Last Day of Goa Carnival

NOTE: Read this post only if you have loads of time in your hands. This is one of the longest posts you must have ever read and I am sure that if I try, I can come out with a book on our Goan Odyssey.

Our second day in Goa was on 28^th Feb and today is 29^th March. It’s been exactly a month and yet it seems we had been to Goa long time back.

The plans were all chalked out. Being an experienced campaigner of Goa, I suggested that we visit first go to Dona Paula and then visit Aguada Fort later in the evening. 7 guys… 2 bathrooms… and Atul…the bombardier… Getting late was bound to happen. Once Atul - Mr. Bombastic visits the loo, he turns it into a horrible gas chamber with all the poisonous gases. From next time, Atul will be the last person to empty his bowels filled with vicious gases. I guess, if anyone is locked inside a loo after Atul performs his ritual, even a sadist murderer will commit to his crime. Hum toh fir bhi bachhe hain.

Let me get back some better topic. Well, add to this nuisance some lazy bumps like Ali, who wake up only they get a dose from Atul who just bombards some obnoxious gases from his swelling belly. Sometimes, Atul does use his Weapon of Mass Destruction quite effectively. But Atul, beware of Mr. George Bush. He can attack and invade you anytime.

Finally after an hour, everyone is ready and one of the rooms turns into a busy make up room with all the guys applying a generous amount of Sun Screen Lotion on their faces, hands, shoulders and feet. Here, Rehan won hands down by applying so much lotion that he resembled a cricketer who applies Titanium Oxide on his face.

The second day in Goa and it was already noon before we finally made out way out of the rooms. Total wastage of precious time. This is because we are used to staying up late in the night and then getting up late. The last time I had been here with Tarun and Naveen, we were used to sleeping only for a few hours. We came home early in the morning just to have a quick wash and change our clothes.

With the sun over our heads, we started thinking. I don’t know why… but our group always does this. We always stand in the sweltering sun and start thinking. I guess we all must have been Jadoo (Aliens) who drew their power from the sun in our earlier births.

There is a Punjabi Dhaba bang opposite to the Calangute beach. So, we thought of skipping our breakfast and having brunch instead. The food was good enough. As Chicken was a strict NO, we had the opportunity of trying out each and every other dish. But, still I, Kandu and Rehan could not resist the tasty omelet. So, we ordered omelets along with Keema, some Punjabi Veg. items and Jeera Rice with Dal Makhani.

Now, it was the time for some dessert. So, each one of us picked up Frootis (our fuel) and headed straight to the Calungute bus stand. After being sent from one bus to another, finally we found the bus that would take us to the Panjim city, the capital of Goa. Since the bus was scheduled in the next 10 minutes, we had a brief Photo Session with all of us posing and the bus conductor willingly acting as the world renowned photographer by giving us instructions.

Soon, we were in the bus, 7 guys occupying all the 7 window seats of the bus. A 40 mins journey brought us to the Panjim Bus Stand. Again armed with a Frooti to beat the heat and the thirst, we took another bus which took us to Dona Paula. Dona Paula is hardly a 15 mins bus ride from Panjim. This time we had a tourist Map of Goa in our hands. The scene at Dona Paula was simply exotic.

(from L-R: Kandu, ME, Rehan, Atul, Anna, Nirav, Ali)

History goes that the beach is named after Dona Paula de Menzes, daughter of a viceroy, who threw herself off the cliff, when refused permission to marry a local fisherman, Gaspar Dias. 2 small statues have been erected at the place in the memories of the lovers. But, now both the statues are in shambles failing the test of the sea weather.

This story attracts many tourists and they come here just to feel the sweet pain of love. This beach has also been the location for many Indian movies such as the Ek Duje Ke Liye. I must admit that we all were awed by this scenic beauty of the place. The rocky cliffs and the deep blue sea just add to the splendid view.

After a quick photo session and spending some more time, imbibing the serenity of the place, we left for Panjim from where we caught another bus to get to our next destination – The Fort Aguada. But this time it was not an easy ride. There was no direct bus from Panjim to Fort Aguada. So, we had to get down at a crossroad and wait for another bus or hire a cab or auto. But, thanks to a kind driver of a local sight seeing tour bus, we got to our destination comfortably. It was he who told us to visit a nearby Lighthouse to the west end of the Fort.

We all were exited as it was the first time in our lives that we were visiting a Lighthouse. It was always one of my dreams to see how did the Lighthouse function. My dream came true after paying a nominal entrance fee. Myself and Kandu were the first ones to rush to the top. After climbing 3 storeys and finally an almost 85 degree ladder we were on the top of the Lighthouse. Apart from the caretaker and a foreign couple there was no one.

Lighthouse View

There were huge circular discs inside the Lighthouse which were made of Prisms to reflect a powerful beam of light. The view here was amazing. It was like feeling “Top of the World with your Friends.” As it was getting late we decided to hurry up. We also had to visit the Aguada Fort.

The word Aguada comes from Aqua which in Portuguese means Water. The Fort Aguada also played the role of a water station where the ships refueled their water supply. One of the buildings in the Fort has also been converted into a jail which is the largest jail in Goa. But, this Fort is more famous as the place where one of the famous scenes of the Superhit Film Dil Chahta Hai has been shot. 7 creative minds, a camera and a superb location make a very good combination. After posing from all the angles possible, we thought of heading home.

Dil Chahta Hai Pose at Fort Aguada

But wait… We had to cross 3 beaches to get there. The Sinquerim, Candolim and finally our home beach – The Calangute where all the action was gonna take place. It was the last day of Goa Carnival and the special guests for the evening were the Colonial Cousins. But before getting there, we had to cross a small jungle. At last…We were in a place where we belong – Animal Kingdom in the Jungle.

After crossing the dense ghana jungle and having some Sugarcane juice, Pani Puri and yummy Bhel Puri on the way, we reached the Sinquerim Beach. Hotel Taj is situated across the Sinquerim beach and the Aguada Fort. The beach stretches uninterrupted all the way from Sinquerim, Candolim to Calangute. It is on this beach that you can witness the bulky carrier River Princess which was washed to the shores one stormy night in June 2000. It a treat to the eyes but an ecological threat to the marine life. And let me tell you your trip to Goa is incomplete without watching this beauty.

River Princess at the Sinquerim Beach

Finally, we started walking toward Calangute after admiring the beauty of the beach, the setting sun, the golden sands, the sea breeze, the blue waters, the lovely shacks. Kandu was the only one who wanted to get into water. So, he stripped down to his undies and started playing in water like a small kid plays in bath tub. Walking on this beach transported me back to last December when I had come to Goa with Tarun and Naveen. Naveen in his search for a rave party had made us walk the entire distance in less than an hour. But, this time I was strolling at a leisurely pace.

The sun was setting and it was getting dark. We had to increase our pace because once it gets dark you can’t see a thing beyond 5 meters away from you. And the matters are made worse by the howling sounds of the wind and the sea. So, its better to stick to your group or the chances of getting lost are pretty high and this is what happened. We were all walking in a group except for Kandu and Rehan who had a different discussion in hand. All of a sudden, they started running past us. We were confused. So, even we started chasing them. I did not imagine that Rehan would run so fast.

While chasing them, on the way we also saw a UFO in the sky. We called it an UFO coz it was not a plane nor was it a falling star. It was an astounding sight. When it disappeared from our view, it was run time again. Finally puffing and panting we reached the Calangute beach. It was crowded to the brim. Here, we caught up the 2 Bhagodas.

A huge stage was put up on the beach near the entrance and an excellent band was performing LIVE. One of the best LIVE performances I have ever seen. It’s a pity that we don’t know the name of the band. But they were playing par excellence. Their performance was so good that even we were left wondering whether it was LIVE or recorded. But, it was LIVE indeed.

The crowd was going crazy and the band was belting out some cool racy numbers. Elvis Presley’s A Little Less Conversation was simply amazing and had the crowd go mad. But, we were too tired to move our legs. But nevertheless we were swaying to the music. There were many pretty girls around and were radars started working. After some time, a beautiful foreigner started dancing in front of us. When she was just about to approach us, her guide took her away dashing all our plans.

Kandu and Gala were the most disappointed. Soon, the performance came to an end and the fireworks covered the dark sky. The colorful fireworks bursting in the sky had everyone hypnotized. It was as if all the people were under its spell. The firework act went for non-stop 15 mins. After that it was the turn of the special guests of the evening – The Colonial Cousins. But, to be frank, I think that was a bad choice. The energetic Remo Fernandes, Euphoria or the Band of Boys would have been a much better choice to enliven the last day of the Carnival.

So, we came back to our rooms, had a wash, had our dinner at the same Punjabi Dhaba and then came to the beach again. On our way back to the beach, we bought 2 decks of playing cards. By the time we reached the beach, the atmosphere was all changed. Most of them seemed to be on a high after sipping some local Fenny or Vodka. There was some close body dancing going around. Most of the Indian Guys had pataoed Firang babes to be their close body dancing partners. We envied all those guys and cursed them to hell.

We all started searching around for Firang babes who could give us company. The trick what other guys followed was pretty simple. Just start dancing to a Firang babe and then she does the rest. So, everyone started looking around. But the bottom line was that no one had the guts to go and talk to a gal. Sab saale Fatoo Log and Bol Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan. So, there we were standing in the middle of the beach like LOSERS.

Hanging out there, we were ruing all our lost chances. Drained, exhausted and weary we were all planning to get to our rooms, but Kandu, Gala and Ali were adamant on staying back. And that night, Ali delivered the dialogue of the day – “Chal Yaar – Ek Last Try Maarte Hain. Nahi Hua Toh Gharpe.” But, his last chance never came and finally,we had to drag him home.

Discussing all the things we did today, the hot topic of the night was the Night at the Beach. Truly, we never got to do anything, but then we had a good time. We are used to being Losers. Ab toh Aadat Si Hai Humko Aise Jeene Ki… Kandu then brought out the cards and taught us to play Rummy. And let me add this for the record. I won the first game while Kandu Lost. Saala Loser.

Anyways guys… I doubt if anyone has read all the way down here without skipping 4-5 paragraphs. But then, I had to put this down here because maybe some years down the line, when we all read this, we would recollect all these special events of our life.

I am almost at the end of the 4^th page in Microsoft Word. I guess, I have to stop now. If anyone finds a longer post than this one, please let me know. Else I am planning to apply to the Guinness World Records for my great achievement.

VIVA Goa Carnival and the Animal Kingdom. More parts to continue. Keep watching this space for more fun.