Goa

Danielle’s friend Chala was getting married in Goa, and was the reason why Danielle was in India.  I love the beach, and I’ve heard good things about Goa, so I’d thought I’d tag along and visit Goa for a few days before getting my train to Kerala. 

Nev and Daniella had booked accommodation in Palolem, when we arrived I dumped my bags at their Hotel and found a cheap beach hut near the beach.  I never went down to the beach on the night of my arrival, although I could hear the sea.  When I woke up I went for a jog, and I was pleasantly surprised.  Although Palolem was very touristy, with cluttered beach huts lining the shore, it has an outstanding beach, and the whole stretch of coastline has a certain charm.  We’d visited lots of beautiful beaches along our travels, although Palolem was not the prettiest, it was probably my favourite.   Nev’s Hotel was about a 15 minute walk away from mine, I did my own thing during the day and then met up with them at night time for dinner.  My accommodation was very relaxing and right next to the beach.  I went for a jog and swam every day in the basking sunshine, it was a great break from the cold and hectic cities of Northern India.

Chala and her soon to be husband kindly invited me to a beach party that they had organised as a prelude to the main event.  They’d hired out a venue with a private beach and catering.  I had a great time, the food was amazing as was the free beer and cocktails.  Chala’s parents had some interesting stories about their time in Pakistan, they were lovely people.  We later got chatting to Chala’s grandparents, her grandfather had a role in the British consulate in the West African colonies.  He had some fantastic stories, I was enthralled hearing about tales during the colonial times of the African countries I have visited.  He was quite a character, he was grooving away on the dance floor later on, pulling some great moves, very impressive considering he was in his eighties. 

The day climaxed with an evening of fireworks, a fire dancer, and some Chinese lanterns.  When I left Chala even invited me to the wedding, I was touched, but I had a convenient excuse, I wasn’t going to be there, my train to Kerala was for the following evening.