South Goa – Palolem Beach

 

South Goa, compared to North Goa, is a paradise. We stayed at Palolem beach which is a beautiful beach lined with palm trees and beach huts. We spent another 5 nights here and relaxed….. alot.

 

While I was at the beach I partook in a Yoga class (Goa is famous for it’s Yoga). I can safely say Yoga is 1. harder than it looks and 2. definitely not for me! We also hired kayak’s and were lucky enough to see some dolphins playing in the bay and more interestingly we also saw them hunting.

 

At first I made out a wave that didn’t seem to be part of the sea’s regular ebb and flow, after watching the same spot of water for a couple of minutes I began to make out the odd fin or snout protruding from the wave in question. The dolphins seemed to be working together to create a wave and to drive their prey in to a frenzy where they were able to pick them off – it was amazing to watch!

 

On one of the days we took out scooters along with two friends we’d met. We made our way up the coast line visiting different beaches and taking in the beautiful countryside and Goan way of life. It was a great way to spend a day and a great way to cool down!

 

One of the interesting things about Goa is that a few years ago a law was passed banning loud music past a certain time at night – this was to crack down on the infamous raves that used to plague Goa. As an answer to this ban there are now slient discos every other night. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept it is a disco where everyone is given headphones – often with different channels so you are given a choice of music – and you continue in the same way you would at a normal disco but without keeping those who live nearby up all night. The other advantage is that you can still have a conversation with friends without having to shout at the top of your voice. One of the most enjoyable things about them is taking your headphones off during a popular sing-a-long track and listening to everyone straining their voices with no hint of the music to cover up their vocal sins – or at least it would be enjoyable if I wasn’t straining my voice and committing vocal sins of my own.

 

After five nights at Palolem we still had another 3 nights left before we had to catch a train back north again. Given the advice of many friends we had met at the beach we decided to head to the ancient city of Hampi, after a kafuffle with our tickets we eventually made it onto a night bus and we were on our way.