Finally, yesterday we had found a property close the beach. Woke up early at 5 for a run on the beach. It was still dark and the phone torchlight came in handy. Water was at low tide, and it was wonderful running along the beach. So what do you do when you are about to step on a six inch crab while running? Answer: step out away from the ocean - crabs tend to go towards the ocean when they sense danger. That particular crab just about survived, and may be it thinks the same way about me! Some local were just beginning to cross through the beach by the time I finished the run at 6:30.
We had targeted a 7am departure and were soon on our way to Udupi. Mornings are lovely to drive in - fresh and uncrowded. We hit Udupi in half hour. Udupi is the birthplace of some of south Indian food like idli, vada and dosa. So we had all three and.more for breakfast. Sumptuous stuff. Topped with a paan, we were all set to continue on our morning drive.
We were making good progress on time. I thought we could have hit goa by lunch. That didn't really appeal to anyone (something to do with my driving that morning) so we figured we will take a few long cuts. Stopped by murudeshwara which has a temple and a shiv murti (and like
many other religious places, loads of entertainment around it - boat rides, island tours and the works - for Indians, religion is mostly a form of entertainment).
We had a good photo session, including photos on the car. When we started the car back, we realized the car had got stuck in the sand, and the wheels were spinning freely. Some locals came to help, but the car seemed to be digging a deeper hole for itself. Put in some stuff under the car for traction - no luck. Finally, some people pushed the car out and we were back on the road.
This segment of the drive was one of the most beautiful. At some points, the ocean to the left, a river to the right, and the road went in between for miles. The roads had gotten wider and there was very little traffic - I guess we had the best for the last.
Ameet suggested we go to jog falls, only a 90km detour. As we were favourably considering him, a road sign suggested it might be 90km one way. Ameet volunteered that there are 1500 steps we may climb down (and back up) there. That was the end of it - that's five or six qutab minars! We decided we will spend more time at Gokarn instead. The drive to Gokarn was great. It winded around green mountains, with some spectacular views of the ocean. Shortly before we hit Gokarn, the view into kudli beach was amazing.
Om beach itself was a bit of a let down but had a few shacks. One that we visited first was run by a hippie who came here decades back and decided to stay on - there seem to be many of such settlers here. The food at this place wasn't great, so we shifted to another one. Had a relaxed lunch over more than an hour and a half and then headed back to the highway.
We hit baga beach in goa at 6, and took Pawan and ashish about an hour to find a hotel - apparantly this time, Pawan went to kanyakumari in search of rameshwaram (so to say!) Finally settled in at La Calypso. It had good rooms, a nice garden and was right on the beach. Freshened up (yes, its been a few days) and went to Britos for dinner. They have some great goan food, and with the beachside location, one could sit there for hours.
Time to hit a night club - Cavala bar. They had a live band performing there. Some electrifying old rock! Junta was having a great time in what was a relatively small room with a bar. Looked like our goa evening was beginning to warm up. As is customary in these environments, Pawan reported that three women hit on him that evening. Rest of us were stars twinkling away under sunshine!
At 10:45 the last drinks were announced (there are elections in march and these guys aren't allowed to play after that time) and we thought of heading to a night club. Ameet had been excited all day about this place Cape Town where he was sure he would find "Russian babes". We soon realized that the 11pm embargo applied to nightclub as well, and that meant it was the end of today's party. Goa shut at 11 - doesn't make sense. Ashish was especially crestfallen, as he was just getting in a happy mood. We swung by a casino - there were no cards. You could play card games on machines installed on casino tables. High tech for no reason... Pawan won a few hundred bucks on blackjack over half hour and then lost it all (and more) on roulette in half a minute. Back to the room, we had some drinks and poker, bringing and end to our last evening of the trip.
Lovely beaches and live music
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Goa, Goa, India
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2025-02-16