Often it’s the same place that reveals different versions of you, depending on when you were there and who you’re with. Goa has been that place for me. In the pauses between plans and in the roads that weren’t meant to be taken, Goa reserved some moments that stayed.
December 1998: the family trip
My first visit to Goa was as a kid during one of my Christmas breaks. My parents and I stayed near a beautiful, white-sand beach called the Colva Beach on the New Year’s Eve. There was so much merry-making happening at the time that it felt quite enticing to me. Of course I was too small to be part of it. I remember it was the first time I had Goan fish fry covered with semolina (rava). That, and a plate of hot rice and dal made us feel so much at home after days of having roti sabzi on that trip.
May 2016: the unplanned trip
I just told them, “Guys, let’s do Goa before I leave Hyderabad.”
It started as a sentence, without much thought, but with a quiet hope that if it happens, it will be a great memory to take back. And then, just like that, it became a road trip from Hyderabad to Goa and back. No real plan, just a car full of people who hadn’t been thinking of any trip before that evening.
There’s something about unplanned trips. They don’t carry expectations, so everything feels like a bonus. We laughed until we couldn’t breathe, ate like the next meal wasn’t guaranteed and sang with the windows down, as if the road was listening.
Our stay was near Baga Beach, very close to the sea. The evening we reached, after dinner, while the shacks were still loud and alive, I stepped away. Walked towards the sea. Stood in knee-deep water. And stared at the vastness of the full moon-lit Arabian Sea. I remember standing still, completely sober, letting the waves settle near me.
The following day we were set to return. That’s how short the trip was. We had a heavy lunch and started our journey back to Hyderabad as we had work the next day. Somewhere along the way, the car broke down in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere in Karnataka. We asked for help by dialling 100, our car was towed and we were given shelter for the night. Such new experiences in an unknown territory, we were scared but strangely, this whole episode became the centrepiece of the trip.
We nearly spent the whole of the next day in that small Karnataka town, longer than expected, got the car repaired and started for home, praying to reach back safe and sound. There’s a different kind of clarity when things don’t go as planned. You stop rushing. You start noticing. This is the kind of trip we can talk about when we grow old and tell people about the madness we were part of.
The good side of a breakdown. You get to see things in a new way.
September 2016: the adventure + luxury trip
This time, Goa was all about five days of soaking in greenery. An office off-site brought me to Goa, but before joining the off-site group, we went to Mollem, a small town tucked away in the Western Ghats. The kind of place where mornings don’t rush you. On one side, there is a dense forest. On the other, a sanctuary.
The reason we were there was to see the Dudhsagar Falls, which we had heard a lot about. Little did we know, all the approved (safe) jeep trips had stopped as it was monsoon season. So we found ourselves on bikes, riding with local Goan drivers through forest trails, streams and narrow, uneven paths that demanded attention at every turn. It wasn’t the kind of journey you prepare for, more the kind you agree to before you’ve thought it through.
At one point, we had to cross a railway line on foot and we even saw a high-speed train crossing while we stood like statues on the side. The whole thing was not only risky but scary. We muttered to ourselves — what were we thinking — but we couldn’t say it out loud. We didn’t want to lower others’ confidence.
The further we went, the rougher it got. Rocks, loose gravel, sudden drops. One wrong step and you’d disappear from sight. And yet, the bike riders moved with a kind of ease that only comes from familiarity. It was their everyday. For us, it was something else.
Then came the Dudhsagar Falls.
A cascade of milky white water, cutting through the green, louder than anything around it. It was such a magnificent sight to behold. We couldn’t believe we were seeing it in its most abundant form. And because it was monsoon season, the falls were in full force.
I remember thinking I wasn’t fit enough for something like this. Not even close. But sometimes, the desire to witness something overshadows everything else. And it did. Standing at the base of the falls, tired and overwhelmed — it felt exciting and earned. It also told us Goa is not only about beaches.
After this adventure, we went to a luxury resort in South Goa. It had such beautiful wooden architecture, sumptuous meals and an infinity pool overlooking plantations and greenery. We hoped all these indulgences would help us forget the extreme adventure we had committed just a few days ago. When we got time from official meetings, we took a walk to the nearest beach, Gonsua Beach (part of Majorda Beach). It was raining, but the sea in the rain is more beautiful, to me.
The cure for anything is salt water… tears, sweat or the sea.
~ Isak Dinesen
April 2019: the sand, shadows, and señoritas trip
When I returned to Goa in 2019, I had told myself that no adventure this time. Nothing that would make it dangerous. Just spend time as you would on a peaceful vacation.
We stayed at a beach resort in Ashwem, near Morjim Beach in North Goa. The sea was just there, right outside our backdoor. Mornings blended into afternoons. Evenings into sunsets. We lazed around there, sometimes on the sand, sometimes on the wooden chairs or by the water. There was no rush to see or do anything. Just time to sit, to walk, to watch.
Our first lunch was at a seaside restaurant called La Plage. Another one in Marbella Beach Resort. We also visited two of Goa’s famous places, Thalassa and Love Passion Karma. This was my second time at LPK and I didn’t like it much — felt very overrated. We also had a very nice lunch at the Fisherman’s Wharf. So all in all, we spent some great time over meals and that I think is one of the best ways to experience Goa, through its food.
The rest of the time was spent watching sunrises and sunsets from outside our resort. There’s something about these experiences in Goa. They don’t demand attention, but they quietly hold it. Each one slightly different, yet familiar enough to feel like a continuation.
It made me think — how places don’t really change as much as we do and how returning is sometimes less about the place, more about noticing what’s different in you.
Let every sunset make your life more meaningful. Gift yourself beautiful sunsets.
