent disco. The premise of this disco is that everyone is issued with a set of headphones with three channels on. There are three DJs effectively battling with each other. The wearers of the headphones can swap between the three channels depending on what music they want want to listen to. There was an (overpriced) bar selling (watered down) booze to ensure everyone stayed suitable refreshed. The crowd was hundreds strong and a mix of Indians and tourists, resulting in a very fun, festival vibe. The fact that there is no noise being emitted (except for the occasional whoop when a favourite song comes on) means everyone can party till 4am. We had a fantastic night out. The whole operation was really professionally done, and worth every rupee of the seemingly steep 600 rupee entry fee. Needless to say a quiet day in bed with lots of cold water followed this night out.
The south pt.1
...we have now made the journey to the far south, to our destination, Palolem. It took about 2 and half hours, 2 buses, and cost less than three pounds altogether! We are excited to be in Palolem as we have many plans such as dolphin spotting, cookery classes, volunteering at a cat and dog rescue centre, and exploring the quieter beaches, not yet broached by tourism.
It is safe to say that we were in love with our accommodation for our time in Palolem. It is called Sevas, and is another fantastic Lonely Planet recommendation. It consists of small, private Eco-huts set in a maze of leafy trees and flowers. The setting is idyllic with butterflies floating around you and large birds of prey circling in the azure sky above, and we are only minutes from the beach.
It is spotlessly clean as the lodges are rebuilt every year (as they are not able to withstand the monsoon season), and is run by some very conscientious Indians. The huts are brand new for us, as we moved in one day before the season starts. The hut is made from woven dried palm leaves, and houses everything you need. The walls have lots of gaps in so our bed is surrounded by a mosquito net. I've already been bitten countless times so I was pretty relieved to see that! The mosquitoes I have seen down south so far are monsters, as they tend to be in more tropical areas.
The bathroom is one of the highlights of the hut. It is outside, with no roof, surrounded by thin wooden walls. The 'shower' is actually a large vat of cold water, and a bucket! We absolutely love it, it feels like showering in the wild! Even three weeks of washing like this did nothing to dispel our enthusiasm for it!
Out the front of our little hut is 2 sunbeds for lazing on with a good book. What more could you ask for?
Palolem beach itself is a jaw-dropping beautiful cove curving gently away, with an island in the distance, and boulders shooting out of the sparkling Arabian Sea. The sea is safe for swimming, and not too choppy. The water is fringed with white sand falling away to thick jungle, so you really feel like you are on a deserted beach.
We spent our days in Palolem in an admittedly lazy fashion. Reading, eating and sunbathing was only interrupted with a twice daily swim in the warm ocean.
We managed to drag ourselves away from the beach long enough to visit the Goan Animal Welfare Trust in Curchorem. They mostly rescue puppies, cats and stray dogs in need of medical help or safety. I was expecting to be an embarrassingly emotional wreck the whole time, but the animals there were so happy and clearly cared for that I could only feel relieved and happy. The young vet was more than happy to show us round, and wait patiently whilst I went into a puppy induced hysteria.
They operate a successful adoption programme and the dogs that are homeless and not in danger in their prior environment are reintroduced to the habitat. The sad fact is that as brilliant at these organisations are, there is only eleven throughout the whole of India! I dread to think how many stray dogs there are, but it must be in the tens of millions.
On the whole the stray dogs in India are surprisingly happy, healthy and friendly. We have made friends with a lovely little puppy called Margao (named after a nearby town) and a fully grown dog that we have nicknamed 'Shep' who sometimes decides to follow us around for a while, until he gets bored and runs off.
While we were on nearby Patnem beach we saw a very sickly dog that had a huge, old wound on the back of his head, he was very thin and the other beach dogs were attacking him. We called the Welfare Trust and thankfully they said they would come and get him.
They are attempting to control the stray dog situation by neutering the male dogs. You can tell when a dog has been done as he has a clip taken out of his ear. The Trust appear to be winning as the clipped dogs massively outnumber the unclipped. I think the next problem they will have will be an endemic population of cows! They are everywhere! On the beach, in the streets, in fields, even the odd one or two are in restaurants! It is heartbreaking to see them all lying in one of the frequent seas of rubbish, munching on something toxic. Not to mention worrying when you consider that all the milk and cheese you consume is not pasteurised, but it's probably best not to think about that too much! I also find it a weird paradigm to how you would expect these supposed 'sacred' animals would be kept.
Cows, dogs and cats are not the only wildlife we have spotted in Goa. I have seen several Kingfishers, who are easy to spot as they flash their electric blue wings whilst in flight. Whilst walking in the jungle we saw two mongoose playing by the side of the road. Our bathroom is full of tree frogs, and nearby we saw the most HUMUNGOUS toad! As in, would spill out of your cupped hands big!There are also hundred of lizards, which we love as they gobble up the wretched mosquitoes, and I got some good pictures of a bearded dragon lizard.
It is safe to say that we were in love with our accommodation for our time in Palolem. It is called Sevas, and is another fantastic Lonely Planet recommendation. It consists of small, private Eco-huts set in a maze of leafy trees and flowers. The setting is idyllic with butterflies floating around you and large birds of prey circling in the azure sky above, and we are only minutes from the beach.
It is spotlessly clean as the lodges are rebuilt every year (as they are not able to withstand the monsoon season), and is run by some very conscientious Indians. The huts are brand new for us, as we moved in one day before the season starts. The hut is made from woven dried palm leaves, and houses everything you need. The walls have lots of gaps in so our bed is surrounded by a mosquito net. I've already been bitten countless times so I was pretty relieved to see that! The mosquitoes I have seen down south so far are monsters, as they tend to be in more tropical areas.
The bathroom is one of the highlights of the hut. It is outside, with no roof, surrounded by thin wooden walls. The 'shower' is actually a large vat of cold water, and a bucket! We absolutely love it, it feels like showering in the wild! Even three weeks of washing like this did nothing to dispel our enthusiasm for it!
Out the front of our little hut is 2 sunbeds for lazing on with a good book. What more could you ask for?
Palolem beach itself is a jaw-dropping beautiful cove curving gently away, with an island in the distance, and boulders shooting out of the sparkling Arabian Sea. The sea is safe for swimming, and not too choppy. The water is fringed with white sand falling away to thick jungle, so you really feel like you are on a deserted beach.
We spent our days in Palolem in an admittedly lazy fashion. Reading, eating and sunbathing was only interrupted with a twice daily swim in the warm ocean.
We managed to drag ourselves away from the beach long enough to visit the Goan Animal Welfare Trust in Curchorem. They mostly rescue puppies, cats and stray dogs in need of medical help or safety. I was expecting to be an embarrassingly emotional wreck the whole time, but the animals there were so happy and clearly cared for that I could only feel relieved and happy. The young vet was more than happy to show us round, and wait patiently whilst I went into a puppy induced hysteria.
They operate a successful adoption programme and the dogs that are homeless and not in danger in their prior environment are reintroduced to the habitat. The sad fact is that as brilliant at these organisations are, there is only eleven throughout the whole of India! I dread to think how many stray dogs there are, but it must be in the tens of millions.
On the whole the stray dogs in India are surprisingly happy, healthy and friendly. We have made friends with a lovely little puppy called Margao (named after a nearby town) and a fully grown dog that we have nicknamed 'Shep' who sometimes decides to follow us around for a while, until he gets bored and runs off.
While we were on nearby Patnem beach we saw a very sickly dog that had a huge, old wound on the back of his head, he was very thin and the other beach dogs were attacking him. We called the Welfare Trust and thankfully they said they would come and get him.
They are attempting to control the stray dog situation by neutering the male dogs. You can tell when a dog has been done as he has a clip taken out of his ear. The Trust appear to be winning as the clipped dogs massively outnumber the unclipped. I think the next problem they will have will be an endemic population of cows! They are everywhere! On the beach, in the streets, in fields, even the odd one or two are in restaurants! It is heartbreaking to see them all lying in one of the frequent seas of rubbish, munching on something toxic. Not to mention worrying when you consider that all the milk and cheese you consume is not pasteurised, but it's probably best not to think about that too much! I also find it a weird paradigm to how you would expect these supposed 'sacred' animals would be kept.
Cows, dogs and cats are not the only wildlife we have spotted in Goa. I have seen several Kingfishers, who are easy to spot as they flash their electric blue wings whilst in flight. Whilst walking in the jungle we saw two mongoose playing by the side of the road. Our bathroom is full of tree frogs, and nearby we saw the most HUMUNGOUS toad! As in, would spill out of your cupped hands big!There are also hundred of lizards, which we love as they gobble up the wretched mosquitoes, and I got some good pictures of a bearded dragon lizard.
Old Goa trip
And so to Old Goa...
We spent our second day in Panjiim taking a day trip to Old Goa. It is only a short bus ride, and only cost us 8 rupee each.
Old Goa is the pride of Goa, and that shows in as much as they keep it relatively rubbish free. The main attraction of Old Goa is the religious buildings that still stand, and are used daily for Mass. Before we looked around any of them we took a trip to the museum of Goa. It is an archaeological museum with artefacts dating back from the 10th century. There is some fragments of Hindu sculpture, and many religious paintings and ceramics depicting many events from the bible, though mostly the crucifixion of Christ, and the aftermath.
There are portraits of nearly every one of Portuguese Goa's 60 viceroys, spanning some 400 years (Goa was taken back over by the Indians in 1961), which is not wholly exciting apart from looking at the changing fashions in both clothes, hairstyle and how the portrait is posed. There are also some huge statues of Afonso de Albuquerque (the Portuguese conqueror and subsequent first governor of Goa) and the revered Portuguese poet Luis Vaz de Camoes. The statues are made of bronze and are both impressive, though my favourite was the one of the poet, who, with his arm thrown back in passion as he read from a scroll, and with his cape swirling fluidly around him spoke of movement and passion.
After the museum we went to look at one of Old Goa's main attractions. It is called Basilica de Bom Jesus and was completed in 1605, only 11 years after it was started. It is the main draw in Old Goa to many Catholics as it holds the remains of St. Francis Xavier, who was taught by the great St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. It is pretty grisly, though undeniably fascinating, to view the old Saint's withered, enrobed body in the ornate silver casket.
Despite his efforts whilst alive St. Francis was only canonised after his death, as the result of a miracle that took place in the months after he passed. When he died, his coffin was filled with quick lime to prepare it for burial. After two months, the body remained the same, with no decay. The cynics disbelief was soon dispelled after the current Viceroys doctor performed tests that confirmed that the organs had in fact not decayed, and the blood was free of preservatives. However, over the years that followed, relic hunters corrupted the incorruptible. His right arm (which was supposedly still able to sign its name) organs and part of his shoulder blade were removed, and taken off to be worshiped in other countries.
The body went into a normal state of decomposition some time after, and now looks as any other 400 year old corpse would.
The expense of the ornate casket was covered by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, in exchange for the pillow that St. Francis had been resting his head on when he died.
Once every ten years they expose the body and take him on a tour of Old Goa for which many Christians pilgrim to. The next airing is due on 3rd December 2014, the feast of St. Francis Xavier.
One thing that is often prominent in the architecture, and even more so at Bom Jesus, as it is carved into the outside facade, is the frequent inscription of 'IHS', which is an abbreviation of the Latin 'Iesus Hominum Salvator' (Jesus, saviour of men).
Our last stop in Old Goa was to Se Cathedral, which at 76m wide, and 55m long, is the largest church in Asia.
Finished in 1619, it is pretty spartan by Catholic standards, with very little embellishment either inside or out. A cool feature of the cathedral is when you look at it from the front it is decidedly lopsided, as one of the huge bell towers was knocked down by lightening in 1776, and never rebuilt. The other tower houses the Sino De Ouro bell, which is the largest bell in Asia, and reportedly has a very nice, rich sound. Historically it was sounded to announce the Inquisition holding their cruel autos-da-fe (trials of faith) in the market square at the front of the Cathedral.
The inside of the Cathedral boasts no less than 16 different Chapels. My favourite is the Chapel of the Cross of Miracles as the story behind the name amused me. This Chapel houses a cross which was made by some shepherds back in 1619 and placed on a hillside. The shepherds returned to their cross to find it had grown in size. Knowing this to be the work of a God, the cross was moved into another building for safekeeping while a church was built in tribute to said miracle cross. When the time came to move the cross to its new home they were astonished to see that it had grown once again, and subsequently, the church had to have its doors widened in order to accommodate it. The cross was moved into the cathedral in 1845, where it became, and remains, a popular place of petition for the sick.
All the churches and Cathedrals in Old Goa are drenched in atmosphere and history, which made the trip to Old Goa a worthwhile day out.
A huge 30% of Indians in Goa are Christian, compared with 64% Hindu and 5% Muslim (and 1% other). What is refreshing to see is how the two largest religions coexist. Christian churches stand happily next to Hindu temples. People even seem to worship certain Deities and Gods from Hindu belief whilst displaying Christian iconography in their cars, in their homes and even about their person. The Muslim population is the fastest growing religion in India, so whether or not the mosques will fit in just as harmoniously we shall have to wait and see. The results of the 2011 census have not been published yet, but they are predicting a considerable increase in Muslims living in India.
Our time in Panjiim has been enjoyable as it is a peaceful, undemanding city that is easy to explore. We have also enjoyed some of the best food of our trip so far. Our favourite place we found was a traditional Indian 'udupi' (canteen), called Vihar, which served up truly inspirational Thalis and other pure veg delights. Two nights sleeping in a creepily atmospheric hotel which is overpriced and has the worst mattresses known to man is enough to speedily propel us on our journey to southern Goa, and the beach bliss that awaits us...
We spent our second day in Panjiim taking a day trip to Old Goa. It is only a short bus ride, and only cost us 8 rupee each.
Old Goa is the pride of Goa, and that shows in as much as they keep it relatively rubbish free. The main attraction of Old Goa is the religious buildings that still stand, and are used daily for Mass. Before we looked around any of them we took a trip to the museum of Goa. It is an archaeological museum with artefacts dating back from the 10th century. There is some fragments of Hindu sculpture, and many religious paintings and ceramics depicting many events from the bible, though mostly the crucifixion of Christ, and the aftermath.
There are portraits of nearly every one of Portuguese Goa's 60 viceroys, spanning some 400 years (Goa was taken back over by the Indians in 1961), which is not wholly exciting apart from looking at the changing fashions in both clothes, hairstyle and how the portrait is posed. There are also some huge statues of Afonso de Albuquerque (the Portuguese conqueror and subsequent first governor of Goa) and the revered Portuguese poet Luis Vaz de Camoes. The statues are made of bronze and are both impressive, though my favourite was the one of the poet, who, with his arm thrown back in passion as he read from a scroll, and with his cape swirling fluidly around him spoke of movement and passion.
After the museum we went to look at one of Old Goa's main attractions. It is called Basilica de Bom Jesus and was completed in 1605, only 11 years after it was started. It is the main draw in Old Goa to many Catholics as it holds the remains of St. Francis Xavier, who was taught by the great St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. It is pretty grisly, though undeniably fascinating, to view the old Saint's withered, enrobed body in the ornate silver casket.
Despite his efforts whilst alive St. Francis was only canonised after his death, as the result of a miracle that took place in the months after he passed. When he died, his coffin was filled with quick lime to prepare it for burial. After two months, the body remained the same, with no decay. The cynics disbelief was soon dispelled after the current Viceroys doctor performed tests that confirmed that the organs had in fact not decayed, and the blood was free of preservatives. However, over the years that followed, relic hunters corrupted the incorruptible. His right arm (which was supposedly still able to sign its name) organs and part of his shoulder blade were removed, and taken off to be worshiped in other countries.
The body went into a normal state of decomposition some time after, and now looks as any other 400 year old corpse would.
The expense of the ornate casket was covered by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, in exchange for the pillow that St. Francis had been resting his head on when he died.
Once every ten years they expose the body and take him on a tour of Old Goa for which many Christians pilgrim to. The next airing is due on 3rd December 2014, the feast of St. Francis Xavier.
One thing that is often prominent in the architecture, and even more so at Bom Jesus, as it is carved into the outside facade, is the frequent inscription of 'IHS', which is an abbreviation of the Latin 'Iesus Hominum Salvator' (Jesus, saviour of men).
Our last stop in Old Goa was to Se Cathedral, which at 76m wide, and 55m long, is the largest church in Asia.
Finished in 1619, it is pretty spartan by Catholic standards, with very little embellishment either inside or out. A cool feature of the cathedral is when you look at it from the front it is decidedly lopsided, as one of the huge bell towers was knocked down by lightening in 1776, and never rebuilt. The other tower houses the Sino De Ouro bell, which is the largest bell in Asia, and reportedly has a very nice, rich sound. Historically it was sounded to announce the Inquisition holding their cruel autos-da-fe (trials of faith) in the market square at the front of the Cathedral.
The inside of the Cathedral boasts no less than 16 different Chapels. My favourite is the Chapel of the Cross of Miracles as the story behind the name amused me. This Chapel houses a cross which was made by some shepherds back in 1619 and placed on a hillside. The shepherds returned to their cross to find it had grown in size. Knowing this to be the work of a God, the cross was moved into another building for safekeeping while a church was built in tribute to said miracle cross. When the time came to move the cross to its new home they were astonished to see that it had grown once again, and subsequently, the church had to have its doors widened in order to accommodate it. The cross was moved into the cathedral in 1845, where it became, and remains, a popular place of petition for the sick.
All the churches and Cathedrals in Old Goa are drenched in atmosphere and history, which made the trip to Old Goa a worthwhile day out.
A huge 30% of Indians in Goa are Christian, compared with 64% Hindu and 5% Muslim (and 1% other). What is refreshing to see is how the two largest religions coexist. Christian churches stand happily next to Hindu temples. People even seem to worship certain Deities and Gods from Hindu belief whilst displaying Christian iconography in their cars, in their homes and even about their person. The Muslim population is the fastest growing religion in India, so whether or not the mosques will fit in just as harmoniously we shall have to wait and see. The results of the 2011 census have not been published yet, but they are predicting a considerable increase in Muslims living in India.
Our time in Panjiim has been enjoyable as it is a peaceful, undemanding city that is easy to explore. We have also enjoyed some of the best food of our trip so far. Our favourite place we found was a traditional Indian 'udupi' (canteen), called Vihar, which served up truly inspirational Thalis and other pure veg delights. Two nights sleeping in a creepily atmospheric hotel which is overpriced and has the worst mattresses known to man is enough to speedily propel us on our journey to southern Goa, and the beach bliss that awaits us...
Apologies
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Love xx
Love xx
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