So it was Day 2 at Goa, and I found to my surprise that most things we wanted to see were faaar away! Yes my research wasn't perfect it seems, I had looked for places to see, but left the google maps part for later so that was a bit of a bummer. We were in the Club Mahindra Varca Beach resort which is nearly as south as it goes in Goa, and a lot of the sightseeing and beaches were in North Goa.
We set out with Apple maps for support (not much help!) but finally managed to be on our way to the Basilica of Bom Jesus that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Very picturesque and lovely architecture, it is also famous as it holds the remains of St. Francis Xavier.
Candles lit with wishes and prayers and thanksgiving
The lovely view of the outside of the basilica
Lunch was at a restaurant called O Coqueiro which is famous as the place the notorious Charles Sobhraj used to frequent and got arrested at! We tried a couple of Goan specialties, but it was the kid's sizzler that was the best of the lot :)!
Fascinated by the ceiling fixtures once more ;)
Next stop was the Fort Aguada, of Dil Chahta Hai fame, which was every bit as picturesque as I remembered. Going up the steep (though short flight of) steps reminded me of how much I needed exercise, but the view after climbing was totally worth it!
And that was the end of a long Day 2 :).
Seems to have been a really hectic day!! The kids must have had fun though. How was the weather this time of year? I've stayed at the fort aguada resort just for one night (from work) and silly me, never realized it had anything to do with DCH! Now have to go there!!
ReplyDeleteYeah, especially because of the distances it was a bit more hectic than I would have liked.. Plus I had got so used to Google maps on the iPad that I was not as efficient a navigator ;).
DeleteOh yes I realized I seem to have visited another movie fort too - the Bekal fort is from the Dil Se movie - Tu Hi Re :). Don't ask me why I don't remember names of people I've met, but this stuff finds a place in my head !!
Planning gaffes do happen, Aparna..the best part of travelling is to expect the unexpected and still not let it deter your spirits. I am bad at keeping up good spirits if things don't go as planned, btw ;-) still..
ReplyDeleteThat aside, I loved the Basilica, DCH fort and even the rocky beach! :-) Lovely pics.
Thanks Uma :). As you can see, I took a LOT of them ;).
DeletePlanning gaffes, hubby is the one who finds it more difficult to adapt to, especially considering he ends up doing that extra driving I guess ;). But I am trying to bring him around to "expect the unexpected" especially on trips like these :) !!