Here's how you can discover the unconventional side of Goa beyond beaches and sunsets!

For my recent trip to Goa, I wanted it to be rather unconventional than the usual beaches, water sports, drinks, and parties. As soon as I decided to let Goa be my first expedition in the year 2021, I went online looking for something that could help me discover some real hidden gems and offbeat experiences to satisfy my creative soul.

Although I have visited Goa numerous times before, this time I wanted to include some unexplored places in my bucket list for this trip. This became possible when I stumbled upon the profile of Soul Travelling on Instagram. One look at their profile and I was amazed to learn of so many hidden gems in Goa yet to be discovered and talked about.

I got in touch with Kedar from the team of Soul travelling. He was courteous enough to share all the information about the different trails conducted by them. I immediately signed up for Nature Trail at Chorao Islands with them.

Soul Travelling specializes in curating wonderful trails that gives you the chance to experience the other side of Goa. Their main objective is to change the stereotypes and offer a Goan flavor filled with history, culture, and interesting stories about the locality. An experience that you would cherish for a lifetime while discovering a new Goa!

Would you also like to explore the side of Goa that you never knew existed? Read on to know more of my experience on the Nature Trail at Chorao Islands with Soul Travelling.

My trail started with a boat ride through the mangroves, visiting the oldest church in Goa, learning about the Bandhas and Manos systems, and heading for a small trek to a picturesque region consisting of ruins of the ancient seminary. Through this trail, we uncovered and learned about the best places in Chorao.

Chorao is an island alongside the Mandovi river. It is the largest among the 17 islands present in Goa (I was surprised to learn that Goa has 17 islands). This island was captured in their early conquests by the Portuguese during their 451 years of rule. The Portuguese called it 'Ilhas Dos Fidalgos' which means 'The Island of the Noblemen'. The island is one of the most preferred location for migratory birds and hence is also home to the famous Salim Ali bird sanctuary.

Our Chorao Island trail began at 7.00 am in the morning. We gathered at the Ribandar ferry terminal to meet our travel coach and guide - Eric from the team of Soul Travelling. We took the ferry to get across the river Mandovi while watching the sparkling river water in the backdrop of a beautiful sunrise!

On reaching the other side of the river, we headed on to our first destination to the trail - the Salim Ali bird sanctuary. The bird sanctuary is spread over a massive area of 178 hectares. Covered with amazingly rich flora and fauna, most of it comprising of dense mangroves creating a beautiful forest growing in the water. The bird sanctuary is inhabited by over 470 species of local as well as migratory birds. Soul Travelling had arranged for a boat ride to take us deep into the dense forest of mangroves.

At the boat, we were greeted by the 'birdman' Mr. Uday Mandrekar of Chorao, a highly knowledgeable gentleman who shared loads of information and interesting facts about the different species of birds. He guided our ride to the most prominent areas for migratory birds. He spotted and showed us many fascinating birds such as white egrets, purple herons, colorful kingfishers, cormorants, eagles and kites, woodpeckers, and mynah and also made us aware of the peculiar sounds of the birds made. As the boat glides through the calm backwaters, you must try this - close your eyes, feel the soothing sound of the water under you, surrounded by the refreshing sound of the chirping and tweeting of birds and the soft hustle of the wind blowing through the mangroves. It is such an amazing and serene feeling that you will experience being one with the nature around you. This is a heaven for bird lovers, adventurers, families (with young kids) etc. It offers a breathtaking experience to one and all.

Kayaking is available for those of you who love such adventurous experiences. Spend long hours in the blue water bodies navigating through the various waterways around Chorao island to enjoy this rich and diverse wetland.

The wetlands of Chorao island are an apt natural habitat for crocodiles too. Though, we did not get to see any! (Actually, I am glad we did not encounter one - considering that we were on their turf ;-P)

After the mesmerizing experience of floating among the mangroves, we got started on a short trek along a small hillock leading us to the ruins of an ancient seminary. Seminary is training school or college for priests. This seminary is named the St. Jerome Seminary which was founded on Chorao Island on April 2, 1761. It is said to be the first seminary built in all of Asia, according to the locals. There is a St. Jerome's chapel also in the seminary. Part of this seminary was known as Real Colegio de Educacao de Chorao. St. Jerome's chapel is the only remaining relic of the seminary. The location of the seminary offers great views of the river and the surrounding regions. Though the seminary is in ruins now, one can still feel the aura of spiritual peace and purity here.

Next up in our trail was visit to the oldest church of Chorao - St. Bartholomew's Church. But before setting out for the next destination, our Soul Travelling guide Eric took us to a quaint little eatery where we treated ourselves with some local breakfast. Delicious snacks such as mirchi wada, pav bhaji, samosas etc. was served hot and fresh along with tea and coffee.

St. Bartholomew's Church was our next destination in the trail. This is a Roman Catholic church and the oldest in Chorao. It is said to be built way back in 1569 by the Religious Society of Jesus. The simplistic white exterior of the church is a symbolic portrayal of peace and purity. And the beautiful golden interiors stand out on the milky white walls of the church and complement the natural wooden finish of the pews. Stepping inside such religious structures have always had a calming effect on my mind and heart.

Up next in the trail was exploring the fascinating concepts of Maanos (Sluice gates) and Bandhs (Bunds) which are the lifelines of survival and a man-made wonder. This is an ancient concept started about 2000 years ago by the tribal community that lived here. It controls the flow of water during tides. The Maanos are built such that the gates open during low tide and close during high tide automatically. When you see these amazing techniques in action and its benefit to mankind makes your belief in the saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention" even stronger.

Alas! This was the last destination in the trail.

Eric, our Soul Travelling companion was an excellent guide and an equally good host. He shared stories of local legends and info about cemeteries, burials and even why churches in Goa were generally painted white, in Portuguese times. The entire Soul Travelling team hosts the trail so wonderfully and interestingly by bringing in elements of fun and curiosity by way of interactive engaging questions and quiz sessions.

In challenging times like this, their team made sure the new normal would not come in our way of exploring and fun. With all the sanitization protocols right in place, they made sure we made amazing memories exploring and learning through these trails.

I would definitely recommend Soul Travelling trail to anyone who wants to see the inner beauty of Goa to take up this excursion. The entire experience of this trail was so exciting that one would not want it to end. Through this trail, I got to explore parts of Goa that I was completely unaware of, bring back with me some real and authentic Goan experiences, and fall in love with Goa all over again!

If you are planning to explore some hidden gems of Goa, Soul Travelling can be your perfect travel partner.

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