Goa - The Party Capital of India

Think of Goa and what comes to your mind first? No prize to guess, it's a no-brainer. Most of us shall instantly think about it's famous sea beaches, which are over-crowded, but lively. Some would be reminded of it's vibrant nightlife, casinos and parties on the cruise. But, Let me tell you, Goa has much more to see and indulge in. You can explore exotic Goan culture by interacting with locals, choose less-visited tourist places, go on trekking, Dolphin Observation tour, Spice Plantation Tour, enjoy kayaking in backwaters and so on & on... 

I would like to share my travel experience of different places in Goa in my next few posts. This post is mainly related to our first impression of Goa and famous beaches. 

I had chosen the period of Christmas to New year, i.e. from 25th December to 2nd January to visit Goa, hoping to observe festivities of Christmas, roam around and to celebrate new year in the august company of golden sands and lovely beaches. 

Waiting for our flight at boarding gate of New Delhi Airport, it just felt for the time being that i was travelling to some international location, finding countless foreign nationals as my co-passengers. Our flight had landed at Dabolim Airport, Goa at around 11:00 PM and we were on course to our pre-booked hotel in North Goa. As our journey progressed, we were hoping for extravagant glamour and glitz waiting to overwhelm us, but all we could manage to see was christmas lights coming from small churches here and there amid complete darkness. Not knowing the fact that the airport is located far way from the main city, we thought entire Goa has gone to sleep, that too in the night of 25th December. But, as we entered the city area, we were greeted by the numerous sights of vibrant nightlife, Goa is known for. By one hour or so, we had checked into our hotel. 

North Goa is that part of Goa, where all the famous beaches are located and so are all the good hotels. It was an hour past midnight and the place was still buzzing with activities. Carols were being sung in the churches, Bars and restaurants were crowded with the tourists and people could be seen singing and dancing to celebrate birthday of Jesus Christ. As we took a stroll in the lanes of North Goa, the cold breeze welcomed us, again contrary to our perception. Days are humid and warm and nights are colder in Goa.

Next morning, we planned to visit some sea beaches and Aguada Fort in North Goa. We started with Sinquerim beach, which is known as first tourist beach in North Goa. Located around 13 km from Panaji, it is one of the best beaches in Goa, where you can enjoy several water sports activities such as Scuba diving, para-sailing, water skiing, windsurfing etc. Deep blue ocean water, golden sand and a series of palm trees create a magnificent landscape, which leaves indelible imprint on the senses of visitors. 

  

Sinquerim Beach, North Goa

  

Water Sports at Sinquerim Beach

One of the reasons, why this beach is popular among tourists is it's proximity to Aguada Fort and many big resorts and nightclubs located near the beach. Goa's famous Sunburn Festival is also held near this beach every year in the month of December.

Located near confluence of Mandovi river and Arabian sea, the majestic Aguada fort was built by Portuguese rulers to save their territory from dutch and maratha invadors. Just standing on the boundary wall, you can see entire panoramic ocean vista. Built in 1612 with laterite stones mainly, the fort has stood the test of time and guarding the city for more than 400 years.

Agua means water in portguese and Aguada means a place, where water is collected. The fort has a cistern having water storage capacity of 20 lakh gallons, citadel and many secret passageways, which fascinates the visitors. Apart from the fort, one can see Lighthouse, St. Lawrence Church and Taj Aguada Hotel. The location has appeared in many bollywood films including Dil Chahta Hai.

  

Aguada Fort

After having fun at Sinquerim beach and acquainting ourselves with the history of fort as well as Goa, we proceeded for Candolim beach, located just next to Sinquerim. Starting from Aguada fort and extending upto Calangute beach, it is one of the longest beaches in Goa. We found this beach calmer and less crowded. That is the reason, this beach attracts a lot of foreign tourists, who want to enjoy in nature's company away from domestic crowd.

  

Candolim Beach

Next in our travel list was the lively Calangute beach, which is one of the best bathing beaches in the world. Located north of Candolim and south of Baga, Calangute beach is one of those beaches, which remains crowded by domestic and foreign travellers alike. It's a perfect tourist place, filled with souvenir stalls, shacks, food joints and beer stalls. All these simply add to the popularity of the beach, which makes it a must visit place. Here, you can enjoy in the ocean water, sunbath, indulge in number of water sports and even you can do shopping of handicraft items.

We reached Calangute beach by 2:00 PM and got so involved in the celebratory mood of the beach that we could not keep track of time. As we realized, Sun had started setting and we had the opportunity to capture sunset at the sea beach.

Baga beach can be said extension of Calangute beach only and the crowd and atmosphere are also the same. This beach is located between two beautiful beaches, i.e. Calangute & Anjuna. As we had to cover one more beach that day, we proceeded for Anjuna beach. Anjuna beach is distinguished from other beaches due to formation of laterite rocks along the beach and big black rock protruding into the sea. Rocky crescent and palm trees along the beach make it a perfect spectacle for nature lovers.

  

Anjuna Beach

Apart from panoramic ocean, one can visit Flea Market near Anjuna beach, which opens every wednesday. Chapora fort and Albuquerque masion are other tourist attractions near Anjuna Beach. This beach is ideal destination for nature enthusiasts and tourists, who prefer enjoying with family and loved ones in seclusion.

Our first day in Goa was well-spent on beaches of North Goa. Though, it's Arabian see all along, but moods and atmosphere at all those beaches were different. It was a great day out in the sun.

Hope, you liked my travel travails of Goa. In the next part, i will be back with my stories on churches and museums of Goa. Till then.. Stay Home! Stay Safe!

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