GOA: THE BUBBLE

The cult Indian state of Goa, notably famous for its psychedelic parties, its hippie vibe and its “calmer” atmosphere more suitable to western tastes, has much to divide the travelers’ opinions about it. Indeed, when one thinks of Goa, the immediate feeling is of beaches and coconut trees which will have to coexist with hordes of tourists coming to party, and that one will come across an India which is very westernized and full of clichés. But fortunately this little state has more than one trick up its sleeve and cannot be reduced to those famous beaches and this pseudo-spiritual festive atmosphere. Having had the bright idea of reaching the region for New Year’s Eve, we had to be cunning to find decent inexpensive accommodation, something which is hard to come across during this super touristic period. But thanks to Nacho’s patience, who scrolled through the map of the region kilometer after kilometer on the Airbnb website and we found the gold nugget in the midst of all these offers, which was the antithesis of what we had expected. And as life often works out well, we found ourselves in the small fishing village of Velsao, far from everything, in the midst of coconut trees, just by a huge sandy beach. We’re not going to lie, there were some other tourists (especially Russians) who were also in the area. But at Velsao we were almost cut off from the world in this timeless corner of paradise with the beach almost for the two of us alone! We settled into a quiet and soothing pace of life and put down some roots: ten days spent taking in the sweetness of this region which is also strangely far removed from the usual clichés about India! Indeed, there was none of the usual chaos, no noise and no saris! Yes, I assure you: here, it is no longer the saris of women which delight the eyes of the traveler, but the incredible houses which appear out of this lush greenery as spots of bright vivid colors. Pink, purple, yellow and blue villas make up this green landscape. We rented a scooter for a few days to wander around the area and to discover other beaches and the very influential Portuguese legacy which is still very present to this day, whether it’s in the many churches embedded in the landscape, the Portuguese words that sneak into the Konkana dialect or the absolutely surreal cribs and other bright Christmas decorations adorning the houses. Undoubtedly Goa stands out and surprises us with its unique identity, a sort of bubble away from the Indian frenzy.