2 blissful days in Goa, India

Goa is probably the most popular beach destination in India and I heard rave reviews about it for a long time. I finally had a chance to visit it in December of 2019, and I have to agree with everyone that went before me. Rarely does a place live up to its hype/expectations as Goa did. The fact that I was there in this beautiful beach resort with my best friend in one of the quieter corners of Goa could only have helped the matter. 

However, what was special about Goa to me were not its beaches. It wasn't the food either, though Goa does have great beaches and good food. There was something in the Goan air that is hard to describe. From the moment I sat in that taxi at the airport, I could feel a sense of calm and peace within me. We passed through several tiny villages, lush green landscapes, narrow roads and beautiful old style houses which brought back many childhood memories. It felt like Goa had something that time and technology couldn't take away. It seemed like a place where you cannot really rush. There is nowhere else to go. No better place to be. Nothing better to do. That you have to sit back, relax and enjoy the moment. This is only the second place/time that I felt this way as strongly as I did and it was a warm deja vu feeling. The first time was in Big Island, Hawaii in 2016. For this reason and more, Goa will always remain special and I hope to go back there again.

We stayed in Ozran heights beach resort in Vagator (quiet northern part of Goa) for 2 days and it was a bliss. It was a small and beautiful property with great views of the sea and easy walking access to the Vagator beach and all its beach shacks. 

Beach view from the resort

We booked a sea facing cabin that was cute and had good views.

The resort had a beautiful patio facing the sea, where they served delicious breakfast buffet in the mornings. We probably spent more time here than in our sea facing cabin :)

We spent majority of our time in Goa in the beach shacks, which I believe, are unique to Goa and what makes Goa special. They have a very relaxing atmosphere and delicious food & drinks are brought to you whether you choose to sit inside the shack or on one of their beach lounge chairs under the shade of their huge beach umbrellas. Some of them also have foot massage services (which we made use of :) and there are several vendors offering braiding services too.

We spent the whole of Saturday afternoon at Om Cafe on Vagator Beach eating grilled fish and sipping on freshly made juice while chatting endlessly.

View from inside the beach shack

We took a break from our long talks to play in the waters for an hour in the evening and enjoyed the sunset on the beach. We then did some shopping from vendors on the beach and headed back to our resort to get ready for dinner.

We got dressed up for dinner and debated between going to a club or another beach shack and guess what, the beach shack won, yet again. This time we sat on the lounge chairs on the beach and continued with our talking. We tried taking a lot of selfies too.

The next morning we got ready and headed to the Chapora Fort (of 'Dil Chahta Hai' Movie fame) after a good breakfast. It was only a couple of kilometers walk to the fort from the resort, though it was surprisingly hot for December. Luckily, there were several vendors selling coconut water, sugarcane juice etc. on the way to the top of the fort. There were several hawkers selling accessories and accepting payment using Paytm(!). 

The views from the top were good though the fort itself was only a flat area surrounded by a dilapidated wall.

On our way back, we stopped at an Ayurvedic healing center and I got a relaxing body massage for a very reasonable price. It seemed like the right thing to do in Goa :) Then, it was time for lunch, so we headed to another beach shack (named 'Lucky') and spent our afternoon relaxing there. It seemed like the right way to end the trip.

Though I heard that a lot of popular beaches can get very crowded and noisy in Goa, we managed to avoid the crowds by staying in Vagator the whole time and had a relaxing and fun time. Wish you find your piece of paradise soon!