This is Easter, but I couldn't find a good Christmas pic. :)I plan to spend Catholic Christmas in Goa, but as I've heard, booking a train ticket is nigh-on-impossible and I was recomended to do it as soon as they start booking. With Indian Railways it means 60 days before the trip.
I intend to leave Chandighar on 23rd of December and, as I was told that booking for this day will start on 23rd of October (the day after tomorrow), if there are any of you who would like to join me, call ASAP. My number is: +91-9888-529-520
P.S.
I do not know the exact prices, but I think that the plain ticket is abour Rp 4000 and the train ticket is Rp 1500. It takes about two days to get there by train, but it should be worth seeing the views between Mumbai and Goa. We could spend the rest of the time partying. :)
On Corbis it said it's a pic from Goa! It did! Honest! :)
Mmmmm... beach... :)
Oh, yes... churches. :)
5 comments:
How long do you plan on staying Vladan? I was contemplating New Year down there but both Christmas and New Year would be too long a stay for me!
And my feminist sensibilities are very disappointed you’ve dragged the level of this blog down to such levels of topless women…
I will leave India on the 14th of january, so I plan to travel "down there" till the very end. I read and heard that Christmas Eve is THE event of Goa, so I am not sure if I want to spend the New Year there as well. I would like to visit many other places of the South. :)
Hey Vladan,
Dont forget to add Kerala in your itinerary. Pondicherry is also considered good by some, same with Chennai.
If you want to visit South Indian temples, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are good, but pick and choose as you want, there are a lot of them all over.
Oh, and about Goa. There are the extremely crowded (both by annoying as well as thepartying type) as well as not-so-crowded places (almost completely deserted off-season, especially for the romantics, but season time...), so look around before you decide where to stay. At any rate, North is usually more active (read crowded), e.g. Anjuna, Baga, Vagator; and the South is less jammed, especially Colva, Benaulim etc. Palolem in south is also active, and probably has one of the prettiest beach and more swimmable waters. Another thing about Palolem - its the hot favourite for most visitors wanting to stay in the 'shacks', so the 'shacks' over here are more 'permanent' as compared to other beaches, where they are temporarily set up during season and stripped otherwise. Also, in Palolem, if you go slightly off the main beach, its even nicer, something which is almost impossible to do on other beaches(the sheer volume of the people removes any chances of an 'off-the-main-beach' area.
But if you are looking for the party scene, stick to the north. In the south, Palolem is probably the only place with 'party' like scene, but nothing beats the North Goa Anjuna-Baga style.
I already said about choosing carefully, but would like to reiterate it by adding one more peice of information. Unless you rent a bike/scooter (rates vary depending on where and when you rent, license preferred, but not a big issue... unless you're gonna do some stunt driving on the main city roads or the highway), it takes quite a bit of time getting from North to South or vice-versa. If you look at the map, Margao to Palolem is at least 1.5 hr or so on bus (they dont drive verrry fast, and stop almost every now and then. Its as if people like to get off right in front of the gate to their house). That was one example, and it was between two places in South Goa. you can do the math for other combinations.
But, at any rate, if you really want to explore Goa, i mean except the beaches and the more prominent attractions, you have to rent a vehicle and drive it around on your own. Old Goa has some pretty places, for example.
Trust me, we were there for a week and the two of us didn't even go to the North. So, there's plenty to do
...
I guess i'll shut up now or i might actually be the first one to reach the maximum character limit (if there is one)
Oh, one more thing. If you go via train, check when the train passes a station called Castle Rock. I think its somewhere early in the morning (At any rate you wont be able to sleep too long as the train raches Margao at about 6 am and Vasco Da Gama at about 7 am).
The train stops at Castle Rock for quite some time (they change / add engines and it changes direction)
The reason: After Castle Rock, and before Colem/Kolem, the train passes a waterfall called Dudhsaagar Falls (dudh means milk in Hindi and saagar means sea/ocean). I think you can make out why its called that when you see it. It is quite pretty even in the daytime (which you can experience if you pass the same way on the way out of Goa), but looks heavenly in the semi-darkness.
Tip 1: It comes somewhere between the tunnels (i think i remembered the exact route and distance marker, but cant recall it now), so prep-up once the tunnels start.
Tip 2: Will be on the left side of the train, so be careful of all those people hijacking the left side doors... Oh, and by left i mean if you stand facing the direction the train is moving. You'll be able to see 'some' part of the waterfall on the right side too as it passes under the bridge and goes down the slope, but all you'll be thinking after that is - "God damn it !! Is this what i woke up so early for?? What was the big deal about this ??"
...oops... i used the lord's name in vain. I guess that's why i'm in the Eigth Level with all other fellow Malebolgites... ;P
Wow! Kyoush! :) Thanx for all that info! I will need it!
Anyone coming with me?
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