rob2ozoverland: Goa

Goa was for about 450 years a Portuguese possession on the West coast of India and was a major trading centre. Missionaries were amongst the earliet of early settlers. India annexed it in 1961. It was one of the major trading centres of Asia. Today the legacy of the Portuguese is plain to see in its architecture, it has a distinctive cuisine, many present day residents are devout, practising Catholics. Many bear surnames such as Lobo and Fernandez. The city of Old Goa had a population larger than that of Lisbon, or London. Known as "the Rome of the East. Malaria and other tropical diseases devastated the region. It is the smallest state in India, and is completely different. The large number of tourists, backpackers and long stayers have transformed the culture to more like a European one. Indian women from the big cities, for instance, will come here to wear a bikini which would just not happen anywhere else.

Today the largest group of the new arrivals are the Russians, when in the villages not only does one hear traders speaking Russian, but also I noticed the amount of display notices in Cyrillic. There are still quite a lot of long term stayers, many can be recognised by their leathery, tanned skins in villages like Chipora, a favourite spot from earlier times. I had a number of conversations with some of these residents, one Londoner told me he had been there for 26 years. He made a living from hand printed tee shirts, which met his modest needs. I liked to hang out there as there was a very friendly atmosphere. The days of the massive beach parties have largely died out. Vigata had a high, red rock cliff above the beach. I would perch there from where it was nice to catch the cooling breeze blowing off of the blue Arabian Sea.

II did not take the risk of riding a motor bike or scooter as there were so many dangerous drivers of all the other vehicles, fired up young tourists and the Indian who does not seem to follow any sort of road safety, or Highway Code. My slower reactions and disciplined riding would have led to my undoing. Driving is done from behind, a hoot means get out of the way, even though you do not know where to jump, left or right. It was bad enough as a pedestrian. Chock-a-block with buzzing engines.

I like the slow pace of life in Chipora, sauntering into the main area of cafes and bars to spent time have a meal, drink or smoke and staying chatting for long periods till late.

Holi is the spring, also known as the festival of colours and the festival of love. An ancient Hindu religious festival. Celebrated as a free for all carnival of colours, powdered paints mixed with water and chucked at everyone, all are fair game. Drums and musical music add to the happening. It signifies the triumph of good over evil.