This post is delayed by a week. Explanation: Goa got me so occupied that laptop was abandoned and forgotten… Please don’t judge.

Mumbai- Pune- Sangli- Goa, route leading towards the southern point of our destination, where we can finally tick off the last box of a hardly ending ‘India to do’ list- sea, sun and sandy beaches!

7th of December we started moving towards Goa. Weirdly enough it was exciting leaving Mumbai (Indian version for city of hopes and dreams) even tho we kind of started settling into everyday routine of cooking, sleeping and showering three times a day:)

After three hours in a car we reached Pune, where we stayed overnight with an intention of blending into so called ‘social like-minded circle’. All in all we successfully  spend our saturday night with a bunch of folks trying to enjoy the very bit of Indian teenage crime.

Next few nights were spent in our friend Samit’s family house in Sangli. First night we were invited to enjoy their farmhouse, sharing delicious traditional food and stories about our traveling. Everyone was interested to hear that we’re writing blogs and actually enjoying  our stay in India:)

Next day was dedicated exploring Sangli and it’s surroundings. Word about European girls visiting Tapkire family spread around very quickly, and soon we were invited to have lunch at Samits cousins house.

250km by car and we are finally in Goa!

GOA

Reaching Goa at night of 10^th Nov was the final wish come true. As remembering day one in India we speculated the excitement of it. Pinch me if you can to make sure this is happening! 250km journey in a car didn’t seem so long as view of a sunset was mesmerizing. There was six of us in  group so we’ve rented 2bed apartment in Morjim resort in north Goa. Laxmi apartment cost 2200RP a night which didn’t include gas (doesn’t make any sense I know!) and because of that seemed quite pricy. Also it was a good 15min walk from the beach, but had restaurants and a supermarket next door. We’ve stayed here for three nights as half of the crew decided to leave much earlier and we didn’t need such an expensive crib just for three of us. Being here I’ve almost forgot I’m in India. Tourists everywhere, which meant it’s bikini and shorts o’clock! By the way, I would call Goa ‘Russian paradise”, as the main tourists are Russians, and every time we’ve stepped outside we were greeted with ‘privet’ (hello in Russian) by locals and after explaining we’re not Russians he joked that because of Russian tourists invasion locals have to learn the language.

Most of the time in those three days were spent on the beach as crave for sun and a tan was incredibly strong! So far had a chance to try sands of Morjim, Ashvem (5km away) and Arambul (15km away) beaches. They’re still not as crowded as we expected in such a heat, as firstly it’s not the high season yet and secondly, we chose not to go to the most commercial ones. Arambul wasn’t touristic at all, hence we got so much attention by locals.

Every morning fishermen’s are coming back from the sea bringing back the ‘catch’. Being curious Giedre and I started asking around and found out that small fishes are not used for the market and we can freely help ourselves. That nights dinner was deep fried sardines- hand catched and home cooked.

As mentioned above, three of our friends decided to leave earlier so we had to find a new place to stay. Big thank you to Giedre for sorting us out with that. First time I actually appreciate her extremely early wake ups. While jogging around she somehow found this amazing place called ‘orange village’ owned and managed by Russian couple Igor and Svieta, who were happy to help with affordable accommodation. For 600RP ($10) a night we’ve got 2bed house with hot shower, living room and kitchen (yes, gas included!), which we split between three of us. It’s cheaper then a bean! Maybe because it’s off the beaten touristic path, in a country side or because it’s fairly new. Whichever it is, it brought us luck. Although , once we’ve got our way around, found the shortcut to the beach which is just 5min by walk, so are the shops. And to be fair, I love the feeling of desertedness: palm trees, animals around, no noise of cars or loud music, just a rooster and birds in the morning.

As expected, animals live not just around the house but inside as well. Small lizards, spiders, ants and frogs appear from time to time. Every morning there is a hole in flour bag, so I suspect there is a mouse or raccoon as well. One night while sitting on a toilet had a chance to meet a chameleon, I mean he was just there chillin. Who would be scared of a cat size reptile anyway?! Pfff

After 5days in Goa we decided that time came to take the bravery to the next level and sit on a scooter for ‘around Goa in one day’ trip. We were trying to convince Samit to rent one scooter for all three of us as we’ve seen locals driving in families plus carrying two dogs and three luggage’s at the same time but he wasn’t convinced by our saving tip idea and assured he’s not ready to lose his license, as in a highway police is very strict. So we had to rent two scooters and off we went all the way to south Goa and back, making 230km in total on a two wheeler. Doesn’t seem that much at first but when you take into account that all the distance is by Indian roads (and Indian traffic) and that Giedre was driving scooter for the first time, I assume we deserve an applause!

After approx 2hour journey we’ve reached the southerner point of Goa, Pallolem beach and to salute the successful one way journey we enjoyed an ice cream each. Later took a boat to see the near by Butterfly and Honeymoon islands which cost us 1200RP and was worth paying, considering we came such a long way after such a long way just to see it. Islands journey lasted less then 2hours and after returning back to main beach we spent another hour there before hopping back on a scooters. Journey back took almost twice the time as it got dark very quickly. On the way back to Morjim I insisted to find some fresh chicken for dinner, as I wanted some meat! Enough all vegetarian stuff. Stopped at local farm where chicken meat was sold still warm. Thank you very much, no need to highlight that.

Lesson no1- Indian roads require extreme attention and cautiousness but especially driving skills. As people in the roads are not the ones you have to look out for but cows, dogs and goats. Seems surprising, considering that all you have to do to pass your driving test is to go up and down the road with a car. Food wise, we’ve tried a few restaurants and found Laxmi being very affordable (chicken biriyani+prawn curry+rice+drinks= 400RP, $7 between all of us, as portions are quite big and filling). But most of the time we cooked at home and spoiled Sam with Lithuanian dishes. He even joked that it will be hard to come back to Mumbai’s life with take aways.

On Friday, 20^th of December we’ve celebrated one month anniversary in India. Went out for drink that night just to mark it. Didn’t stay long as next morning got scooters again and went exploring north Goa beaches. This time three of us squeezed on one scooter to experience local reality. Visited three beaches: Sinquerim, Anjuna and Vagator. All of them highly recommended as have white sand and much clearer water than Morjim. But at the same time more tourists as well. You get a complete package.

After 6days in our beautiful house we were moved to the main house, as 2bed was booked just for this period thinking that Sam will leave to Mumbai and just two of us will stay, however AS ALWAYS plans changed and he decided to stay. His decision doesn’t surprise me, our company is irreplaceable. and because house was rented out for someone else from that date, we had to shift to a smaller space, where we had just one room, which was newly done and cheaper as well! One drawback of this change is that kitchen wasn’t done yet, which means cooking paradise came to an end. But there is always a way out of starvation!

Lesson no2: if there is no kitchen available, you can still boil an egg in electric kettle. Same way you can make milk base coffee.

Self discovery during 2weeks in Goa- I can cook

Last but not least I can confirm the quotation: ‘Doesn’t matter where, it matters with who.’

Overall, happy- happy- happy with all Goa experience. Got tanned, or should I say burned, tried amazing seafood, had our batteries recharged and are ready to move on to the next destination. But before that, we have so called Christmas to celebrate!