That's how Christmas at Colva, Goa feels and looks like!

Comparatively South Goa is more peaceful in every possible way than North Goa even though North Goa is much more happening. But to have a peaceful stay to embrace nature, to be at your own pace of life and to explore the surroundings without any rush, then I must say, South Goa is the best. Every year I must have one vacation to Goa in any month. Fortunately, December was that month for my last year goa vacation and it was spontaneous to the core. Generally during winter, I prefer staying in North Goa because of the parties but I planned for South Goa because I was there during Christmas week. And I felt overtly excited because it was after 6 years since my last visit to Goa during Christmas.

I have witnessed and appreciated the vibe of Christmas at Panjim all those years ago, but it was a crazy party vibe because Panjim was inclined towards North Goa. Generally, Madgaon is my go-to place if I ever plan to South Goa but according to my friend's suggestion and mostly accommodation, I got to explore Colva for the first time. The Christmas season in Goa is always amazing and nothing can beat the authentic Christian celebrations in the whole of India. Keeping aside the parties and vacation activities, Goa has a rich culture, especially the Portuguese, French and English church traditions. I am a multi-cultured person and I love all religious customs. Hence, I have explored the Christmas vibe at Colva for 5 days till Christmas!

All those 5 days, when my pals were working, I got to explore Colva better than them because exploring was the only job for me. We were four people, out of them three used to work till the evening. I either used to go for walks, chill out at beaches, meet people or simply sleep till these people get out of their shifts. The nights were pretty young and we used to hang out at the same resto bar every single night and at the beach till the morning. Amidst these typical rituals, I got to explore the Christmas vibe when my Christian pal took me out on a ride to show me the authentic Goan Christmas festive moods.

Christmas is all about food, fun, decor, vibrancy, spirituality, prayers, cakes, drinks and endless amounts of Christmas joy. I was no lesser than a kid who got extremely excited about Christmas decorations. Hence, I ended up with not only exploring Colva, but also Benaulim, Salcete, and Madgaon as all of them are nearer to each other. So one fine evening, my friend and I went on a ride to explore all the Christmas lighting without leaving any home, church, bars, restaurants or even bakeries too because every single place celebrated Christmas in its grandeur way.

I still remember every particular detail of the midnight of Christmas Eve. I was so adamant about attending mass particularly at "Our Lady of Merces Church" as I have heard that people from Colva and nearby Goan towns visit this place for midnight prayers to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Even though I convinced my friend who is indeed a Christian, he didn't show interest in attending the mass and hence I went alone decked up in all white by sporting White Denim Jacket and Shorts.

I went for a walk as the Church was kind of a walkable distance away and I loved walking on Colva roads. Amidst those chilling winter temperatures, I covered up in my denim and by the time I reached the Church, there were already thousands of people sitting inside the church premises and some were standing outside, even on either side of the road. As the time was ticking 12 and it was about to be Christmas, I could see people dressed up poshly in suits and gowns, spilling all the typical Christmas vibes through their outfits. I was looking decent in shorts even though I was not sporting a suit.

And by the time, the mass got ended and people started to disperse from the Church to continue their celebrations at various restaurants, bars and beaches, my pals called me and asked me to meet them at the same place we regularly used to hang out at. Christmas night was the last night of our vacation indeed and we embraced it completely with way too many people around us because of the festival. The next day we all left Colva.

I wanted to publish this blog first where the vacation ended because the main theme of this vacation was Christmas and to know how I explored Colva, you must stay tuned to my upcoming blogs!