Here I am to write about my first trip to Goa. It was a fantastic trip, well planned as I was taking my mother and brother and I should admit this is my first leisure trip with my mom post my marriage. Went on this trip during the mid of May, however made some time to write a detailed blog only now. There are also a lot of first times in this trip as you would read below. I planned the trip well in advance as it was the summer holidays and did not want to get disappointed, Hence made my travel bookings through Kingfisher airlines and made a package booking at "The retreat By Zuri" resort at South Goa. The package was a wonderful one and I thought it would be worth the money and I was not disappointed with my choice post the trip.
Day 1: Started early and had an early breakfast at one of the restaurants in Adyar and reached the airport well in advance. After checking in and the security check we were seated on the 1st floor and were chatting and spending our time watching the passers by and some flight take offs and landings. I should say though I have flown couple of times, this was my maiden flight from the Chennai Airport. It was very typical of Chennai even inside the airport and there was nothing that was really impressive. Boarded our flight to Mumbai where we had a short transit before taking our connecting flight to Goa. The flight was ok and we reached Mumbai airport in a couple of hours. My first time at the Mumbai airport too and I was completely awed by the drastic difference between what I saw at Chennai and what I was seeing at Mumbai. I should also say this was the first time in my life I ever saw so many private jets.
Amazing interiors and the entire area had a carpet and it truly looked wonderful. Couple of hours transit was spent reading the newspaper and watching out. Then we boarded our flight to Goa and it was an hour journey and a awesome experience to get aerial view of Goa as it truly looked like paradise. While landing at Goa airport I noticed that they have a military base (Or Army) and I saw a lot of fighters and small aircrafts that looked very cute.
Since I had accommodation arranged there was a cab that was sent to pick us up and there we were on our way to the resort. My first impression about Goa was that I could immediately compare it to Kerala because of the narrow roads that were curving all the way and the coconut trees on either side of the road and also the cleanliness of the place.
Finally after about 40 minutes of drive we reached our resort and straight away headed towards the restaurant as it was past lunch time and we were really hungry. Had a good lunch and we checked in to our room and freshened up before planning our evening. After freshening up we went to the Varca beach that was about a kilometer from the resort. Had a good walk and when we reached the beach it was absolutely a virgin beach. Not much frequented by tourists (Atleast this part of the beach that we went). We did see few people who were having fun playing and few others enjoying the water. It was pure white sand and the there was absolutely no tide or very low ones. We enjoyed the water for a while and the sunset at the beach and went back to our resort. After our dinner we called it a day after a long and tiring day.
The sunset at Varca Beach
Day 2: Post breakfast went for a nice spa and a steam and went back to the room to freshen up and get ready for a half day trip the resort was offering as part of the package. After lunch around 2 PM we took the cab that the resort arranged and went straight to the Mangueshi temple on the Goa Panaji road (Built by Lata Mangeshkar's father). To me it was just like some monument and I never felt the vibrations of the temple. It was an ok place to see and from nowhere it started getting crowded and we started heading towards the oldest church in Goa, The basilica of Bom Jesus). This was absolutely awesome with the old buildings and the spacious lawn outside the church. One can definitely feel a lot of positive vibrations inside the church. After our sightseeing around the church we were taken to the old city for some walking around and shopping. Did some shopping and we were on our way back to the resort. On the way back through the Mandovi river we spotted some real nice casinos. Once at the resort me and my brother decided to go for a swim as the water was really inviting especially after being in the hot sun for few hours. After some refreshing time at the pool we had our dinner and called it a day. (Best part here is I do not know swimming but I love being in the water)
The Mangueshi temple
The Basilica of Bom Jesus
The Mandovi river
Day 3: We went through a list of tourist attractions to take a day package. And I was very particular not to visit any of the places frequented by tourists. After chatting and getting to know about the different places from the reception guy, we freezed on going to one of the most beautiful beach of Goa which is justified as the paradise beach. En route the beach we went to a fort called the Cabo De Rama fort which gives a stunning view of the beach and there is absolutely undisturbed peace around. When we went there it was just us and while entering we noticed a family coming out of the fort. There was absolute silence and for a moment my mother felt really spooky about the whole place as there was nothing but trees, and the sea at a distance. We walked till the end of the fort which of course are only ruins and it was worth the walk as that was the best view of a beach I have ever seen. Absolutely stunning and truly a paradise. We did not want to get lost and hence kept some identification for us to return back. At the end of the fort when you watch the sea below and around you with small mountains you feel you do not want anything else in this world. Silence, pure air, Sound of nature. We headed back to our cab as it was a little scary to be all alone in such a place. And then went on our way to the Palolem beach. Except for few foreigners who were enjoying their swim, there was no one around. After spending an hour at the beach doing nothing but enjoying the view, we were on our way back. That's when our driver offered us to show a very old house from the Portuguese days and we wanted to see that as well by all the description given. The house of Menzes Braganza is one of the most beautiful colonial mansions in Goa. This is a great place to understand the art and culture of the Portuguese. The main lady was not available and we were shown around by the 2 care takers who couldn't speak neither Hindi nor English. One thing to watch out for is it says there is no entrance fee however there is a donation box towards the exit and you can donate what you want. When I put in a hundred rupee note inside the care taker didn't let me go and demanded another 200 rupees. Since there was no one around and she had locked the doors of the house after we came in, we did not want to take a chance of arguing with her and not being let out and hence silently dropped in another 200 and left the place. However I would say worth the visit as those are treasures of the past and we can never dream of seeing such cultural and architectural beauty in this modern age. That concluded our day trip and we headed back to the resort. Spent some time around the resort enjoying the architecture. This resort has been designed like a Portuguese village with central courtyards with a garden, patio and pergolas.
The Cabo De Rama Fort
Sea view from the fort
The Menzes Braganza house
The paradise beach
The Braganza house outer view
Picture of the resort at night
The courtyard at the resort
The patio at the resort
Day 4: We were getting ready to leave and bring an end to a fabulous experience we had all by ourselves. Excellent resort to stay. Worth the money. Very friendly and hospitable staff from reception to house keeping to restaurant, they make you feel very comfortable. Reached the Goa airport and boarded our flight back and the transit this time was at Bangalore. I was thrilled to see that airport as I had heard lot about the international standard at the airport. Bid good bye to Goa and was off towards Bangalore. Upon reaching there, it was very interesting to see the kind of facilities at the airport. However, after getting through the security check and in to the waiting area I felt Mumbai was the best airport of all that I saw in those 4 days. Yes, Bangalore airport was huge and very modern however it was way too crowded and it was not even organized anywhere. And after couple of hours of waiting boarded our last flight of the trip back to Chennai.
Overall, an amazing trip and I was finally happy with the choice of resort and the choice of places I chose to go around while in Goa.
I hope you all enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed traveling.
Day 1: Started early and had an early breakfast at one of the restaurants in Adyar and reached the airport well in advance. After checking in and the security check we were seated on the 1st floor and were chatting and spending our time watching the passers by and some flight take offs and landings. I should say though I have flown couple of times, this was my maiden flight from the Chennai Airport. It was very typical of Chennai even inside the airport and there was nothing that was really impressive. Boarded our flight to Mumbai where we had a short transit before taking our connecting flight to Goa. The flight was ok and we reached Mumbai airport in a couple of hours. My first time at the Mumbai airport too and I was completely awed by the drastic difference between what I saw at Chennai and what I was seeing at Mumbai. I should also say this was the first time in my life I ever saw so many private jets.
Amazing interiors and the entire area had a carpet and it truly looked wonderful. Couple of hours transit was spent reading the newspaper and watching out. Then we boarded our flight to Goa and it was an hour journey and a awesome experience to get aerial view of Goa as it truly looked like paradise. While landing at Goa airport I noticed that they have a military base (Or Army) and I saw a lot of fighters and small aircrafts that looked very cute.
Since I had accommodation arranged there was a cab that was sent to pick us up and there we were on our way to the resort. My first impression about Goa was that I could immediately compare it to Kerala because of the narrow roads that were curving all the way and the coconut trees on either side of the road and also the cleanliness of the place.
Finally after about 40 minutes of drive we reached our resort and straight away headed towards the restaurant as it was past lunch time and we were really hungry. Had a good lunch and we checked in to our room and freshened up before planning our evening. After freshening up we went to the Varca beach that was about a kilometer from the resort. Had a good walk and when we reached the beach it was absolutely a virgin beach. Not much frequented by tourists (Atleast this part of the beach that we went). We did see few people who were having fun playing and few others enjoying the water. It was pure white sand and the there was absolutely no tide or very low ones. We enjoyed the water for a while and the sunset at the beach and went back to our resort. After our dinner we called it a day after a long and tiring day.
Day 2: Post breakfast went for a nice spa and a steam and went back to the room to freshen up and get ready for a half day trip the resort was offering as part of the package. After lunch around 2 PM we took the cab that the resort arranged and went straight to the Mangueshi temple on the Goa Panaji road (Built by Lata Mangeshkar's father). To me it was just like some monument and I never felt the vibrations of the temple. It was an ok place to see and from nowhere it started getting crowded and we started heading towards the oldest church in Goa, The basilica of Bom Jesus). This was absolutely awesome with the old buildings and the spacious lawn outside the church. One can definitely feel a lot of positive vibrations inside the church. After our sightseeing around the church we were taken to the old city for some walking around and shopping. Did some shopping and we were on our way back to the resort. On the way back through the Mandovi river we spotted some real nice casinos. Once at the resort me and my brother decided to go for a swim as the water was really inviting especially after being in the hot sun for few hours. After some refreshing time at the pool we had our dinner and called it a day. (Best part here is I do not know swimming but I love being in the water)
Day 3: We went through a list of tourist attractions to take a day package. And I was very particular not to visit any of the places frequented by tourists. After chatting and getting to know about the different places from the reception guy, we freezed on going to one of the most beautiful beach of Goa which is justified as the paradise beach. En route the beach we went to a fort called the Cabo De Rama fort which gives a stunning view of the beach and there is absolutely undisturbed peace around. When we went there it was just us and while entering we noticed a family coming out of the fort. There was absolute silence and for a moment my mother felt really spooky about the whole place as there was nothing but trees, and the sea at a distance. We walked till the end of the fort which of course are only ruins and it was worth the walk as that was the best view of a beach I have ever seen. Absolutely stunning and truly a paradise. We did not want to get lost and hence kept some identification for us to return back. At the end of the fort when you watch the sea below and around you with small mountains you feel you do not want anything else in this world. Silence, pure air, Sound of nature. We headed back to our cab as it was a little scary to be all alone in such a place. And then went on our way to the Palolem beach. Except for few foreigners who were enjoying their swim, there was no one around. After spending an hour at the beach doing nothing but enjoying the view, we were on our way back. That's when our driver offered us to show a very old house from the Portuguese days and we wanted to see that as well by all the description given. The house of Menzes Braganza is one of the most beautiful colonial mansions in Goa. This is a great place to understand the art and culture of the Portuguese. The main lady was not available and we were shown around by the 2 care takers who couldn't speak neither Hindi nor English. One thing to watch out for is it says there is no entrance fee however there is a donation box towards the exit and you can donate what you want. When I put in a hundred rupee note inside the care taker didn't let me go and demanded another 200 rupees. Since there was no one around and she had locked the doors of the house after we came in, we did not want to take a chance of arguing with her and not being let out and hence silently dropped in another 200 and left the place. However I would say worth the visit as those are treasures of the past and we can never dream of seeing such cultural and architectural beauty in this modern age. That concluded our day trip and we headed back to the resort. Spent some time around the resort enjoying the architecture. This resort has been designed like a Portuguese village with central courtyards with a garden, patio and pergolas.
Day 4: We were getting ready to leave and bring an end to a fabulous experience we had all by ourselves. Excellent resort to stay. Worth the money. Very friendly and hospitable staff from reception to house keeping to restaurant, they make you feel very comfortable. Reached the Goa airport and boarded our flight back and the transit this time was at Bangalore. I was thrilled to see that airport as I had heard lot about the international standard at the airport. Bid good bye to Goa and was off towards Bangalore. Upon reaching there, it was very interesting to see the kind of facilities at the airport. However, after getting through the security check and in to the waiting area I felt Mumbai was the best airport of all that I saw in those 4 days. Yes, Bangalore airport was huge and very modern however it was way too crowded and it was not even organized anywhere. And after couple of hours of waiting boarded our last flight of the trip back to Chennai.
Overall, an amazing trip and I was finally happy with the choice of resort and the choice of places I chose to go around while in Goa.
I hope you all enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed traveling.
