Goa: Why Not Coconut

The northern part of Arambol beach in Northern Goa

We are not sure if it was the warm weather that we had been so starved for in the last five months or the peace and quiet that is so rare in India but once we arrived in Goa we didn’t want to leave.  Our original plan was to visit the Goan coast for about a week but three weeks later we found it hard to part ways. 

We started on the north end of Goa on a beach called Arambol.  According to our guide book that was printed in 1999 :), Arambol was nothing more than a few bare huts and golden sand.  How things have changed in 12 years.  This beach is as built up as it gets especially on its farthest northern end by the town.   Here shops, hotels and restaurants line the coast line and go inland as far as the eye can see.  House and trance music blare from the cafes and hotel bars throughout the day and you can buy anything that your heart desires.  However, the beach itself is very long (16km) and wide and you can easily find a peaceful place to relax.  For instance, we didn’t even know that the northern end was very busy until a few days into our stay when we were walking to find the “secluded beach” with a fresh water lagoon which is situated on the northern end over the cliffs.  To our dismay the path over the cliff was lined with guesthouses, restaurants and shops which led to a not so secluded smaller beach with a fairly polluted lagoon.

playing for the sun

One thing that stuck out in particular on our arrival in Goa was that almost all of the signs and menus in the town and along the beach were in Russian and English.  There were Russians everywhere!! After talking to the locals we found out that the original influx of German tourists has been replaced by a Russian takeover, though all the ‘German Bakeries’ have stayed behind.  In fact, every single bakery in Goa is called a German Bakery; apparently Germans are the best bakers :).   As expected, along with all the Russian tourists you will find your new age hippies who are busy juggling, hula hooping, doing yoga, dancing, meditating, playing the trumpet to the sun or just walking around naked along the beach. Seriously, people, how do you go to a conservative country where the women bathe fully clothed (as well as some of the men) and think that public nudity is okay.  We watched an Indian man prevent his friend from attacking a man who was walking into the water buck naked (best part, this man was later fondled on the beach by his girlfriend).  Priceless.

our first home in Goa: our hut at Cabo Wabo Restaurant

All in all, Arambol was a really nice place to relax if you just walk further south on the beach.   We found a great quiet hut right on the beach (one of only three huts in the area belonging to a great restaurant) with nothing but palm trees on either side of us and sand and ocean in front of us.  To top it off, free Wi-Fi.  If anyone is ever in Arambol and is looking for well built affordable huts with attached bathrooms close to all the action but far enough away that it’s quiet we would strongly suggest talking to the people at Cabo Wabo Restaurant.  The restaurant, which we will speak to in our food post, was on the top of our list in India … and we have visited quite a few in our travels.   The only reason we left was because the restaurants was throwing it’s first big trance party - so we jumped on the computer and found a yoga retreat on the next beach (Mandrem Beach) only a 10 minute drive away.

the bridge to the yoga retreat

Not sure why they gave Mandrem beach a different name as this was the same beach we had walked to on our fist day and is simply a continuation of Arambol Beach.  Maybe it’s because the cops can get more money this way as we found out that the beach vendors, selling sarongs, fruits, jewellery, drums, ice cream and … ear cleaning services (weird!!), have to pay a separate racket to the police for each section of the beach!!!  Though quieter, the Mandrem portion of the beach is not as nice - the sand is flatter and harder and there is a random river running through the beach.  The Mandrem village on the other hand is 100 times quieter and smaller than Arambol consisting only of half a dozen stores and an internet café.  As far as the yoga retreat goes, while pricey for India standards, it was enjoyable: we had two yoga classes a day, tasty organic food and stayed on beautiful grounds with unique and varied accommodation and great staff!!

Anjuna beach

On the way down the coast we had to make a pit stop in Anjuna to witness its famous Wednesday flea market.  We found the market to be over-rated and surprisingly a large number of the vendors are Westerners selling their crafts.  However, if you need to buy last minute gifts, you can find everything from all over India here.  We were in and out of Anjuna in a day as it's an overcrowded and loud party place with overpriced accommodation for what you get - so you can figure out the vibe. 

Next stop: Benaulim or better called “India’s Florida”, though it wasn’t that bad as we did stay here 8 days :) (thanks to the Belgian crew we were hanging out with).  It is a quiet village where fishing is still the primary source of income - there is fish drying all along the roads and this means cheap fresh fish in all the restaurants (and the king fish lives up to its name as the king of all fish).  Benaulim is a perfect hub for investigating southern Goa - driving down the coast on your ‘hog’ (okay, ours was a scooter) is just amazing - so peaceful and beautiful!! Our accommodation was amazing and cheap and the beach was really long with beautiful sand and as with Arambol, you can find a quiet spot to relax.  We would definitely come back here … who are we kidding, we would do it all over again!!

Beautiful Agonda Beach

Our last stop in Goa was Agonda.  Although developed it is a quiet and chill place to hang out in ... and watch Nole Djokovic win the Australian Open!! Agonda has predominantly Nepali staff and as a matter of fact, out of all the restaurants in Agonda only one is said to have a true Indian chef!  Here, like in Arambol, we had ideal accommodation right on the beach in our AC/DC hut at Fusion which provided some unbelievable sunsets.  To this day (2 months later… yes we are that far behind on our blog :)) we're still dreaming about our hut in Agonda.  Agonda also allowed us to explore some of the more secluded beaches in the south; Cabo de Rama being the highlight.  If it wasn’t for our expiring visa we would probably still be there.

the magnificent Goan countryside

All in all the Goan coast has a little bit for everyone.  This ex-Portuguese enclave is very green and clean, has beautiful palm lined golden beaches with more than reasonably priced accommodation and very tasty fresh food to meet anyone’s budget.  The coastline is only 130km long and is easily navigable by public transit or on a motorcycle (which are very cheap to rent at around $3/day).  If it's partying that you are looking for there is plenty of it in Goa (Anjuna and Arambol being the hot spots).  We learned an interesting thing: to appease the locals who were getting very upset with all the loud music late into the night the party throwers are now providing all party goers with wireless headsets upon entry. There are different channels to listen to (depending on the number of DJ’s spinning) with each channel glowing a different color so that everyone around knows what channel you are on.  Pretty cool we must say.  We highly recommend Goa to anyone looking for some fun in the sun, but beware: you will need more than a few weeks to get your fill…  that is if you choose to leave.

For more pictures of beaches, villages, and A LOT of sunsets click HERE (password: goa2011).

Enjoy!
S&M

A map of Goa and the beaches we visited (red stars)

Mandrem Beach

not unusual to find cows on the beach

Anjuna Wednesday Flea Market

Benaulim Beach

Beautiful Cola Beach

fishing boat on Benaulim / Colva Beach

happy as can be at our hut in Agonda