Tighten Your Seat belts..We are Landing In Goa!!!

Go Goa….Go Air… Everything seems to be on the go now..Yes.. Yes.. Yes…We are going to Goaaaaah!  M just bubbling with excitement…Bags are all packed.. Tickets in order…But I have been coughing all night, still feeling feverish. I call up a doctor friend of mine who suggests some effective medicine that won’t spoil my plans.

We are now just waiting for the neighborhood taxi that we booked last night to drop us at the airport…it should be here anytime now. Oops..its 15 minutes past the scheduled time…where is the taxi??? Ohh God! Damn..I didn’t mean rain gods! 30 mins past..yet no trace of the taxi...and the flood gates of heaven are still open! Is my vacation jinx still on??? I start getting nervous…and angry too...Mr. V doesn’t have the right number for taxi! I give him a stare…hot enough to melt the polar ice caps!
 
We finally decide to go to the taxi stand, hiring an auto. The taxi owner says that taxi just reached our house..Uff…It’s like tragedy of errors! Finally the taxi gets its rightful occupants. I am taking deep breaths! I pray to God – “No more excitement now, till we reach Goa. And let the Delhi traffic behave itself for once!” Gods oblige! :)

The flight to Goa is a pleasant one, leaving out a rather noisy group of friends playing dumb charades with some annoyingly dumb movie names…I swear I have never heard any movie with those names!!! Clouds are a good distraction. I close my eyes...imagining myself on the beaches of Goa… Suddenly Captain’s voice wakes me up from my dream. There is some turbulence…the lights go off… More excitement??? Naah! Just a minor scare Aaal ijj well!
 
Soon clouds part and give us a glimpse of the vast stretch of green below us. From the moment it becomes visible from the flight, Goa mesmerizes me... The lush green paddy fields, lovely green woods, silvery waters of the local rivers..and the huge mighty sea..I fall in love with all of them from the word Go!

I stick my nose to the window...with my hand constantly tugging at Mr. V’s shirt … LOOK … LOOK …LOOK! Poor guy...just ends up looking at my face! (Not that I mind it!)

Flight lands and we head out of the plane. A pleasant cool breeze welcomes us..and although it has rained earlier in the day, there is absolutely no trace of the oppressive heat and humidity that is so synonymous with Delhi rains!

It is really thrilling to enter Goa. I can feel a spring in my steps as I walk out of the Dabolim airport. Mr. V senses the excitement…He pulls my cheek and says -Welcome to Goa! Ok.. Besides Goa, there is something else too, that has charmed me, but we will stick to the topic of Goa ;)

Once out, we board a taxi to our Hotel, Beleza by the Beach. OOOOO…I really like the sound of it…very exotic!

In the Taxi, while Mr. V is relaxing and taking in the beauty of Goa, I go into a total clicking over-drive…Don’t want to miss anything that was going by..

The landscape from the taxi is absolutely breath-taking...Palms and coconuts line the road on both sides, and then  there are lovely Goan villas with the tilted roofs...Wish I could own one of them…Sigh!!!

 
The people around look so much at ease, totally relaxed, living life at their own pace. This is such a pleasant break from the maddening rush of Delhi life! And as they pass us by, they have a warm, welcoming and very endearing smile on their face. No wonder, so many tourists choose to stay in Goa for long periods, keep coming back and still can’t get enough of it. Goa and Goans both make you their own instantaneously! 

Mr. V activates the GPS Navigation system on his mobile and we get to know that we are very close to Colva…

 Just then we reach a railway crossing. We wait for 5 minutes but no train in sight..then the gates open..as we cross the tracks we see a train standing at some distance…Wow! Did we just make a train wait for us to cross?

GPS lady is telling us that we have to move 800 mtrs Right..towards our destination…and sure enough...we reach our destination. Beleza by the Beach is a lovely hotel. It has some beautiful villas lined up against the backdrop of swaying palms. 

Following the customary welcome and formalities, we are guided to our room.As we enter our villa, a huge hall welcomes us. Attached to it is a nicely designed kitchen area. It is properly equipped with a refrigerator, microwave, crockery and cutlery. I am impressed. The décor of the room is very pleasant. 

They give us a room on the ground floor. I am not too happy about this as I was hoping for a room on first floor with a nice balcony!
We enter our room and like it. Quite cosy!!
 

 The attendant shows us around the room explaining us where to get what! Although we like the room, we call up the reception guy to ask if any room is available on first floor. He tells us that one room will be free the next day, and they will have no problem in shifting us upstairs :) Yippiee…!

The journey and all the related excitement has now taken a toll on me and the fatigue pulls me down. Not to forget the constant cough..and slight fever! I decide to take an hour’s rest. After which we can head out and explore Colva beach. Mr. V wakes me up from my slumber and tells me to get ready. He is sounding extra enthusiastic..and there is a reason behind that! While I was catching my forty winks, he went out to the beach and spent some time there. And now he can not wait to get me there. 
Once ready, we go out and through the hotel’s private pathway, we move towards the beach. And then..I get my frist view of the Colva beach and the Sea. It’s amazing. 

The best thing about the beach is that except for a couple or two, there is nobody on the beach. It seems like our private beach. Wow..such a luxury!  We move towards the sea and sit down there. I kept gazing at the sea..Looking at its mighty waves…that rise suddenly and vanish as soon as they touch our feet..I listen to the roaring sound of the sea ..and feel so small in front of it. It is really an overwhelming experience for me.

We get up and head towards the main part of the beach. As we move, it starts getting dark. There are some boats along the beach and fish net. Thankfully I can’t smell the fish…courtesy my persistent to the cold!

A gentle breeze is blowing, and I see palms swaying along…I am reminded of this lovely song from Dilli ka Thug- Ye raatein ye mausam ..nadi ka kinara..ye chanchal hawa.


We reach the main part of the beach…It is relatively crowded. After playing in the water for some time, we go out of the beach towards the market area. It is lined with various Sea-food joints. We move further to find some shops selling all sorts of T-shirts, and hats, and beach wear. 

I am starting to feel hungry now. We ask people about Sagar (which according to my research is a decent South Indian restaurant near Colva). We are directed to a simple looking food joint just across the road. We enjoy a delicious South Indian meal at the restaurant.  With our stomachs full, we move out. I am starting to feel tired and a bit sleepy (2nd dose of Cetrizine at work!)

We hire an auto (very different from Delhi ones..!). It is closed from all sides, more like a mini car. 

Now we are in our room..tired but super excited! It has been a lovely day..and there is lot more to come tomorrow. I have butterflies in my stomach for the approaching adventure. Ok folks..That’s it for the day..I am zooming to the world of dreams…!

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