Alright let's get something straight here- 'spring break' is a huge stretch. We got 2 days off in addition to the weekend and three of those days were spent doing educational activities, just sayin'. Too many liabilities with 10 college students running around a beach town I suppose :)
We did so many things that I can hardly remember it all, already! Also, my camera's battery died on the first day, so I have almost no pictures- prepare for a wordy post! Goa is such a wonderful place, and I highly recommend going there if you can. There are so many cultural events to attend, historical sights to see, beautiful places to stay, lush countryside, beaches with palm trees, and the ocean of course!
Here is a quick vid of Goa :)
One of my favorite things we did was visit an organic spice farm. You are free to ooh and ahhh. I did. This place is run by a young man who took over his father's spice farm and revamped it. The really incredible thing about this is that he is fluent in English and went off to America and is fully educated up to his MBA. He came back to run the farm because he respects the work his father did, and has a passion for spice farming. Who knew. He is very charismatic and thoroughly passionate about what he does so it was a really enjoyable afternoon.
It is acres of space filled with lush green plants, palm trees, and sounds of monkeys in the near distance. It was like a jungle and I was lovin' life. We learned how vanilla is grown (up around a tree because it can't support itself), saw coffee beans being grown, and looked at cocoa pods. He convinced many of us to eat ants, because it is a really good source of protein. I'll give you one guess as to whether or not I participated. If you guessed that I skillfully avoided the activity, you'd be correct. He showed us pineapples growing, which was fascinating. One was ripe so he plucked it off and we ate it for lunch. I was officially in heaven. Or so I thought- the best was yet to come.
Found on this property is a sacred pool. Yes, you read that right. Not only that, but it contains those fishies that nibble away your dead skin- it's a type of pedicure that you pay $$$ for. I don't really understand that, but I'm crazy ticklish and couldn't handle even one nibble. Apparently it's great though... Anyway, the other fascinating thing about this pool is that bubbles come up from the ground, and they respond to vibrations. If you clap, the frequency of bubbles appearing increases. HOW COOL IS THAT?! And it was hot out, and the pool was cool, so it had that going for it as well. We got in our bathing suits and hopped in. Ahhh. After trekking through the hot jungle it was just nirvana slipping into the cool water and floating around. It was a sad moment when we had to get out, but then we told we were headed to lunch and all was right with the world.
Lunch was incredibly delicious. One of the great things about Goa is the seafood. One of the dishes at lunch was prawn curry. I could not. stop. eating it. I still can't eat things with bones in it (long story- used to be strict vegetarian) but prawns do not have this problem. How can you go wrong with what is essentially shrimp the size of a nickel? Nom nom.
We also saw a LOT of churches. Very interesting, after being in a country where you mostly see temples and gudwaras.
Another highlight was our day off that we were free to use as we so pleased. Naturally we all headed to the beach!! We all arrived, excited and pasty and ready for sun (ok that middle one really only pertains to me...). The second we arrived on the beach, we realized that something was a little off- we did not see a single female for miles. It was, to put it colloquially, a sausage fest. Oh dear. Indian men. EVERYWHERE. So, desperate to escape this area where none of us wanted to be, let alone in our bathing suits, we just started walking. As we walked, the beach slowly thinned out and after 15 minutes we felt pretty comfortable settling down. We even saw some white people! Excitement abounded. After literally slathering myself with sunscreen (y'all know how desperately I need that, particularly in a tropical location) and letting it dry I practically ran into the water. Being a Maine beach girl myself, I particularly appreciate beaches where I can stay in the water for longer than 30 seconds without needing to worry about hypothermia. This certainly fulfilled that requirement- clear blue water with the temperature of bath water. Amazing. I never wanted to get out, and I practically didn't- except to get some sun and cocktails. And sun I got. Lordy did I get burned! It started peeling this morning actually. Joy. But it was totally worth it. I'd say 'SB 2012' was a success!!
ttfn
We did so many things that I can hardly remember it all, already! Also, my camera's battery died on the first day, so I have almost no pictures- prepare for a wordy post! Goa is such a wonderful place, and I highly recommend going there if you can. There are so many cultural events to attend, historical sights to see, beautiful places to stay, lush countryside, beaches with palm trees, and the ocean of course!
Here is a quick vid of Goa :)
One of my favorite things we did was visit an organic spice farm. You are free to ooh and ahhh. I did. This place is run by a young man who took over his father's spice farm and revamped it. The really incredible thing about this is that he is fluent in English and went off to America and is fully educated up to his MBA. He came back to run the farm because he respects the work his father did, and has a passion for spice farming. Who knew. He is very charismatic and thoroughly passionate about what he does so it was a really enjoyable afternoon.
It is acres of space filled with lush green plants, palm trees, and sounds of monkeys in the near distance. It was like a jungle and I was lovin' life. We learned how vanilla is grown (up around a tree because it can't support itself), saw coffee beans being grown, and looked at cocoa pods. He convinced many of us to eat ants, because it is a really good source of protein. I'll give you one guess as to whether or not I participated. If you guessed that I skillfully avoided the activity, you'd be correct. He showed us pineapples growing, which was fascinating. One was ripe so he plucked it off and we ate it for lunch. I was officially in heaven. Or so I thought- the best was yet to come.
Found on this property is a sacred pool. Yes, you read that right. Not only that, but it contains those fishies that nibble away your dead skin- it's a type of pedicure that you pay $$$ for. I don't really understand that, but I'm crazy ticklish and couldn't handle even one nibble. Apparently it's great though... Anyway, the other fascinating thing about this pool is that bubbles come up from the ground, and they respond to vibrations. If you clap, the frequency of bubbles appearing increases. HOW COOL IS THAT?! And it was hot out, and the pool was cool, so it had that going for it as well. We got in our bathing suits and hopped in. Ahhh. After trekking through the hot jungle it was just nirvana slipping into the cool water and floating around. It was a sad moment when we had to get out, but then we told we were headed to lunch and all was right with the world.
Lunch was incredibly delicious. One of the great things about Goa is the seafood. One of the dishes at lunch was prawn curry. I could not. stop. eating it. I still can't eat things with bones in it (long story- used to be strict vegetarian) but prawns do not have this problem. How can you go wrong with what is essentially shrimp the size of a nickel? Nom nom.
We also saw a LOT of churches. Very interesting, after being in a country where you mostly see temples and gudwaras.
 |
| Me at the remains of an ollld church. Stopped in at the Chapel of Our Lady of Good Success. Can't hurt, right? |
Another highlight was our day off that we were free to use as we so pleased. Naturally we all headed to the beach!! We all arrived, excited and pasty and ready for sun (ok that middle one really only pertains to me...). The second we arrived on the beach, we realized that something was a little off- we did not see a single female for miles. It was, to put it colloquially, a sausage fest. Oh dear. Indian men. EVERYWHERE. So, desperate to escape this area where none of us wanted to be, let alone in our bathing suits, we just started walking. As we walked, the beach slowly thinned out and after 15 minutes we felt pretty comfortable settling down. We even saw some white people! Excitement abounded. After literally slathering myself with sunscreen (y'all know how desperately I need that, particularly in a tropical location) and letting it dry I practically ran into the water. Being a Maine beach girl myself, I particularly appreciate beaches where I can stay in the water for longer than 30 seconds without needing to worry about hypothermia. This certainly fulfilled that requirement- clear blue water with the temperature of bath water. Amazing. I never wanted to get out, and I practically didn't- except to get some sun and cocktails. And sun I got. Lordy did I get burned! It started peeling this morning actually. Joy. But it was totally worth it. I'd say 'SB 2012' was a success!!
ttfn
Hi Sweetie!
ReplyDeleteHow incredibly fabulous! Your way of telling a story has me seeing you there so clearly! It sounds like a wonderful spring break/day of respite/fantastic getaway! I couldn't be happier that you are having such an amazing time.
All my love and pride,
Mom
Glad you had such a grand SB, sorry about the camera--hope you can find batteries, still have your phone cam too. But mainly, glad you're having a great time.
ReplyDeleteD
Thanks momma :)
ReplyDeleteI have 2 more batteries to use- I just didn't bring them with me to Goa. Silly me!