This was a long planned trip, and guys, are we glad we made it to Goa right before the country-wide #Lockdown hit us! Looking back, this trip is the only reason we are still able to keep ourselves sane in the midst of all such uncertainties staring at us. We hope and pray that normalcy dawns upon us soon, and hodophiles like us are able to hit the roads again. We hope and pray that you and your family are keeping safe, as we take you through the memories of our Goa trip, which was to be our last one for quite some time now.
At the prospect of a long weekend in the first week of March 2020 on account of Holi, my husband and myself had planned this trip to Goa way back in December 2019 itself. As scheduled, we took the non-stop Indigo flight from Kolkata to Goa, and reached Dabolim Airport around 2:30 pm on Day 1. This time, our plan was to stay exclusively in South Goa, as also to take it slow and lying down, to relax and unwind in a quintessential free-spirited beach vacation. North Goa, with all its hustle bustle, noise and commotion has not always been very agreeable to us in our previous trips there. So we arranged for a cab from the Airport and hit our first stop, the beautiful Palolem beach, about 60 kms from Dabolim.
We checked into our beach hut at the Roundcube Beach Bungalows. The property was right on the beach, with the balconies of the bungalows offering views of the sea. It has a good restaurant, offering mouthwatering local cuisine, and a well stocked bar.
We made it to the beach right in time to catch the sunset, which is, on any given day, the best part of what Palolem has to offer its myriad travelers. Palolem beach is pristine and quite clean, the sand is fine and white, over all the beach presents its admirers with an unparalleled view, particularly during sunset. The blue waters change their hue firstly into a silky satin grey, and as the sun slowly begins to go down the horizon, the waters take on the colours of the sky and bathe in myriad shades of yellow, orange and red. Dotted with people, few and far between, who present only their silhouettes against the setting sun, the panorama presents itself as a reward to those who choose to bask in this gratifying natural beauty.
Palolem beach is one of Goa's most postcard-perfect beaches characterized by a gentle curve of sand flanked between the sea and the palm trees with colourful shacks. An exquisite destination in itself, Palolem sees a huge surge of tourists in the winters. In the first week of May, however, it had very little crowd, which made the situation all the more conducive for the laid-back vacation we had in mind.
At two ends of the beach, one would come across hillocks, which makes the sunset at this beach a unique experience. The beach faces the Canacona island, known as Monkey Island for its resident monkeys. The beach houses a number of beach huts decked up in a burst of colours, looking out at the sea, and if you are staying in one of these huts like we did, the sea is only a few steps away at any time of the day. The beach huts, though lacking in frills, amenities and services that one may be used to in hotels and resorts, make up for the same in the amazing views that they offer, the sand under your feet the moment you step a foot out, and the changing colours of the sea and the sky.
In the evening, we took a leisurely stroll down the Palolem Down Street, checking out the numerous stores selling beautiful clothing, junk jewelleries, dreamcatchers, local handicrafts, souvenirs etc. There are also a few upmarket stores selling bohemian beach fashion and accessories. We had evening coffee at this wonderful cafe that made our cappuccinos right from scratch, and freshly made seafood dinner at this quaint little place called Sumaya Restaurant, situated right opposite Sobit Sarovar Portico.
The next day started out with an early morning dip in the sea. At the southern end of Palolem beach, there is a small cove-like area, where the water is ideal for taking a dip in the sea, the waves are cushiony and calming. If you would want to bathe in shallow waters, or have children with you, the northern part of the beach is ideal. However, the water all along the shore is calm, clear and warm, and swimming at any time of the day is a pleasure, though the early mornings and late afternoons see a surge in sea bathers. We had a lovely time, followed by breakfast at Cafe Susegado. The rest of the day was spent at leisure, taking another dip at the sea, taking long walks along the beach and clicking some lovely pictures for safekeeping. The sunset, as always, was the highlight of the evening.
Something interesting happened that night. As we were heading out around 9 pm to have our dinner at Sumaya Restaurant, we were advised by the staff of our beach hut to return to the property by 10 pm. We were told that due to some local festival, the deity would be taken out by the devotees along the streets of Palolem village, and electricity in the entire area would be switched off for a few hours. We had a quick dinner and returned to the property on time, and around 11 pm, the electricity went out. We, as well as other travelers staying at the property, perched ourselves on the beach. It was a lovely full moon night, the properties along the beach had lit up their respective frontages with candles, and we had a magical span of 4 hours on the beach before electric connection was restored at around 3 am. The waters kept changing its colours as the moon shone bright at times, and hid beneath the thin layers of clouds at others. Overall, the sky was pretty clear, and one could just hum to tunes of "Starry, starry night; Paint your palette blue and grey; Look out on a summer's day; With eyes that know the darkness in my soul...".
Day 3 started with another dip in the sea and a sumptuous breakfast at the property, before heading out to Agonda beach, our stay for the next two nights.
Agonda is a little visited seaside village about 10 km to the north of Palolem beach. The isolated beach stretches for about 2 km, and has a number of beautiful beach accommodations, where one can enjoy all the elements of a tropical beach vacation - sandy bare feet, swinging hammocks under the palm trees, falling asleep to the sound of the waves and waking up to stunning sea views. During our last stay here, we never found more than 8-10 people on the beach at any given time. Hence, our obsession with Agonda, in order to let our hair down, relax, and enjoy each other's company in relative solitude. We checked into our stay at Anantra Sea View Resort, right on the beach and flanked by palm trees right behind, with a great restaurant and bar.
Agonda has little to offer in terms of things-to-do. And that greatly adds to the charm of this place for us. The very few travelers in this quaint village gave a sense of peace and tranquility, as we took our beach mat and books out and headed to where the waves washed our toes, and intermittently cooled ourselves by taking dips at the sea. We had our lunch and dinner at the property itself. The North Indian cuisine that the restaurant had to offer was lipsmacking, particularly the tandoori varieties.
The lull of Agonda worked its way on us, and Day 4 started late, with a leisurely breakfast at one of the small cafes on Agonda Beach Road. Since there was nothing much to do in the village, we returned to the beach, and spent the day lazing on the beach, catching up on some reading, taking dips in the sea, gorging on delicious seafood and sipping on endless glasses of the superbly delicious Cabo.
That night being the last night of our trip, we decided to stretch it past midnight, strolling on the beach, lounging on the chairs laid out, gazing at the moon and the stars, hearing the roars of the sea and staring into the endless darkness before us. Little did we know that the countrywide lockdown would hit us and that these memories would be the last travel memories for us to savour for quite sometime.
The next day, we started off with an early dip in the sea, wanting to hold on just for a little bit longer.
After a heavy breakfast at the property, it was time to take our cab for about a 57 km scenic drive to the Dabolim Airport to catch our non-stop Indigo flight to Kolkata. We left, with a heavy heart, and a promise to return soon.
Note: This was our umpteenth trip to Goa, and second time in both Palolem and Agonda. Hence, we did not go for the popular touristy options like Honeymoon beach, Butterfly beach, dolphin sighting etc. However, if you are visiting for the first time, they are definitely worth a visit, and better be availed from Palolem where it is a bit more pocket-friendly than in Agonda.
