© Lonely Planet Publications 80 www.lonelyplanet.com CENTRAL 81 Central Goa Castle Rock Belgaum (155km) Dharwar (146km); To Londa (111km); To Londa Junction; Central Goa Falls s 4A

t Dudhsagar a G h n t e r We s K A R N A T A K A K A R N A T A K A Colem

Travellers often make a beeline for the beaches of north or south Goa, but some of the Train Station National Park highlights of the state are in central Goa. By exploring this region, you will easily find the Molem Tambdi Surla 010 km 010 0 miles 6 pulse of Goa. Mahadeva Temple Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary Surla CENTRAL GOA

Bhagwan Mahavir

Wildlife Sanctuary ay

ilw a

Panaji (Panjim) is Goa’s most interesting town (calling it a city would be something of Sigao al R al

SATARI

ntr an overstatement) and, with its Portuguese Old Quarter (also called the Latin Quarter), a e

SANGUEM

C h

repository of historical and architectural splendour. It is a melting pot of old and new, and a 4A out Sancordem S

meeting point for culture and commerce – alleyways wind their way between whitewashed Cotorem CENTRAL GOACENTRAL

churches and boutiques selling international brand-name products. The state capital is 4A idyllically located on the , and cruises (despite their noise and nonsense) Valpoi offer an opportunity to see from another perspective. This understated town is one Darbandora Sanvordem Pascoal Sanvordem Train Station Spice Farm Bondla Wildlife of Goa’s highlights. Sanctuary QUEPEM Usgao Tisk

About 9km to the east of Panaji is , one of the finest attractions in the state, and Usgao Onda Bamboi

the reason that Goa was known in the 17th century as the Rome of the East. Here, laterite See Ponda & Around Map (p111)

churches and cathedrals (including the basilica containing the almost 500-year-old body Betora Shiroda Kandepar Sahakari Spice Farm

of St ) are all that remain of the former Portuguese capital. Old Goa is now a Temple Shantadurga

River Ponda Unesco World Heritage site that travellers and pilgrims are enamoured with. Masjid Safa Shahouri Savoi Verem PONDA Sanquelim The temples and spice gardens around Ponda make an interesting day trip from Panaji. Durbhat BICHOLIM i Two of Goa’s wildlife sanctuaries are also in this part of the state. Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary ndov Banasterim Ma Temple Ramnath Farmagudi Temple

Manguesh

is well set up for wildlife-spotting, while a 4WD trip through Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife 17

Railway

an

k

n Margao Sanctuary will take you to Dudhsagar, Goa’s highest waterfall. o K Train Station Verna Naroa 17 Train Station MORMUGAO Karmali Old Goa (Old Goa) Piedade Pilar Train Station Cortalim Seminary Divar Island Dr Salim Ali

HIGHLIGHTS Church of

Bird Sanctuary St Lawrence Island 4A Chorao Agassaim

St Anne

r Church of Old Goa ve i Church of Stay in a colonial heritage hotel and eat out R St Andrew Dabolim

Panaji Goa Velha

in the Old Quarter in Panaji ( p82 ), Goa’s most (Panjim) Train Station

Ribandar y apusa

a

elegant city M

B 17A

Bambolim )

Ponda Dr Salim Ali ji

Explore the magnificent churches of Old Goa Bird Sanctuary

a

jim n

n o

Dias

a a

Gaspar P

a

(p100 ), a bike ride and an era away from P ( 17 Betim Dudhsagar Caranzalem g Dona Paula Airport Dabolim

modern-day Panaji Falls u

m

r Learn how spices can change your life and dine o Mormugao Beach Gama (3km)

Miramar M Vasco da S e a

on a traditional lunch at a spice farm ( p114 ) Niwas To Cabo Raj Bay near Ponda A r a b i a n Aguada

Take a 4WD trip through the jungle and swim Fort Aguada at the base of ( p116 ) Float through mangroves in a dugout canoe and look for cranes and kingfishers at Dr ( p100 ). CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL GOA times of Goatoday. life offer intothelife an easyinsight and the ebbandflow of day-to-day municipal aforeigner wanderingin) and tosee prised restaurants (someof which willstillbesur- on thebeach. Thebustlingmarkets, busy nice prelude orendingtolackadaisicaldays ably accessibleonfoot.Panjim makes fora its compactsizemakes comfort- everything and capital lazy inthisslow-paced,low-rise it easyisalive andwell.Openinghours are whereback capital theGoanspiritof taking do welltolinger alittlelonger in thislaid- beaches of thenorth orsouth,theywould up anddown. a catwalkforthetouristboatsthat parade border of Panaji itbecomes andatnight with sharp-edged modernconstructions. gets busierandoldbuildingsare replaced prosperity comesintofocusasthetraffic are tobefound.Itishere where thestate’s trict of Patto, where buildings thetallest subtle Hindutemples. laneways thatare ashortwalkfromnot-so- whitewashed churches are tucked insmall that issplicedintotheIndianmilieu;plain history thePortuguese particularly evinces tidy streets. Theoldquarter of shutters andrickety balconiesoverhanging distinctive red-tiled roofs, woodenwindow with ways are houses linedwithPortuguese ently of therest of India; windingalley- independ- signthatGoaevolved blatant changingsuit theirever capital. andadaptingthatlegacyto ally maintaining dian descendantsare proudtobecontinu- mark onthissmall,neattownandtheirIn- leftanindelible originality. ThePortuguese Panaji (Panjim) boastsitsown brandof ofIn acountrycomposed uniquecities, % PANAJI 82 was built here toguard theentrance to the Muslim sultan Yussuf AdilShah, afortress after Goacame underthecontrol of the Inaround 1500,shortly fishing settlements. littlemoreit contained thanacouple of was originallymarshland, andforcenturies Much of thearea on which Panaji stands History Though touristsoftenThough dartofftothe The Mandovi River lapsthenorthern Across Ourem Creek isthebusinessdis- The architecture of Panaji isthemost CENTRALGOA ••Panaji 0832 /pop93,000 Goa became more desperate, the landbegan as conditions inOld own estates. However, owners thearea who hadchosen for their projects undertaken byafew wealthyland- mostly asprivatelate 17thcentury, though salt. deposits of sea area leaving andevaporates, yellow-brown water floodsthe sea forsaltpans; is used is stillmarshy. The area southof the road thattheground Old Goatoday,you cansee that were decimatingthepopulation. ofbecause therepeated cholera epidemics years later, OldGoahadtobeabandoned a feasible alternative when, as the capital sighted pieceof planning.ItmadePanjim of thevillage atitseastern end),wasafar- (fromthename as theRibandarCauseway ated by marshland. The3kmroute, known Goa, which separ- untilthattimehadbeen and Old nameforthesettlement) tuguese wasbuilttojoinPanjimcauseway (thePor- of theviceroy,countof Linhares, a completed in1634when,undertheorders rival inIndia. sailors celebratingtheirsafe ar-Portuguese in Goa,thechurch wasthefirst stopforthe ships hadtocallinatthefortress onarrival Sinceall maculate Conceptionnowstands. the huge Church of of theIm- OurLady church inaround 1540onthesite where place atthistimewastheraisingof asmall officers were pressed intomanuallabour. before his thateven thenextMuslimattack was insuch ahurrytocomplete thework fications. Accountsof thathe thetimesay rebuilding of thefortress tohisownspeci- the so, Albuquerquepersonally supervised Govepuri (today’sOld Goa). Having done ber before hecouldretake itandthecityof the positionandhadtowaituntilNovem- was forcedbyYussuf AdilShah toabandon wereit. Hisefforts invain,forMay he aboutreinforsoon tookthefortandset cing de Albuquerque arrived inMarch 1510he site.on thesame Buildingstands today’sSecretariat although anything, of theoriginalstructure remains, corruptionof Little,if tuguese AdilKhan. as theIdalcao’sPalace, IdalcaobeingaPor- Mandovi. Thebuildinglater becameknown Limited reclamation took placeinthe As you drive eastfromPanaji towards The first large-scale landreclamation was The onlyotherbitof buildingthattook noblemanAfonso When thePortuguese www.lonelyplanet.com www.lonelyplanet.com meant thatbuilding work was low-key. and lack of money and political interest forgotten corner of empire, thePortuguese Goawas a though, the library. Inessence headquarters and government and offices) were thearmybarracks (nowthepolice title. Amongthepublic buildingserected place tomake worthy of thenewcapital its ofas capital Goa. Aspate of buildingtook governmentrecognised bythePortuguese as Nova Goa, andin1843itwasfinally ing shape. In1834,Panjim becameknown Panjim, andmore landwasreclaimed. itmoved whocouldafford issue. Those to to livechosen inPanjim the rathersealed thefactthat viceroyhad a newcapital, asthebestlocation for ready selected been residence. Mormugao hadal- Although where hetookover thefortress ashisown healthy anewlocationwassought. epidemics, butwhenthattoobecame un- near present-day Ribandar,toescapethe most of thenoblemen moved toPanelim, Atfirstfrom thecapital. the viceroyand to supportincreasing numbers of refugees By theearly19thcenturycitywas tak- In 1759theviceroymoved toPanjim, strangled before thepyre waslit. be burnedatthestake. Those whowere willingtoadmittheirheresy atthelastmomentwere tolling ofthegreat bellinthecathedraltower. Iftheyfailed the test of faiththeywouldusually ceremony, whichwasconducted inthesquare outsidetheSeCathedral andaccompaniedbythe were detainedindefinitely inthedungeonsbeneathPalace oftheInquisition. Panaji. The were more victims strippedoftheirpossessions;thosewhowere fortunate lesslucky State MuseuminPanaji, andbelowthecrucifixthatnowhangsinChapelofStSebastian fear. The tribunalsatregularly injudgmentbefore tablethattodayisintheGoa thelong carved wereits will. theirfaithandeven forbiddentopractise theChristian populationlived in eastern empire.Portuguese spreadtribunal wasknownastheGoaInquisition,butitsjurisdiction across thewholeof request ofthemissionaries,adepositionInquisitionarrived inGoa1560.The new settlers. Atised atthelaxbehaviourofbothnewChristiansandotherPortuguese the by relocating tothecoloniesoverseas. Judaism, were theiroldfaith.Manyescapedtheoppression secretly inPortugal stillobserving ofrumoursthatmanynewChristians,includingthosewhohadbeenconverted frombackground out, theyarrived sooner. that theworstexcessesofEuropean religious zeal shouldreach Goasoonerorlater. As itturned When Vasco spicesandChristians’itwasperhapsinevitable daGamasailedforIndia‘seeking THE The Inquisitionwassuppressed inGoa1774. Those whowere of thefaith),apublic (act judgedguiltyunderwentthenotoriousauto-da-fé Having establisheditselfinthesultan’soldpalaceOldGoa,tribunalset aboutimposing It wasn’tlongbefore theaccusationsfollowedthemandmissionariesbegantobescandal- inthelate 15thcenturyagainst a inSpainandPortugal The Inquisitionwasre-established unique atmosphere and colonialheritage. authorities are aware of retaining thecity’s road workhastaken place,butlocalsand Panaji. theyears, newbuildingand Over notalothasalteredin 2000.However, in hill justnorthof Panaji andinaugurated new Assembly Complexwasbuiltonthe a signof Panaji’s progressiveness, theflash of theGoan Independence movement. As a coupleof were statues erected toheroes ing becamehometotheState Assembly and changes were Build- made. TheSecretariat was renamed Panaji andafew superficial the departure of thecity thePortuguese, dependence fromPortugalin1961. After size andshapeof thetownuntilGoa’sin- south. Dayanand Bandodkar (DB) Margsouth. Dayanand Bandodkar is ground of the quaint Altinho districtto the Mandovi River tothenorth andthehigh part of the between the townissandwiched der about andexplore atleisure. Themain way around;it’s interesting justtowan- Panaji placetofindyour isnotadifficult Despite thenumerous tinybackstreets, Orientation In effect thereIn effect waslittlechange tothe CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji

83 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA 84 0 300 m PANAJI 0 0.2 miles CENTRALGOA ••Panaji

A B C D E F To Assembly INFORMATION Government of India Tourist Office..11 D3 Menezes Air Travel...... (see 88) Chapel of St Sebastian...... 28 E4 Complex (200m); American Express...... (see 88) HDFC Bank ATM...... 12 B4 Police Headquarters...... 20 C3 Chief Minister’s Residence...... 29 C5 Betim (2km); British Tourist Assistance Office...... 1 F4 HDFC Bank ATM...... 13 B4 Portuguese Honorary Consulate...... 21 F5 Church of Our Lady of the Torda (4km); 1 Mapusa (13km) 1 Broadway Book Centre...... (see 65) ICICI Bank ATM...... 14 C4 Shruti Communications...... (see 63) ...... 30 D3 Cell Tone...... 2 D3 ICICI Bank ATM...... 15 C4 Singbal's Book House...... 22 D3 ...... 31 E5 Central Telegraph Office...... 3 D3 Income Tax Office...... (see 62) State Bank of India...... 23 C2 Institute Menezes Braganza...... 32 C2 Centurion Bank ATM...... 4 B3 Italian Honorary Consulate...... 16 F3 Thomas Cook...... 24 B2 Jama Masjid...... 33 D4 Conservator of Forest, Wildlife & Iway business centre...... 17 E3 UTI Bank ATM...... 25 F3 Junta House...... (see 5) Ecotourism...... 5 C4 KTC (Katamda Transport Mahalaxmi Temple...... 34 C4

Cyberjoint...... (see 83) Coporation)...... (see 87) SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES Maruti Temple...... 35 D5 Panaji (Panjim) E-zy Travels...... 6 C4 Log Inn...... 18 C3 Bishop’s Palace...... 26 C5 Panaji Central Library...... (see 32) Foreigners Registration Office...... (see 20) Main Post Office...... 19 E3 Caravela Casino...... 27 C2 Pedro Fernandez Music...... 36 E3 Forest Department...... 7 C4 Public Observatory...... (see 5) German Honorary Consulate...... 8 E3 To Betim 27 Santa Monica Jetty...... 37 F3 2 Goa Medical College...... 9 A3 Panaji Secretariat Building...... 38 D2 2 Goa Tourism Development Jetty Statue of Abbé Faria...... 39 D2 66 Corporation (GTDC) Office...... 10 F3 Mandovi River Mandovi 75 Bridge Goa Tourism Development 44 23 39 Corporation (GTDC) Tourist ὈὈ Mandovi River 60 Information Centre...... (see 87) 38

24 32 Ormuz Rd Dayanand Bandodkar Marg 41 Avenida Dom Joao Castro Gen Costa Alvares Rd 68 Steps Heliodoro Salgado Rd Azad Maidan 53 85 2 46 72 17 New Pato Malaca Rd 70 50 63 Bridge 37 Swami Vivekanand Rd 36 MG Rd 20 Municipal Rd 86 Gardens 84 59 To Chorao Island (4km); 83 19 Fish 79 Sao Tomé Old Goa (9km); Divar (Church 47 Island (9.5km); Karmali Market Dr RS Rd 77 Square) 3 Jose Falcao Old Pato Train Station (12km); 3 ὈὈ ὈὈὈMG Ὀ Rd ὈὈὈ76 Ὀ 71 9 Bridge Ponda (34km) Campal Dr Pisurlekar Rd 30 8 88 64 Cunha-Rivara Rd Gardens 80 31st January Rd GP Rd 82 11 22 52 General Bernado Guedes Rd 78 65 69 Emidio Gracia Rd 10 Dr P Shirgaonkar67 Rd 4 3 Marg Steps 42 62 16 18 Dr Alvaro Costa Rd 25 6 45 33 Footbridge

89 www.lonelyplanet.com 43 49 CA Rd 61 74 14 ὈὈ Ὀ Ὀ 57 St Sebastian Rd 1 To Goa Medical 5 73 College Hospital (9km); Bambolim (9km); 13 Avenida Pe Agnelo 40 (29km); Dayanand Bandodkar 18th June Rd 15 Ourem Rd Dr Dada Vaidya Rd 28 Vasco da Gama (32km); 4 12 48 4 7 Margao (34km) 51 34 56 54 81 87 Campal Dr Atmaram Borkar Rd 58 Fontainhas Patto 55 ὈὈ Altinho www.lonelyplanet.com ὈὈὈTo Kala Academy (50m); Air India (3km); Reading Habit (3km); Boca da Steps Fountain Goa Marriott Resort (3km); Vaca Spring Steps Waterfront Bar & Terrace (3km); Armada Portuguesa Rd Ourem Creek Youth Hostel (3km); 31 Miramar Beach (3.5km); Dr Gama Pinto Rd Dona Paula (9km) Military Camp Mala 21 5 Dr Braganza Pereira Rd 5

29 Panaji (Panjim) 35 Ὀ 26 To Dabolim SLEEPING Airport (29km); Pedro Fernandez Music...... (see 72) Margao (34km) Afonso Guest House...... 40 E4 Velha Goa Galleria...... 81 E4 Garden View Hotel...... 41 D3 Orav's Guest House...... 52 E3 Horse Shoe...... 62 E3 DRINKING Hotel Aroma...... (see 70) Panaji Residency...... 53 E3 Hotel Venite...... 63 E3 Ace Pub...... 74 C4 TRANSPORT Hotel Embassy...... 42 E3 Panjim Inn...... 54 E4 Kamat Hotel...... 64 D3 Top Gear Pub...... 75 D2 Air India...... (see 43) Hotel Fidalgo...... 43 C4 Panjim People's...... 55 E4 Pakwaan...... 65 C3 Underground Arena...... 76 D3 Air Sahara...... 82 B3 Hotel Mandovi...... 44 C2 Panjim Pousada...... 56 E4 Quarterdeck...... 66 C2 Cyberjoint...... 83 D3 Hotel Nova Goa...... 45 C4 Park Lane Lodge...... 57 E4 Satkar...... 67 C3 ENTERTAINMENT Cycle Store...... 84 C3 6 Hotel Republica...... 46 D3 Ria Residency...... 58 E4 Shanbag Café...... 68 D3 Cine Nacional...... 77 C3 Indian Airlines...... 85 B3 6 Hotel Sona...... 47 E3 Udipi Boarding & Lodging...... 59 E3 Sher-E-Punjab...... 69 C3 Inox Cinema...... 78 A3 Interstate Private Bus Stand...... 86 F3 Hotel Virashree...... 48 C4 Sher-E-Punjab...... 70 D3 Jet Airways...... (see 16) Keni's Hotel...... 49 C4 EATING Texas Bar & Restaurant...... 71 C3 SHOPPING Kadamba Bus Stand...... 87 F4 Mandovi White House...... 50 E3 Café Coffee Day...... 60 D2 Vihar...... 72 E3 Municipal Market...... 79 B3 Menezes Air Travel...... 88 E3 Mayfair Hotel...... 51 C4 Gujarat Sweet Mart...... 61 C4 Viva Panjim...... 73 E4 New Municipal Market...... 80 B3 Private Bus Agents...... 89 F4 a nicefamily. Falcao Rd;perhrRs30)Aboutfivecomputersoverseenby Bldg, 18thJuneRd; scanning facilities. building asCheckInnHotel,justoff18thJune Rd. Alsohas Chambers; perhrRs30; collection oflanguageguides. collection of mostlyeducationalbooks. There are afew novelsanda [email protected]; ChurchSquare) Amodestcollection more computers. thanotherplacesbutflashier andwith hr Rs40)Pricier information onallthingsPanaji. bythecitycouncil,this isausefulwebsite,for Maintained Shruti Communications Log Inn Iway Cyberjoint ACCESS INTERNET Police Fire Ambulance EMERGENCY Singbal’s BookHouse Habit Reading Broadway BookCentre be foundinthePanaji area. There are somevery decentbookshops to BOOKSHOPS Information ern sideof thetown, acrossOurem Creek. west. TheKadamba busstand andMiramarinthe the eastandtoCampal and continuingtotheNewPato Bridge fore becomingAvenida DomJoaoCastro Buildingbe- all thewaytoSecretariat a major thatskirtstheMandovi boulevard Panaji Central Library Panaji Central LIBRARIES Corporation oftheCity ofPanaji RESOURCESINTERNET Braganza, Malaca Rd; Braganza, Malaca Dayanand Bandodkar Marg. Marg. Dayanand Bandodkar Hotelon It’s diagonallyoppositetheturn-offtoMarriot ofclothingforsaleupstairs. There’s alsoasmallselection to theregion andmanytitlesfocusedonGoanhistory. guides sellingvarious also acomprehensive travelsection Indianliterature. There is particularly offiction, collection Miramar; Marg, made fromhere; it’soff31stJanuaryRd,under HotelVenite. of English fiction and books on Goa. Next to Rizvi Tower. toRizvi andbooksonGoa. Next of Englishfiction (

% Business Centre ( % (Login; 101) ( 100) ( % % h ( % 5640190, 2435905,9822131835;Jose % 102) h 10am-7.30pm Mon-Sat) Offers agood 10am-7.30pm Mon-Sat)Offers 2228477, 5643708;1stfl, h CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji 2463057; Dayanand Bandodkar 2463057; DayanandBandodkar 9.30am-8pm) Has a good collection 9.30am-8pm) Hasagoodcollection h (MGRd; ( ( 9.30am-1.15pm & 2-5.45pm ( % % (per hr Rs 30) Phone calls can be (per hrRs30)Phonecalls canbe % 9am-11pm) Inthesame 2425747; singalbookhous 2436327; Institute Menezes 2436327; Institute Menezes 5647038; 1st fl, Ashirwad 5647038; 1stfl,Ashirwad h (www.panjim.org) 7am-midnight; per

is ontheeast-

85 in CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA cards. POST Cook Thomas BankofIndia State AirTravel Menezes ICICI HFDC Centurion Express American ATM neartheKandamba busstand. a numberof ATMs, includingaUTIBank foreign exchange isawaste of time. There are of theState Bank local banks(even India)for places inPanaji. Bycomparison,visiting the There are foreign-exchange plenty of efficient MONEY CollegeHospital Goa Medical College Goa Medical MEDICAL SERVICES police headquarters. tothe next Maidan, OnthewestsideofAzad Mon-Fri) 86 Central TelegraphCentral Office TELEPHONE &FAX postoffice Main their artisticservices. thatcharge reasonable pricesfor services office, there are privately runparcel-wrapping Hidden inthelanesaroundmain post international cards. casualty department. this hasthenearest medicalfacilitiestoPanaji. Ithasa About 500m westoftheHotelMandovi, Marg) Bandodkar and MasterCard. cheques commissionfree andgivescashadvancesonVisa exchange placeinPanjim. Changesallbrandsoftravellers andprofessional, thisisthebestforeign- Pristine Oct-Mar) h Marg; 8 AlconChambers,DayanandBandodkar cash andtravellerscheques. h cards. h for Amexifyouneedreplacement cheques. Travel, Ourem Rd) the safe side. closeearlysotry to getthere before 4pmtobeon services andreliable poste restante. Some Speedpost parcelservice 9am-5pm Sat,posterestante 9.30am-4pm Mon-Sat)Hasa Goa Medical Collegeare nowbasedhere. Goa Medical andspecialisationsofthe (NH) 17.Mostofthedepartments In Bambolim,9kmsouthofPanaji ontheNationalHighway CENTRALGOA ••Panaji 9.30am-6pm Mon-Satyear-round,10am-5pm Sun 10am-4pm Mon-Fri, 10am-1pmSat &Sun)Changes 10am-4pm Mon-Fri, 7am-8.30pm) You can make international telephone 7am-8.30pm) You canmake (Dr Atmaram Borkar Rd) Its 24-hourATM (DrAtmaramBorkar accepts (18thJuneRd)Its24-hourATM accepts international (MGRd)Its24-hourATM acceptsinternational ( % (MGRd; (AmEx; 2221312; www.thomascook.co.in; 2221312; www.thomascook.co.in; ( (Dayanand Bandodkar Marg; Marg; (DayanandBandodkar ( % % 2432960; Ourem Rd)Anagent h (Dr Atmaram Borkar Rd; (DrAtmaram Borkar % 2458700; Dayanand 9.30am-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 9.30am-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 2432960; Menezes Air 2432960; Menezes ( % 2458725, 2458700) 2226515, 2436666;AlvaroCostasRd; Communidade Bldg; travel.com; Ourem Rd) flights. A professionally runtravelagentthatbooksinternational .ezytravels.com; Shop8-9,DurgaChambers,18thJuneRd) aisle, astriking in particular, attheend of theright-hand anumberofcontains interesting features – washed church attheend of alovely street the GTDC-runPanaji ( Residency p93 ). you’ve droppedby.Tobooktoursyouwillneedtogo seemshappythat out ofalltheoffices;staffactually % www.goa-tourism.com; has is notable for the has isnotable helped toopenup thearea. thoroughfare out of Panaji tothe south,also Rd, which formany years wasthemain rest of Panaji. Theconstructionof Ourem district wasjoinedmore directly withthe the hillsidefromtowncentre thatthe not untilEmidioGraciaRdwascut through land reclaimed fromthemarshes. Itwas ofwas atangle buildingsconstructed on accessible onlyfromthenorthern sideand of thetwodistricts. Originallythisarea was near theMaruti temple, isthefurthersouth ofname fromtheFountain spring Phoenix ranean atmosphere. hanging balconiesandabygone Mediter- to walkaround,withnarrowstreets, over- Creek. TheOldQuarter isanattractive area thehillsideoftween AltinhoandOurem The olddistrictsof Panaji are be- squeezed FONTAINHAS &SAOTOME Sights AirTravel Menezes E-zy Travels along 18thJuneRd. manyarecan bookandconfirmflights; There are travel several agencies where you TRAVEL AGENCIES Corporation Development Goa Tourism TOURIST INFORMATION facilities are widely availableatthesameplaces. offices throughoutthecitychargingsimilarrates. Fax calls fromhere, STD/ISD butthere are plenty of private Sebastian Rd) Sebastian stood inthePalace of the In quisition inOld Apart fromitsold-world charm, Fontain- to takes which its issaid Fontainhas, 2227103; MGRd)Theheadofficeisthemosthelpful , builtin1818.This smallwhite- ( % 2435300, 2425742,2424378;www head office ( % Church Square crucifix 2432960; www.interserve Chapel of St Sebastian Chapel ofStSebastian % www.lonelyplanet.com , which originally 2224132, 2226728, Panaji Residency % 223412; (GTDC;

(St Goa’s mostfamous sons ( p110 ). It’s a tribute tohypnotist Abbé Faria, one of man apparently abouttostrangle awoman. Building isanunusual Secretariat across theriver. new inthe Assembly. now meets Theassembly fices, anduntilrecently theState ithoused forgovernmentthe buildingwas used of- Niwasinstead.Raj Fromthistimeonwards was moved tothebuildingsonCabo residence from1759until1918, whenit the buildingwasadopted astheirofficial forhisship home.capital the outgoingviceroyhadtowaitoutside the Similarly, after handingover responsibility, inPanaji hadtostay pointee orReis Magos. while waitingfortheceremony, thenew ap- undertheViceroy’s Arch,Old Goa andso, handed theceremonial keys tothecityof The traditionwasthatthenewviceroy was tion forincomingandoutgoing viceroys. astemporary accommoda- it alsoserved was reinforced asacustomspost; andused of theMandovi. was onanislandsurroundedbythewaters builtthemainroad,this palace Portuguese century, hadhisfortress the palace. Before gained controlof Goaattheendof the15th suf AdilShah, who theMuslimsultan where stands present-day Yus- Secretariat The oldestcolonialbuildinginGoa,the SECRETARIAT BUILDING cultural organisation by worth alookisthebuildingnowused TheGoaInquisition, Goa (see p83 ). Also www.lonelyplanet.com put todeath. ( involved inthePintoRevolt p125 ) were place. Itwashere conspirators thatseveral whenexecutionsturned intospectacle took thetownpillory,whereonce housed justice mint. Thesquare buildingsface thatthese ofand thebuildingtoright itwasthe forPanaji,once thetobacco-tradinghouse was known asSaoTomé.Thepostoffice tiny area aroundthemainpostoffice is out. stands are lookingabitbattered, thisonereally area where most of thetraditionalhouses beautifullyrestored,It hasbeen andinan In asmall triangleof lawn nexttothe After the viceroysabandonedOldGoa, arrived,After thePortuguese thepalace Located tothenorthof the Fontainhas, Assembly Complex Assembly Fundacao Oriente , located onthehill statue (p96). of a a of Square daIgreja). (Largo The kempt Panaji’s centralsquare istheleafybutun- MUNICIPAL GARDENS&JAMA MASJID tically uninhabited backthen. large church consideringthearea wasprac- building dates from1619;it’sasurprisingly on thissite sinceabout1540,thepresent centre. there Although achurch hasbeen it over theMunicipalGardensintown This stunningwhitewashed church lords IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CHURCH OFOURLADYTHE now be seen intheGoaState Museum. now beseen intothewallsaroundgardencan once set ‘Truth AloneTriumphs’. decorated withafriezeandtheinscription lions sittingbacktoatopan abacus of present-daytopped bytheseal India,four da Gamaasitscrowningglory,but isnow in thecentre of oncehadastatue Vasco inOldGoa). Cathedral in theSe largest second inGoa(after theGoldenBell tocrumble.the towerstarted Thebellisthe gustine inOldGoa,butwasremoved when hung inthetowerof theChurch of StAu- here.belfry wasbrought Ithadpreviously the huge bellthatnowhangsinthe central 19th century.Itwasataboutthistimethat werecrossing addedinthelate staircases being reclaimed andthedistinctive criss- the 1850slandinfrontof thechurch was crossing before continuingtoOldGoa. By visit thischurch togive thanksforasafe sailors would from Lisbon,soPortuguese the classic Islamicwhite-marble style. side, but theinterior isextremely ornate in blends in withthesmall shopsoneither squareing isastandard andtheentrance ising it’sthere. Theexterior of thebuild- real-you canstillwalk pastitwithouteven comprehensively renovated in1959,though builtabout twocenturiesago.been Itwas of tohave theMunicipalGardens,issaid tion, which culminates on8December. Feast of of Immaculate OurLady Concep- uptoChristmasandduringthe the lead wouldn’t win anyprizes ataflower show. It Konkani andPortuguese. Panaji wasthefirst portof callforships The tiny The church isbeautifullyilluminated in The grassy isheldhere dailyinEnglish, Municipal Gardens Municipal Jama Masjid Azad Maidan Azad CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji , barely 100msouth , alsocalledChurch

Three relief busts (Freedom Park) Ashokan Pillar Ashokan 87

CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA they were down. forcedtoclose the religious institutionsof OldGoawhen having amount from inherited asubstantial Livraria, itissurprisinglyrich inold texts, in India. Foundedin1832asthePublica GOA STATE MUSEUM azulejos whole wall.Thescenesdepicted onthese large blue-and-white pictures thatcover the trance hall,which isdecorated withfour theen- thedoor,atleast to see through headquarters. It’sworthpokingyourhead tobethearmyold buildingsthatused Libraryoccupyapartof thethe Central dan, theInstitute Menezes Braganzaand At thenorthwestcornerof theAzadMai - & PANAJI CENTRALLIBRARY INSTITUTE MENEZESBRAGANZA inOldGoa. in themuseum of AfonsodeAlbuquerquethatnowstands The domededificeformerlyheldthestatue deBraganzaCunha(1891–1958).Tristao fighter and‘Father of GoanNationalism’Dr a modernsculpture dedicated tofreedom is centred onasmallpavilion, which houses 88 This large, roomy balls (thefirst lottery draw wasin 1947), of thousands machines wooden containing Inquisition, apairof huge lottery rotary intheGoa used 16th-century table carved interesting exhibits includeanelaborately The collectionis graduallyexpandingand (including miniatures) fromallover India. Jain andbronzes, andpaintings leries featuring Christianart,Hindu and Kadamba has adozenorsogal- busstand, museum.nic.in; admission free; Mon-Fri) & 2-5.45pmMon-Fri) has asmall Luís deMenezes Braganza. Theinstitute pion of theGoanIndependencemovement, renamed in1963honourof thecham- called theInstitute Vasco daGama,itwas scientific andliterary institution.Originally Braganza, which wasfoundedin1871as a ing isgiven over totheInstitute Menezes (p103). Camões Lusíadas, Panaji Central Library Panaji Central rare prints andpaintings. Much of theupperfloorof thebuild- On thelowerfloorof thebuildingis CENTRALGOA ••Panaji , inaratherforlorn area nearthe (painted tiles)are taken from an epic poem byLuísVaz anepicpoem de art gallery art , theoldestpubliclibrary museum

( % 2436327; that contains some thatcontains

( % h h 2458006; www.goa 9.30am-5.30pm 9.30am-1.15pm 9.30am-1.15pm Os known asAltinho. Apart from good views On the hillside above Panaji isthe district ALTINHO dess Mahalaxmi, thedeityof Panaji. to thegod- was builtin1818 and isdevoted is athrivingHindu community.Thetemple ji’s ubiquitouswhitewashed churches there and amplydemonstrates thatamongPana- Hindu temple before it’sworth alookinside very interesting, butifyou’ve visited never a Rd isnotparticularly imposing,oreven This moderntemple DrDadaVaidya off MAHALAXMI TEMPLE quarter of Mala. upallaround theHindu street, set andstalls ofourful statues Hanuman are placed inthe Enormous andcol- lasts wellintothenight. The festival usuallylingers for10daysand a four-day festival celebrated inFebruary. more fromafar. spectacular new finishof meansthatitisfar everything This temple willget better withage; the view over theOldQuarter fromitsveranda. Mandovi River fromPato, andenjoythe Admireat night. itasyou’re crossingthe this moderntemple isresplendently lit Dedicated tothemonkey godHanuman, MARUTI TEMPLE fairs duringthe18thcentury. and alarge woodenchariot inHindu used anything. you aroundtomake sure youdon’ttouch willsilentlyfollow theuniformedstaff wise inGoa. information about conservation tion gallery temporary artfromGoaandIndia. various Goanvillages, andagalleryof con- culturalexhibitsfromgallery containing the MunicipalGardens.Upstairs there’s a which originallystoodin João deCastro, Afonso deAlbuquerqueandDom Camões, and three huge relief bustsof LuísVaz de niture. Alsoondisplayare someJain busts, paintings andsomecolonialwoodenfur- of woodensculptures of devotional , ond area isa from the4thto8thcenturiesAD.Thesec- andbronzesdating Hinducarvings taining The Maruti temple istheepicentre of The first roomisa You canaskforafree guidedtour;other- a The WWFhasalsoestablished in the museum, which provides inthemuseum, Christian art gallery art Christian sculpture gallery sculpture www.lonelyplanet.com withavariety conserva- con- www.lonelyplanet.com incredibly skies over clearnight Goa,the For anyone interested inchecking out the PUBLIC OBSERVATORY areevents also heldhere. Mandovi River each Artand music evening. alongtheFort andtheboats thatcruise The Gardensoffer aviewover ReisMargo dens ward sideof theroadare the you reach theKala Academy, onthesea- district. Justbefore the Campal through The roadtoMiramarfromPanaji runs CAMPAL during hisvisittoGoain1999. place tolive inPanaji; here thepopestayed back toPanaji. bishop hadtochange hisplansandmove it wasthebestpropertyinGoa, the arch- governorPortuguese general real that ised Rivers. itwasnottobe. However, Whenthe the confluenceof theMandovi and Zuari Niwas, thepromontorythatlooks outover ially laidclaimtotheresidence Raj onCabo Panaji earlyinthe20thcentury.He init- ing buildingcompleted in1893. here isthe over thecityandriver, themainattraction Today, Altinhoisthemostprestigious The of Goacametoreside in the backofAltinho,emerging onOurem Rd inFontainhas–asklocalsfordirections. throughthesuburbatthe highwayisbusyandaccidentprone. It’salsopossibletodetournorth Bambolim youacrosstheelevatedleft takes suburbanarea behindPanaji. Youcanrideallthewayeastto at DonaPaula, turningright(comingfromPanaji) youuptoCabo Niwas,whileturning takes Raj the peninsulabutgenerallythisroadisflatandwidetrafficlight. At theroundabout to Marg) Beachandout throughtheCampal thensouthwestpastMiramar anand Bandodkar district, of the another ferry pointfromwhere youcancrossto land where there’s anotherferry backacrosstoRibandar. backtowards Panaji Riding there’s yet onabicycle.absorbing ruraloutpostisperfect Youcanridetothesouthwestcornerofis- Viceroy’s theferry Archandtake acrossto itself, sincethechurchesandruinsare quite scattered. downtotheMandovi Ride through the passing throughthevillageofRibandar. Havingabicycle isvery handyforexploringOldGoa Causewayfollows theRibandar alongthesouthbankofMandovi River; it’s ascenicride busstand,thearea aroundPanajiKadamba offers someenjoyablebicycletouring. If youcangetpasttheinsanetrafficonhighwaybetweenMandovi Bridgeandthe PEDALLINGAROUND DETOUR: PANAJI , alsoknownas theChildren’s Park. Dona Paula Another rewarding dayridefromPanaji istoheadwestalongtheMandovi River (alongDay- One ofthebestridesinstate isthe9kmtripoutto Dr SalimAliBirdSanctuary Bishop’s Palace onthemainhighwayandthenbacktoPanaji (aroundtripofabout22km),although , thesmallpeninsulaatmouthofZuari River. There’s asmallhillapproaching , ahuge andimpos- Campal Gar- Campal . DivarIsland Chorao Island 31 May) Rd; 7th fl,JuntaHouse,SwamiVivekanand DIVING ofdetails ridesaroundPanaji. ing onyourwayatMiramar. See above for the sites, orheadsouthwesttoPonda,paus- east toOldGoaandspendadayexploring Panaji isagreat forcyclingtrips.Head base CYCLING options. to bemore active, considerthe following but ifyou’re here forawhileandwant Panaji isperfect forwalking andshopping Activities Astronomy hasa local branch of theAssociation of Friendsof organised tolaunch adiving trip.Thewell- base Interestingly enough, Panaji isalsoagood ductory course (Rs 8000),both of which tory course (Rs 3500), anda PADI intro- Courses include anoncertificate introduc- Islands. are aroundGrande andDevbagh Resort in Miramar. Mostopen-water dives .barracudadiving.com) night islovely,night especiallyarounddusk. you’re lookingat.Theviewof Panaji by happy towelcomevisitors andexplainwhat ; acoupleofhoursspentexploringthis . Thelocalenthusiastsare onlytoo Barracuda Diving Old Goa and cyclethroughthefringes CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji is based attheGoa Marriotis based public observatory public observatory . The pancake-flat road. The pancake-flat

( % h 2437001; www 7-9pm 14Nov- ( % 2425547; 2425547;

89 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL ὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈ

CENTRAL GOA ( Conception Church ofOurLadytheImmaculate landmark,the From thecity’smostnotable PANAJI NEW Tours Walking supervision. cluding allequipment,snacksandguide dives (departing8am)costsRs2250,in- is Rs25,000.Forqualifieddivers, twoboat Rs 10,000;anda14-daydive master course two-day advancedopen-water costs course PADI open-water course is Rs 15,000;a training andtwoshallow dives. Afour-day are runover twomorningsandinvolve pool 90 the Rd, abusythoroughfare. is Onyourright ( posite this,ashortdetoursoutheastbrings ferry. Op- river untilyoucometotheBetim byoldsteamers.used Continuealongthe kar Marg, walkeasttowards buildinginGoa.oldest Portuguese Building retariat 1 2 ; p87 ), walkwesttothe ; p87 ), thennorthalongDrRSRdtoMG Also to your right you will see the youwillsee Also toyourright Crossing theroadtoDayanandBandod- CENTRALGOA ••Panaji Statue ofAbbéFaria 200m 0.1miles 0 0 11 Gardens Campal

Campal

10 Dr Braganza Pereira Rd Pereira Braganza Dr ( 4 ; p87 tobethe ), believed Goa Medical ( New Panaji Tour Walking College 3 9 ; p110 ). Municipal Gardens Municipal Panaji jetty 8

General Bernado Guedes Rd Mandovi River

7 Dayanand Bandodkar Marg Heliodoro Salgado Rd Salgado Heliodoro Dr Gama Pinto Rd Rd Alvares Costa Gen Sec-

(5) To Betim

Dr Atmaram Borkar Rd ὈὈὈ

18th June Rd ,

Swami Vivekanand Rd Vivekanand Swami glitzy amovieIf youdon’twanttosee atthe Marg viathe an atmosphericdetour. Head backtoDB the Market Municipal the riverfront untilyoureach thebustling with itsgalleryandlibrary.Continuealong you to the June Rdforstreet andboutiques. stalls about, where onto18th youcanturnright after 200m. Thiswilltake youtoaround- Pereira thefirst Rdandtaking major left byturningleftontoDrBraganzastart If you’re nottootired, walkbacktothe going on. Duration Distance Finish Conception Start WALK FACTS 6 Kala Academy Kala Campal Gardens Campal

Vaca Spring Boca da MG Rd Rd Malaca Inox Cinema Inox ChurchofOurLadytheImmaculate

Institute Menezes Braganza Menezes Institute Maidan Kala Academy Kala

Dr P Shirgaonkar Rd Shirgaonkar P Dr Azad Mahalaxmi Rd Pisurlekar Dr 3.5km

Altinho

1.5hours Ὀ Temple Rd Ormuz New Municipal Market NewMunicipal

Dr Dada Vaidya Rd ( ( 11 7 ( ( ; p96 ), which makes for ; p95 ) to findoutwhat’s 9 10 Municipal ; p96 ), continuepast Gardens Masjid (Church Jama Square) Cunha-Rivara Rd ; p89 ) andcallinon

Avenida Pe Agnelo www.lonelyplanet.com 2 5 ὈὈὈ Ὀ Fontainhas

Dr RS Rd Panaji Jetty Jose Falcao

1 Rd 3 (

( Emidio Gracia Rd Gracia Emidio 6 8 Sao Tomé p88), ; 4 p96). ; Mala www.lonelyplanet.com pass the the very centre of theintersection youwill Take sometimetoexplore thearea. laneways. esque oldbuildingsdownthese atthe Start OLD PANAJI Sebastian tothequaint 150m, turnright onto31stJanuaryturn right Rd. After about junction, where youwillfindfoodvendors, along EmidioGraciaRd.Atthe four-way Conception sign, turn right and continue around tothe sign, turnright a junction with ared ‘stop and proceed’ into the Altinho district. When youreach the view over the OldQuarter. ideal placetocatch your breath andadmire ( steps leadingto onyourright streetthis pleasant untilyoucomeacross Continue along namesake fountain. tainhas’ forkofdown theright the road,pastFon- Gitanjali in Gitanjali for adrinkonthebalconyhere oratCafé 5

200m 0.1miles 0 0 ; p88 ). Thebalcony of thetemple isthe Rd Shirgaonkar P Dr ὈὈ Continuing downto31stJanuary Rd,at Follow the roadbehind thetemple Duration Distance Finish Conception Start WALK FACTS Altinho 7 ChurchofOurLadyImmaculate Panjim Inn Mahalaxmi Temple Mahalaxmi 8 ( 6 (

2 Dr Dada Vaidya Rd 4.5km 2hours 1 ; p86 ). There are many pictur- Panjim Peoples ; p87 ) andwalkeastupthehill Steps Church of Our Lady of Immaculate Church ofOurLadyImmaculate Church Square (

3 Avenida Pe Agnelo Old Panaji Tour Walking ; p93 ) onyourleft.Break Steps 5 ( 4 Fontainhas 1

; p93 ). Continue Emidio Fountain Maruti temple temple Maruti

Steps Sao Tomé Gracia Rd Gracia Chapel ofSt Mala

2

Portuguesa

Armada

Rd 31st January Rd January 31st 4 3 March. Held betweenJanuary and into galleries. are converted and drinks)from10amtonoon. (Rs300,including snacks ‘dolphin cruises’ Monica are bigger androwdierthanthe 6.15pm, 7.30pmand8.45pm).Their boats MonicajettyeachSanta (Rs100; evening virtually identicalhour-long tripsfrom 6.30pm from the Santa Monicajetty. 6.30pm fromtheSanta and tourof leaving illuminated sights), at bus tour(Rs140,includingariver cruise 15 people),italsorunsaGoaBy Night 2223126) Fontainhas Arts Festival Fontainhas Arts in Panaji:the highlights more expensive. Thefollowingare some of accommodation becomes more rare and dobewarnedthat with something– though manage ittrytotime yourvisittocoincide wonderful wayto accessacity,soifyoucan part incultural and religious isa events thatisrenownedstate for festivals. Taking Panaji isacityrenowned forfestivals ina Festivals &Events ( departfromthe All cruises at8.30pm(Rs150). is atwo-hourcruise an extracharge. there Onfull-moonnights dances. Drinksandsnacksare available at live bandperformingGoanfolksongsand both of which costRs100.Theyincludea (7.15pm),(6pm) andasundowncruise ume of theirmusic. There’s cruise asunset trying tooutdoeach otherwiththe vol- swanning aroundtheriver evening every other boats–lituplike Christmastrees – the alongtheMandovicruises River aboard The GTDC( p86 ) operates manichour-long Tours Bishop’s Palace here oratanyGTDCoffices. dovi Bridge, andtickets canbepurchased ter’s Residence ter’s over itsneighbour, thelessgrand temple humble residencies of Altinhoto Square, themore ordetourdownthrough andwanderbackdownhilltoChurch right Cruises % When theGTDCgets thenumbers (about A coupleof private operators, 2438754, 2437496) Santa Monica

( and . Paradise alsooperates open-sea (Emerald Cruises; 8 p88). ; ( Royal Cruises ( 7 6 ). Atthenextjunction,turn ; p89 ). Thebuildingtowers CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji , nexttothehuge Man- . You’ll see thisand. You’llsee Old homes in the old quarter Old homesin theoldquarter %

2431192, 2431215;fax ( % Santa Monicajetty 2435599) Chief Minis- Mahalaxmi Mahalaxmi Paradise , have Santa 91

CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA out ACRs300/400; 31stJanuaryRd;s/dwithACRs350/450,with- @yahoo.com; Maruti temple. Maruti and afestive fair. It’sheldinFebruary atthebaseof life. HeldinFebruary/March. torelax andenjoy hisloyalandobedientsubjects ordering itoffwithadecree in Panaji. Momokicks ThemockKing Carnivalisthebiggestthingtohappenallyear everyone, peak season. peak season. clippings. Pricescan more thandoubleover are required newspaper tohelpassemble ‘10am cutouttime’…perhaps whenguests ivity of taste. Hisbusiness cardboastsa paraphernalia –atestament tothesubject- of randomnewspaper clippingsandvarious de Souza,isgluedtothewallsin the form personality of theproprietor,MrVincent therailsisWhite off The House. slightly Republica Hotel BUDGET Sleeping what’s happeningwhenyou’re inPanaji. the Kala Academy ifyouwanttofindout around November andDecember. Contact ture Theyreally events. kickintoaction folk music,drama,singing,foodandcul- all yearorganising variousclassicaldance, The Kala Academy( p95 tobebusy ) seems Feast Conception ofOurLadytheImmaculate Shigmotsav Carnival Zatra Maruti Festival Pop, Beat&JazzMusic 92 though thestreets on8December. Fireworks, afairandprocessionofthelong-namedlady cia Rd;s/d/trRs375/550/750) day of March, marked byafloatthroughthestreets. marked day ofMarch, but specialcelebrationsare heldinPanaji onthefull-moon ing are All rooms and comfortable. bright Some of the rooms atthefront of thebuild- notallhavetiled, though sit-downtoilets. havesuggest. Bathrooms hotwater andare nicer then thebuilding’s exterior would up forinquirkiness. lacks incleanlinessandcourtesy itmakes Whatit this wouldbetheWeasleys’house. acter. IfHarry Potter bookswere inGoa, set balconyandyearselevated worthof char- and onlysquattoilets,butthere isagreat There isnoair-conditioning, nohotwater the Kala AcademyinFebruary. the Kala Hotel Embassy Hotel Mandovi White House White Mandovi CENTRALGOA ••Panaji Started by the Catholics, appropriated by bytheCatholics,appropriated Started Celebrated all over the state in March/April, CelebratedalloverthestateinMarch/April, Procession of the monkey godHanuman Processionofthemonkey a ( %

( % ) Slightly off theroadand off Slightly 2224630; JoseFalcao Rd;dRs300) 2226019, 5622054;Emidio Gar- Roomshere are far

( % A two-day festival at Atwo-day 2223928; 5552004

a without ACRs950/800,s/d/trdeluxe Rs750/900/1000; [email protected]; DrDadaVaidya Rd;sRs650,dwith/ 3km outsideofPanaji inMiramar. 11pm lights-outrulegivesitaboarding-schoolfeel. It’s Rd; dmmember/nonmemberRs40/60)Cheapbutan to detract from the elegant design. to detractfromtheelegantdesign. late afternoons. There isn’taspeckof dust and enjoyadrinkinearlymornings and floor,wherewith atiledmosaic you cansit value andthere isalovely rooftop terrace hot-water bathroomsare extremely good intocreatingeffort thisplace. Roomswith ager, whohasputagreat dealof care and namesake isanextremely man- houseproud to lookinthebeautifulOldQuarter. Its Youth Hostel Youth Hostel options: absolute shoestring these location inFontainhas. runs thelodge isgreat. Italsoboastsalovely priced, theyare cleanandthefamilythat theroomsareThough makeshift andover- rooms themselves, which are quite bland. of thePark spillintothe Lodge doesn’t Lane fits. Unfortunately thecluttered character to beincludedinabudgetbutit section, with bathroom Rs 600,rdeluxe Rs960) .hotelsona.com; Ourem Rd;s without bathroomRs 250, d are good value. All have abathroomwithhot water and ety asyouwouldexpectinthispricerange. Afonso GuestHouse Afonso MIDRANGE Udipi Boarding&Lodging Rs 515) are cheerfully forthcomingoutsideof that. are but discounts Rs 1000inpeakseason near theriver in a nicepart of town. Not all the wall depicting life inruralGoa. back. Thereception area on has a mosaic with aroomopening ontothegardenat be unrelenting bebetter off andyou might thatthestreet can warned though noise Be haveeven balconiesoverlooking thestreet. airy; allroomshave bathroomsandsome Rs 800) it’s atadgrimy. without bathroomRs100)Closetothecentre oftownbut January Rd;s/dRs250/450) Mayfair If you’re really onabudget thenconsider Park LaneLodge Orav’s GuestHouse Hotel Sona Hotel ) The standard rooms hereThe standard are and light Afonsolookslike hotels are supposed This seems like tooelegant abuilding Thisseems

Hotel Hotel (

% ( %

225433; Baywatch,DonaPaula Jetty ( % ( 2222226, 2223973, 2420240;www ( % 223317, 2230457,2225772;may %

Roomsare notasrick- ( 2227154; dwithoutbathroom % ( 2222359; dwithbathroom www.lonelyplanet.com % 2426128, 5640103;31st 2228047; SaoTome;d Prettily located [email protected]; rRs800) January Rd. Diagonally opposite Panjim 31st Inn,off The outdoorterrace isanicetouch too. and location,thisisawell-priced option. givenHowever, thefacilities,cleanliness charm of thePanjim Innacrosstheroad. of thebrandnew RiaResidencylacksthe 18th JuneRd;sRs412,d541-644,ste670) in theatticof a cathedral. makes youare youfeel asthough bathing which have acoloured glasswindowthat bathroom withspaciousshowers, someof out first. Cheaperroomshave acommon face theriver, somake sure youcheck it of the30roomsof thisfour-storey building www.lonelyplanet.com the GTDC,thisisanunremarkable place without ACRs1050/790,rdeluxe Rs1400; 18thJuneRd. fromatinylaneoff cessed andhotwater.and have TV Thehotel isac- no dank,crustysmells.Roomsare spacious tion. Keni’s Hotel isoldbutwellkept, with is goodvalue,particularlygiven itsloca- nearby Mayfair. you’llfindatthe smoothservice the same large butthere andletinnaturallight, isn’t bathroom andTV. Windowsare alsoquite beat thevalueof roomswitha thestandard ing wouldleadyoutobelieve. It’shardto more modernthantheexterior of thebuild- rooms atHotel Virashree are cleanerand Across theroadfromMahalaxmi Temple, ard withoutACRs400/425,deluxe withACRs775/795; .com, [email protected]; DrDadaVaidya Rd;s/dstand- Panaji Residency Panaji Residency Hotel Virashree Hotel Ria Residency Residency Ria Keni’s Hotel Hotel Keni’s Fontainhas; dstandard/slightlylargerRs4950/5400; over aromantic drink. fragments oftheOldQuarter. Downstairsis Café Gitanjali,where youcanenjoyromantic art has aslightly different character, though allhave private balconies overlooking picturesque antiquerosewood bedhead,which isanelegant centrepiece.carved Each ofthefourrooms a fridgeandTV.amenities like The larger roomatthebackofbuilding hasanornately allow youtoimmerse yourselfinluxuryawayfromthe entire modernworld,despite modern heritage building. Decadentfour-poster furniture beds,colonial-era andtiledmosaicbathrooms tainhas, you’re inforatravel treat. Roomstrulydojusticetothe proudexterior of thisconverted of old-worldrevival, thePeople’s isastep upinelegancefrom otheroptionsinthearea. comesPanjimthe OldQuarter People’s, themostdecadentof themall.Withthesameintention Panjim People’s THE AUTHOR’S CHOICE If you’re luckyenoughtogetoneofthefour brightandairyroomsinthislandmark ofFon- ( %

( %

( (

% 2224581, 2224582;fax2435227; % ( % 2220002, 2420002,2430002; 2226656; tchaitanya@hotmail 0832-2226523, 0832-2435628,0832-2228136; www.panjiminn.com;E21231stJanuaryRd, 2227103; MGRd;dwith/ Thelineardesign a ) Runby This a

a )

) FromthepeoplewhobroughtPanjim Innto priced. Discounts are forthcoming during quiettimes. during Discountsare forthcoming priced. are tired, theyhavethefullgamutoffacilitiesandare well d with/withoutACRs500/400; Rs 1440/1620,rdeluxe Rs1845,ste2610) jiminn.com; E21231stJanuaryRd,Fontainhas;s/d Rs 1440/1620,rdeluxe Rs1845,ste2610) www.panjiminn.com; 31stJanuaryRd,Fontainhas; s/d washing are broughtonrequest. ofhotwaterfor Rs 650)Spaciousandairyrooms. Buckets displays (and sells) art.Variousdisplays (andsells) doorways are astunningcentralcourtyardthat off set roomsatPanjimcolonial fantasy Pousada road fromthePanjim Inn,the ninedivine, gifted people. they’re aesthetically allrunbythesame Panjim People’s, youcanalsocomehere; atthePanjimin staying orthe Pousada individual character. Ifyou’re interested and allof themhave colonialfurniture and the spaciousroomshave four-poster beds, ile eleganceof pavilion. Someof aChinese has alarge 1st-floor veranda withthefrag- beautiful mansionfromthe19thcentury most charming inPanaji, placestostay this Panjim Inn TOP END Hotel View Garden many GTDCtours. restaurant. pointof Thisisalsothestarting but it’scentrallylocated andhasadecent oe Aroma Hotel lowing places: this centrallocationyoucouldtrythefol- tery, but ifyou’re after accommodationat view of theMunicipalGardensisamys- Panjim Pousada Why anyonewouldwantabird’s-eye

( % ( % 2226523, 2435628,2228136;www.pan 2423519; Cunha-Rivara Rd;dwithAC 2423519; Cunha-Rivara ( CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji

% ( % 2227844; Municipal Gardens; Gardens; 2227844; Municipal 2226523, 2435628,2228136; a ) Thoughtherooms One of the Down the

93 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA Rs 80-125; Rs 2500-3000; Rd;s/dRs1600/2100,ste novagoa.com; DrAtmaramBorkar .com; 18thJuneRd;s/d/steRs1800/2300/8000; 5000) viewsRs3050- viewsRs2650-4000,dwithriver with river rstandardRs1550-2000,smandovigoa.com; DBMarg; newer rivals. also give itapointof distinctionfromits abakerytaurants, andasmallbookshop theon-siteHowever, facilitiessuch asres- point thatitslocationisreally thedrawcard. year-old charm towitherthe isstarting Panaji’s not-so-grand contribution.Its53- theMandovithe StrandinRangoon), is inSingapore and river (thinktheRaffles thathaveitals anold-stylehotel facingthe rooms are qualitycookiecutter. style of agiantconcrete toiletblock.The the mainbuilding,which isdonein the Nova Goaandapoolhidden awaybehind on the upper level areon theupperlevel byfarthebest. leadtotherooms;those and spiralstaircases 94 much earlier. 7pm sotry nottoworkup anappetite too dinner ataround serving places only start locals love. Withsomeexceptions,most Here instead are qualityrestaurants that the oriented placesthatare rife alongthecoast. have itdoesn’t the stripsofcause tourist- Panaji isgreat foreatingout, mainlybe- Eating hoity-toity. Add a luxury tax ofhoity-toity. Addaluxurytax 10%. It’s polished andprofessional withoutbeing healthspaandvariousshops. Ayurvedic various restaurants, aswimmingpool,an tral Panaji. There isafood‘enclave’ with has becomethemostmodernhotel in cen- After acomplete revamp, Hotel Fidalgo design of thepoolarea. site ), which isperfectly integrated intothe is theWaterfront Terrace ( &Bar oppo- ofit isenticing.Anotherasset theMarriot pool andgardenarea isn’tenormous,but beginningwiththefoyer. fantasy star The graphed fromthewordgo,withfive- Goa, theMarriot Resort isexpertlychoreo- tionably oneof in thebestplacestostay Miramar Beach;dUS$150-340; Miramar Hotel Nova Goa Nova Hotel Goa Marriot Resort Resort Goa Marriot Hotel Venite Hotel Hotel Mandovi Mandovi Hotel Fidalgo Hotel CENTRALGOA ••Panaji Inthespiritof formercolonialcap- h s Tue-Sat)

) ( There are 88roomsatthe % ( %

( ( % % 2425537; 31stJanuary Rd;mains 2226291; info@hotelfidalgo-goa This elegant affair hasThis elegant affair 2426270, 2224405;www.hotel

2226231, 2226237;www.hotel ( % 2463333; fax2463300; as ) Unques- as )

10pm) .com; 18th June Rd; mainsRs 40-100; Rs 60-195; costs around Rs30. withmeat andvegetables,dishes or stuffed withanarray ofthe flat bread isserved around Rs20.A full for breakfast withchai; youback itwillset eigners. Try for-good pickingout foodforconfused arehandy photosand thefriendlystaff menuhas fare thestraightforward because This istheperfect Goan placetosample and wellorganised, andthelocals love it. with orange décorisvery friendly. It’sclean tainhas; mainsRs100; anticipate, though. as sublimetheatmosphere makes you should begarnishedwith.Thefoodisn’t the warmorange glowthatallgoodmeals person). Thewholerestaurant isbasked in ifyou’reyou won’tbecomfortable alarge balconies overhanging the street (though ricketystep upstairs totheseven candlelit entrance,then theshell-mosaic in through drawn Rs30.Be Kingfisher isthestandard Drinksare Napolitaine. ghetti reasonable; a fishandspa- pepper steak toPortuguese and aversatile foodmenuthatranges from wines,both AustralianandPortuguese tions. Thewholemenuisvegetarian. bar thatcranksoutsomewinningconcoc- clued-in backpackers. Abigplusisthejuice stream toaconstant Chinese of localsand SouthandNorthIndianfood serving Chinese fare.Chinese restaurant dishesoutelegant Indianand way onwhich therestaurant cosilysits. The the three outsideinthepicturesque lane- only very limited thenicestbeing tables, urge tospilloutontothestreet. There are its popularityithasthusfarresisted the Mary School. Immaculate Despite High favouriteis along-standing located behind h sonal prideinthisproject. owner-manager-chef whotakes great per- simple atmosphere ispresided over bythe restaurant.tuguese-Goan Theelegantbut tions are recommended atthisstylishPor- Sher-e-Punjab Sher-e-Punjab Vihar Vihar Viva Panjim Viva Horse Shoe Shanbag Café Shanbag Café 7am-8pm) Viharisajustifiablypopularplace (MG Rd;mainsRs15-80,juices25-30; h This smallvegetarian restaurant noon-4.30pm &7-10.30pm) idli

( ( % % (Municipal Gardens; mainsRs10-35; Gardens; (Municipal (roundsteamed rice cakes) ( h % 2422405; 17831stJanuaryRd,Fon- 2431788; E245Ourem Rd;mains noon-3pm &7-10.30pm) 2425657; www.sher-e-punjab paratha www.lonelyplanet.com h meal,where 11.30am-3pm, Reserva- h This 7am- dosas Rs35,mains30-80) (rose-flavoured milkdrinks). and there isaninteresting arrayof dishesarethe Chinese comparatively good all-you-can-eat meal;Rs25)inPanaji. Even you won’tfindabetter veg thali(traditional meals are splendidlycheap and andtasty, Satkar isagreat placetodine. Itsvegetarian (Rs 125)isrecommended. shamefully priced.TheGoanprawn curry phere, andnot too andthefoodisfantastic laid-back hasafantastically atmos- taurant’ ‘SuperMulticuisineRes- self-proclaimed by.Thewatch thepartyboatsdoof-doof or Sundaybrunch. ( opposite ). Fortrueindulgence, tryabuffet outside poolarea of theGoaMarriot Resort that theindoor eating area blendstothe glassshop andrestaurant so uses cleverly fl, HotelNeptune;mains80-150; 3pm &6.30-10pm) 6.30-10pm) www.lonelyplanet.com and sometimes even cowboyhats. and sometimeseven waiters leatherwaistcoats weartasselled streets and,foryourfurtherdisplacement, Itoffersdoes. adiverting respite fromthe the WildWestthemeaswell mutton suit listthatdoesn’t and alengthycocktail There is someheavy meat-based fare here, iced coffee and eatyour chocolate cake. cony where youcan sitlazily, drink your the Municipal Gardens,and hasasmallbal- This popular chain caféisnottoo farfrom h buffet breakfast/lunch/dinner Rs375/500/849; Resort; riot h Riveria; Mandovi Marg, sancharnet.in; DayanandBandodkar companiment toameal. at theoneon18thJuneRdisaperfect ac- of theHotelcourtyard Aroma, though There isanotherbranch onthefirst floor ofselection foodforreasonable prices. when theywanttodineout.Ithasagreat pancake) anddried-fruit pizza! chopsuey’ (paper-thin dosa lentil-flour fusions onthemenu,such as‘American andpizzas.Theresalads are someunusual all theclassicIndianfare plussandwiches, ant thatlocalfamiliesadore, Pakwaan has Pakwaan Texas Bar&Restaurant Café CoffeeDay Café Waterfront Terrace &Bar Waterfront Satkar Satkar Quarterdeck 24hr) 3-11pm) Thedesignof thissplash-outcoffee Thisiswhere localfamiliesgo (18th JuneRd;mainsRs20-50; Thisisagreat placetositand

( %

( % . Afavourite amonglocals, 2421442; Vagle Vision,18thJuneRd; (Arthur Viegas Bldg; (Arthur 2432904, 2432905;mandovi_goa@ Agreat budget restaur-

( % h ( % 5643130, 2226077;1st 11am-3pm &7-9pm) 2463333; GoaMar- h 9am-11pm) faloodas h 11am-

the vibeof bar. adingycocktail with two-tier place,oppositeHouse, Junta away fromthestreets. area isanair-conditioned spotlesscocoon great Theupstairs eating drinkselection. on themenu,plentyof icecream, anda dishes;therenese are also somesandwiches ofwith mostlyIndianandaselection Chi- locals. Thevegetarian menuisenormous, 2224567; 18 June Rd; drinks Rs10-30) 2224567; 18JuneRd;drinks h watched, theyshouldbewatched here. that implies ifthere are sportstobe spacious placefor adrink,withbigTV comfortable atmosphere.comfortable dark, predominantly male,butultimately them. Thefollowingpubsallhave aslightly manyhavethough feel to avery seedy a few hole-in-the-wallpubs around town, see p91 formore information.There are down theMandovi are asyou’llget; asclose riding boatsthatthumptheirwayupand craving amore active atmosphere, thejoy- openquite late.that stay whoare Forthose tobelingertrend atrestaurants seems Panaji; ratherthanheadingforpubs,the There isn’tmuch of adrinkingscenein Drinking Dayanand Bandodkar Marg) Marg) Dayanand Bandodkar Kl Academy Kala Entertainment ginger lemon. tomocha almondandvarieties through shakes, which range inflavour frombasic of lassisandthickmilk drinkssuch assweet on thepremises. There’s alsoagreat array whelming arrayof treats, somefreshly made is agreat placetopointatandeatan over- Martworld of GujaratSweet Indiansweets, fect atmosphere toeducate inthe yourself Church Square; with real-live leprechauns inmind. designed drinking hole,haspossiblybeen ofpub, withallthedetail areal-live Irish friends oryouwon’tfitinside. Thisnano- premier cultural centre, witha programme the Kalacity at Campal, Academy is Goa’s 3pm &7pm-midnight) Underground Arena Underground Gujarat Sweet Mart Gujarat SweetMart Top Gear Pub Top Gear Kamat Ace’s Pub 8am tilllate)

Hotel

(Swami Vivekanand Rd; (Swami Vivekanand h Kamat isa popularchoice for

( (Dayanand Bandodkar Marg; Marg; (Dayanand Bandodkar (5 ChurchSquare; mainsfromRs10-60; % 8.30pm-11pm) CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji Don’t take more than10 2223280; www.kalaacademy.org; 2223280; www.kalaacademy.org;

On thewest sideof the ( (Gujarat Lodge; % 2228305; Hotel Manvin’s, 2228305; HotelManvin’s, Thisisthemost Withtheper- h 7pm-11pm) % h 2224367, 11am-

95

A CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA on theboat. peopleonandoffwith rowboatstaking drinks costmore. iseasy, Disembarking importedcally produceddrinks,though pants are allowed.Pricesincludedomesti- orthree-quartercode: noshorts,sandals warnedthere isadressextra Rs200.Be ofthe gamblingsection theboatcostsan (Rs1800). Enteringas adaytimecruise (9pmto10pm), asweeand adinnercruise (adult/child Rs500/250,5.30pmto8pm) teresting out.There cruise night isasunset riot Resort; Resort; riot Old GMC Heritage Precinct, Campal; tickets Rs50-120) Campal;tickets Precinct, Old GMCHeritage study; see study; see p214 formore information. emy isreputed tobeaprestigious placeto English-language productions.Kala Acad- are inKonkani,butthere are occasional theyear.throughout Many performances of dance,theatre, musicandartexhibitions 96 Marg) [email protected]; Fisheries DayanandBandodkar Jetty, 6.15pm and9.45pm. match. Movies are shown at 10am,3pm, ‘adult’ movies feeling to andhas aseedy go toCine Nacional,which plays mostly out what’son. theMarriot (Rs800). Contact night tofind wasthedesignatedSaturday night jazz dinner hasended. Atthetimeof research, thatstretchmusical evenings onlong after areWednesday andThursday. These often Monday, every hastheme nights & Bar Waterfront comfortable, though Terrace more thanthemovie!) andenjoy. cost snack bar(atlastpopcornthatdoesn’t you realise thattheyrecline. Gocrazyatthe couldn’tget anymoreseats comfortable, the the world.Andjustwhenyouthought makes youthinkcouldbeanywhere in of by-productsof that those globalisation Hollywood movies (inEnglish).It’sone College andscreens bothBollywoodand cently builtcinemaisbehind GoaMedical come to Congratulations movie youhave buffs, PortugalandGoa.tween in abidtopromote culturalexchange be- Holds artsexhibitionsandmusicalevents Rd, Fontainhas; Inox Cinema Inox Fundacao Oriente Fundacao Oriente For araw cinemaexperience youcould Terrace &Bar Waterfront Casino Caravela CENTRALGOA ••Panaji This floatingcasinomakes foranin- h the 7am tilllate) h

best placeinGoa. Thisre- ( % ( 9.30am-1pm &2.30-6pmMon-Fri) % ( % 2420999; www.inoxmovies.com; 2234044/7, 5642844/7, 2439160; 2234044/7, 5642844/7,2439160; 2230728; 175Filipe Xavier Neri Thevery indulgent, ( % 2463333; GoaMar-

Sat) Ontheroadoutto Miramar. Marg; Dayanand Bandodkar ticularly interesting stripof activity. very smalleateries. Thefishmarket isapar- area, andsome inadditiontoclothingstalls relatively ordered. There’s afresh produce convertedbeen intocovered markets, is mospheric place,where narrowstreets have all theshopswillbeoccupied. pal Market. Give itafew years andperhaps find asmuch atmosphere asattheMunici- fruit andvegetables totailors, butyouwon’t lished market. from You’llfindeverything the MuncipalMarket isthisrecently estab- dodkar Rd roughly every 15 minutes between 15minutes every between dodkar Rdroughly It departs from thejetty onDayanand Ban- forthenorthern beaches. ferryuseful service dovi River isa tothe fishing village of Betim The passenger-vehicle ferry acrosstheMan- BOAT Airways Jet Indian Airlines Air Sahara Air India lowing airlineshave inPanaji: offices confirmation,see and flight p86 . Thefol- For travel agencies thathandleticketing AIR &Away There Getting third of thepriceyouwouldpayinEurope. forabout a Wrangler, Nike andBenetton, Lacoste, imported brands,includingLevis, MG RdnearDelhiDarbarare shopsselling driedfruitsandnuts.On as shopsselling enirs and boutique clothing stores, aswell come out.Here souv- youwillfindhigh-class whenthetoutsand the shoppers at night, ket shoppingis18th JuneRd;itislivelier The mainshopping stripformore upmar- Shopping such asdrumsandsitars. traditionalIndianinstrumentsant, sells lovingly filledshop, nexttoViharrestaur- .com; are lovely. none of which are cheap butmostof which andpottery items,lery hasbeautifulmosaic some very souvenirs. high-class Thegal- Plaza, DrAlvaroCostaRd) NeartheGTDCoffice. New Municipal Market Market New Municipal Pedro Fernandez Music Municipal Market Market Municipal Velha Goa Galeria Velha GoaGaleria h ( 9.30am-1pm &3-7.30pm) % ( ( % % 224081; 18th June Rd) Next to HotelFidalgo.224081; 18thJuneRd)Next ( 2230237; General BernadoGuedesRd) 2230237; General % 2438792; Shop 7-9, Sesa Ghor, Patto2438792; Shop7-9,Sesa 2237821; groundfl,Dempo Bldg,

( ( h h %

(19 DJoaoCastroRd) www.lonelyplanet.com ( from 7.30am) 10am-1pm &2-5pmMon- 2426628; www.constavin h from 7.30am) Head here for Theat- Near This and changing buses. train andbus orby breaking the journey trips are better byacombination of tackled Chennai, buttheyare infrequent and these further afield, including toCochin and resorts, but they stilldepartfromPanaji. agents inMargao, Mapusa andthebeach andRs 350 toHampi. (without air-con)nary buses costRs275to whether you’re sharing withanyone. Ordi- alottery. Ifyou’resleep check onasleeper, roadsmakeratic Indiandrivingandrough they canbecramped,andtypically er- aren’tThe buses thepinnacleof comfort– forthepeakseason. thepricesrise though Mumbai (Rs600)andBangalore (Rs375), coaches toHampiIt hassleeper (Rs450), ji’s operate outof Pana- busservices State-run BUS viaReisMagos.gute andCandolim there are toCalan- Rs 4).FromBetim buses free/6am and10pm(passenger/motorcycle www.lonelyplanet.com Bldg) actual ticketing offices. somearrivethough anddepartfromthe nexttotheMandovibus stand Bridge, al- rive interstate anddepartfromtheseparate Mostprivate interstatebus stand. ar- buses fices outsidetheentrancetoKadamba Hampi andotherdestinations –have of- and air-con toMumbai,Bangalore, buses sleepers, onthisroute. plenty of includingovernight private buses, local bustoHampi fromthere, butthere are to Hospet(9kmfromHampi) andthena can take the dailygovernment-run bus rather thanabus-traincombination.You For Hampi, you’re thebus better taking off (Rs55,five hours).hours) andBelgaum toHubli(Rs65,six Bangalore, andservices daily direct trainconnectiontoMysore and to Londa(Rs35),fromwhere youcanget a (Rs 326,12hours). There are alsoservices hours), Mysore (Rs345,17hours) andPune galore (Rs263,11hours), Mumbai(15to18 hours), Bangalore (Rs390,14hours), Man- destinations includeHospet(Rs165,nine vary dependingonthetypeof bus,butthe Travel It’s possible to get buses todestinations It’s possibletoget buses can alsobebooked Luxury buses through A reliable booking service is A reliable bookingservice Many private operators –withluxury , justnorthof theKadamba busstand. Kadamba busstand Kadamba

( % 2438531; www.paulotravels.com; G1,Cardoza

( % 2438256) Paulo Tours& . Fares Old Goa. can alsomake trainbookings. travel agencies justnorthof the busstand 1st floorof theKadamba The busstand. Calangute include thefollowing: of themore popular busroutes withinGoa generally have tochange inMapusa. Some and forpointsnorthof you’ll Calangute, resorts you’llhave tochange inMargao, ing inalldirections. Forthesouthernbeach the southernbeaches. for 45 minutes)leavefromplatform11.ChangeatMargao (Rs 4,20minutes). busstandforexpress services. Kadamba boothatthe minutes), andthere’s aseparateticket reservation office reservation rickshaws charge Rs50.The andauto- around Rs80to/fromthestation, charge taxis an autorickshaw. Otherwise, You cancatch abustoOldGoaand then is Karmali (OldGoa),12kmtotheeast. Mangalore. Panaji’s nearest trainstation faster optionthanthebusforMumbaiand The trainisafarmore and comfortable TRAIN time, andRs450toMargao. for areturn triptoOldGoawithwaiting Panaji Rs200 includeRs200toCalangute, faresMunicipal Gardens.Typicaltaxi from ing theKadamba andaroundthe busstand placesinPanaji,gather atseveral includ- andmotorcycletaxis Autorickshaws, taxis TAXI Vasco daGama Ponda Old Goa &DonaPaula Miramar Margao Mapusa Panaji isagood place todo so. you do wantto hire amotorcycle or scooter, if However, towns in Goatowalkthrough. aren’t great and thisisoneof thenicest orautorickshaw. Distances to take ataxi it’softentraffic, more towalkthan efficient Given thefrequently one-wayflowof the Around Getting constantly. (Rs7,45minutes). evening minutes) leavefromplatform10. Panaji head- isalsoahubforlocalbuses Regular busestoPonda(Rs8,55minutes)runvia Regular Direct busestoOldGoa(Rs4,25minutes)leave Direct Minibuses to Margao (ordinary/express Rs12/17, toMargao Minibuses Frequent buses run to Mapusa (Rs7,25 Frequent buses runtoMapusa Frequent services throughoutthedayand Frequent services Minibuses toVasco (Rs17,45 Minibuses daGama

( CENTRAL GOA ••Panaji h 8am-8pm Mon-Sat) Frequent busesplythisroute Railway Railway Konkan isonthe

97 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA ( or so. Anotherchoice isfriendly busier timespriceswillfluctuate byRs 50 Rs 250,andanEnfieldaround 400.At bikes. AHondaActiva willcostaround ( p92 ), which Paulo bothorganise Queen are Hotel Aroma( p93 ) andMayfair Hotel various agents. Tworeliable placesto go signs outsidetheir operating). You’llsee itisregisteredadvertise because (ielegally Paulois Queen Travels, which canactually The mostprolificrental presence intown MOTORCYCLE ( Opposite CineNationalthere’s a BICYCLE are 10to15minutes). full(every leave 7.20amand7pmwhenthey between tickets canbelongbutare orderly.Buses Margao (Rs15,45minutes). Queuesforthe direct bustoPanaji (Rs17,45minutes) or atVascothe minibusstand youcantake a 15minutesGama (Rs4,every orso).From road, where youcancatch abustoVasco de building, turnleftandwalktothemain natively, whenyoustep outof theairport arrange toshare withothers. thetaxi Alter- minutes. Itwillworkoutcheaper ifyoucan Airport costRs390andtake around40 hotel guests.Prepaid fromDabolim taxis to Panaji, forupmarket otherthanthose fromtheairport There are nobusservices TO/FROM THEAIRPORT 98 from thecentre of Panaji. and it’san easybicycle ride the Arabian Sea, is apopular placetowatch the sunsinkinto compared to otherGoanbeaches, butthis facing Aguada ishardly inspiring sand Bay beach. Thecoupleof kilometres of exposed Mandovi waterfront), isPanaji’s nearest Marglow DayanandBandodkar alongthe Miramar, 3kmsouthwest of thecity(fol- % Miramar AROUND PANAJI Rs 6perhourand60day. push-bikes.out oldChinese at Pricesstart drivers shouldbeabletohelpyou. near thegeneral postoffice–oneof thetaxi street; trytheMunicipalGarden area or The otheroptionistoaskaround onthe which rents outHondasforRs250perday. % % CENTRALGOA ••AroundPanaji 0832 2222670, 2226569;fax5640219) 5640190, 2435905,9822131835;JoseFalcao Rd) , which rents cycle store Cyberjoint ,

take themtothe and Christianunity. taken upbya prominent positiononthebeachfront is There’s noforthere now,butthemost number of ships before beingdriven off. attacked Goaandmanaged todestroya they were of in1639theDutch limited use; fend theentrancetoMandovi, although at ReisMagos. Theywere designedtode- fort stoodhere, directly opposite thefort from Panaji (Rs4,20 minutes). Miramar Beach, is Miramar Beach, bathing suit,anabsolute spectacle. an attraction–andinalessthanmodest soyou’llbesomethingof Miramar Beach one. Not manyforeigners venture downto notbeanaltogetherence might relaxing & 6.30-11pm) during thefilming of Roger Moore andGregory Peck ate here inely good.Italsohasaclaimto fame– well knowntolocalsandthefood isgenu- Hotel. Thisisanunassumingspotbut is at New Marine Hwy;admissionRs10; New Marine Although everyone agrees everyone Although that the area is have grown up around afishing village. resortsula with several complexes that road leads to Dona Paula, a small penin- Continuing southpastMiramar, thecoast % Dona Paula Corner meal is place foraseafood Coffee Day.Areputable well-placed Café towards DonaPaula. There isalsoavery road ifyoucontinuefromtheroundabout Hwy fromtheMiramarroundabout. minutes’ walksouthalongtheNewMarine It’safew thanjustsunand sand. the sea andgetsection more of anappreciation for can engage withtheextensive oceanographic centre oninteractive focuses exhibits;kids of physicsduetotheirintrinsicquality’.The tion of playequipmentthat‘explainthelaws science parkinthecentre groundsisacollec- cember 2001,itisalready lookingtired. The Even thecentre though onlyopenedinDe- If thekidsget bored of thebeach youcould There are frequent toMiramar buses Along the seafront road, at the start of road,atthestart Along theseafront While there isgoodswimmingtobehad There are liningthe manyfoodstands Miramar Beach Miramar 0832

( % at Caranzalem, nearBlueBay atCaranzalem, 2464877; mainsRs40-100; , bewarnedthattheexperi- statue Goa Science Centre Goa ScienceCentre Gaspar Dias Gaspar representing Hindu The Sea Wolves www.lonelyplanet.com h . Originallya 10.30am-6.30pm) Martin’s Beach Martin’s h ( % 11am-3pm 2463426; 2463426; . . (apart fromabriefbreak) until1813. British troops,whoremained inresidence archbishop. In1798itwas taken over by sitioned asatemporary residence forthe from the1650sbuildingswere requi- inanger, and actuallyused nons, wasnever can- fort, which wasequippedwithseveral include aFranciscanfriaryorconvent. The viceroyto was extended bythePortuguese completed andthechapelwas subsequently on thespotalmostimmediately. The fort years before workbegan,achapel wasraised itwassome in1540and,although proposed to theMandovi andZuariRivers were first structure isfullof antiqueartefacts. the governor of Goa. Thedouble-storey estate onthisheadlandistheresidence of Niwas).Todaythelarge Ray known asCabo anoldfortress,stands On thewesternmost pointof thepeninsula SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES now builttothechurch. bequeathed thelandonwhich thevillage is isthatshe certain The onlythingthatseems she wasthemistress of waiting totheviceroy’swife andalsothat still others claimthatshewasalady-in- was thevirtuouswife of anobleman, while Others havethe nearbycliffs. itthatshe broken from whohurledherself daughter her. Inonestoryshe wastheviceroy’sheart- are numerousvariationsof thestoryabout Bhavan,the chapel Raj intheCabo there tombstonecanbefoundin woman whose named after DonaPaula deMenezes, the www.lonelyplanet.com to thefortis Christmas and Easter. and at public forSunday-morning service Fort Aguada. The chapel is opentothe theMandoviMiramar Beach, estuary and and viewpoint withgood views backacross from Panaji), where there’s aparking area at theroundaboutifcoming(turn right and converted into thegovernor’s palace. to thebuildings, and hadthemrefurbished forin1866theviceroy tookashine ever, didn’t remain how- longinhis possession, bishop of Goaashis private residence. They were once againtaken over bythearch- ence. After their departure, thebuildings the lastreminder of theBritishtroops’pres- On thesouthernsideof Plans tobuildafortguardtheentrance You candrive uptotheentrancegates British the viceroy himself. theviceroyhimself. Cabo Raj Bhavan Raj Cabo

cemetery the accessroad , which is (also stalls. The stalls. where there are water sportsandsouvenir brings youtoDonaPaula’s smallbay, .com; dUS$200; Rd;dwith bathroomRs1200) B3 Baywatch,Jetty private beach.Fullprivate paymentis required upfront. Space hasbeen wellusedtocreate aniceviewofthe AC Rs1200/2000,without ACRs1100/1400; to keep youcomfortable. facilities such ashotwater andsatellite TV roomsoverlookingpleasant and thesea, Viewhasfour posite Hawaii Zauri Beach, souls inthecrowdsacrossway. of beach, fromwhere youcanpitythepoor acrosstheroadfromaquietpatchIt’s right uptofourpeople.home. The roomssleep cony where youcanreally make at yourself bathroom, asmallkitchenette andabal- acleanhot-water plete withsatellite TV, sittingroomcom- both withaseparate spacious rooms(oneupstairs, onedown) ous choice isGoanDelicacy,which hastwo the mayhemof DonaPaula, thentheobvi- ested inthe‘real instaying Goa’,farfrom value outside the high season. value outsidethehigh that are andreasonably quite secluded good River, are acoupleof smallresort hotels andthemouthof theZuari facing thesea Across from theharbour,onpeninsula SLEEPING Prainha for akilometre. hires outjetskis;forRs70youcanjet-ski a fancynameforshackonthebeach – called ‘Images of India’. ture outcrop of a rock,onwhich stands pool, healthclub andcasino. five-star requirements includingbeachfront clusive worldof opulencewithalltheusual coast byVaniguinim Thisis anex- Beach. offer atthisopulenthotel 1kmdownthe .com; HawaiiBeach;rRs600-1000) O Pescador patch of beach andtheirownpool: modation options, bothof which have a side cottages and pleasantrooms inpeaceful gardens. 2500; Continuing through theroundaboutContinuing through Cidade deGoa Zauri View View Zauri Goan Delicacy At theendof theroadisapierandsmall There are someminiresort-style accom- designed by Baroness Yrsa von Leistner Yrsa vonLeistner designedbyBaroness as ( % CENTRAL GOA ••AroundPanaji ( % Dona Paula Sports Club Dona Paula Sports ) Lovely, though slightly overpriced, beach- ) Lovely, thoughslightly overpriced, 2453881-3; www.prainha.com; dRs 2000- s 2453863; www.opescador.com; s/dwith ( %

)

Absolute indulgence ison ( % ( 2456545; [email protected]; 2456545; [email protected]; % 2453265; goandelicacy@yahoo 2454545; www.cadadedegoa If you’re inter- ( % as 2453278) Op- sculp- )

99

– CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA place tositandadmire theview. and Goandishes. Theterrace isanideal Indian,Chinese Indian tourists,andserves restaurant attheJetty isapopularspotfor Rs 30-100;breakfast, lunch&dinner) few. Marsh crocodilesandotters have also curlews, drongosandmynahs, tonamea cormorants, kites, woodpeckers, sandpipers, colourfulkingfishers,expect tosee eagles, tous white egrets andpurpleherons,youcan claimed marshland. Apartfromtheubiqui- the mangroves that hadgrownaroundre- to protect thebirdlife thatthrives here and claimed bytheForest Departmentin1988 onChoraoIsland waspro- this sanctuary Abdul Ali,India’sbest-known ornithologist, Dr SalimAliBirdSanctuary Named after thelate DrSalimMoizzudin stops alongthisroad. Marg.anand Bandodkar There are several (Rs 4,20),andrunalongriverfront Day- leave fromtheKadamba inPanaji busstand Frequent toMiramarandDonaPaula buses THERE&AWAYGETTING It’s nearDonaPaula Jetty. class; avegetable thali isRs30,asabeer. prisingly wellpricedgiven itsattempt at with goodviewsover thebay.It’salsosur- Nautica isapopularmultitiered restaurant Goan Delicacy EATING 100 cream. nexttothebeach. It’sright such aslemonfish soup,steaks andice cooks updeliciousandimaginative fare friendly, airyandimmaculate placethat roads,Goan Delicacyisa most delightful hidden gem downoneof DonaPaula’s Menino’s BarandRestaurant Menino’s Nautica EOR HRO ISLAND CHORAO DETOUR: you’re soclose tothecapital. see youthere – whichisunexpected when many locals are stillpleasantlysurprised to and isa typical Goanbackwater where Chorao not there’s much toseeonthe island,thevillageof Although (above ). Sanctuary theDr SalimAliBird the marshlandsskirting motorcycle, andyou canalsowalkaround Chorao Islandcanbe explored bybicycleor CENTRALGOA ••OldGoa (vegetablethalisRs30; has a number of Portuguese houses hasanumberofPortuguese ( % 2453265; HawaiiBeach)

( % Thislow-key h 2452702; mains 8am-10pm) Awell- Rs 4/20). and are free forpedestrians(motorcycle/car back andforthfrom6.30amintothe night, at theRibandarferry crossing.Ferries go bound forOldGoaandasktobe letoff him after 9pmtoarrange time. ameeting him, askaroundattheferry crossingorcall bothhumanandanimal.Tofind sanctuary, and excitedly pointoutthegoing-onsof the tour of themangroves inadugoutcanoe Paresh willtake youfora1½-hourguided local andabird-lover since hisschool days. a morning or afternoon to explore it. attraction and youshould put aside atleast is without doubtGoa’spremier historical Known as theRomeof Old Goa the East, torivalLisbon inmagnificence.it wassaid city thatwasonce sograndandpowerful posing churches andconvents remain ina About 9kmeastof Panaji, ahandfulof im- % OLD GOA ( Rs 50toenter thesanctuary. island, youwillhave topaytheforest officer a 90-minute trip.Onceyouarrive onthe is anywhere Rs350and500for between side of theferry totheisland.Thegoingrate of whomwillbewaitingonthemainland withalocalboatman,many dugout canoe thewater the bestwaytocruise ways isina Goa fromanewperspective, andtothatend tuary allowsyoutoget waterborne andsee somewhat ontidetimes.Atriptothesanc- Mandovi isatidalriver, boattripsdepend couple of hours before butsincethe sunset), (a morning (about8am)orintheevening is afascinatingcontrasttonearbyPanaji. farming andfishing activitiesof theisland the into life onthisfragileterrain. Seeing grove swampsoffers afascinatinginsight easy andaleisurely itsman- driftthrough shame given thatgetting totheislandis are notinterested inbirds.Thisisagreat by cynicsashaving who littletooffer those boat whenthewater isnottoolow. level thatcanbereachedtower inthesanctuary by surface atlowtide. There’s abird-watching mudskipper fish thatskimacrossthewater’s spottedbeen bysomevisitors, alongwiththe % To get toChoraoIsland,take abus A particularlygoodguideis The besttimetovisitiseitherintheearly Dr SalimAliBirdSanctuaryisportrayed 0832 0832-2239141, 9822489611) www.lonelyplanet.com , a Chorao Island , aChorao Paresh Sawant

As abasilica,BomJesus isparticularlysa- dressed shirts. inbeach wearorsleeveless in. the afternoon heatsets Jesus andexplore therest of thesite before Bom orBasilica Cathedral mass attheSe mornings,whenyou cantake in is weekday ends andfeast days.Thebesttimetovisit of India. bytheArchaeological Survey maintained the oldbuildingshave becomemuseums ofis intheBasilica BomJesus), manyof are (thetombof stillinuse StFrancisXavier completely abandoned. thecitywasjust asswift,andeventually of was tradeandwealth.Itsfall,however, compared itwithAmsterdam forvolume theworld.OneDutchthroughout visitor inGoa,thecitybecamefamed Portuguese hundred years followingthearrivalof the wasmeteoric: overIts rise of thecourse the pal cityof eastern empire. thePortuguese colonybutalsotheprinci- new Portuguese www.lonelyplanet.com 1 3 2 OLD GOA When visitingOldGoadonotcome Old Goacanget very crowded onweek- someofToday, although thechurches ofOld Goawasnotonlythecapital the To SolarSoutoMaior(1.5km); Panaji (9km) 8 Museum ofChristianArt... John...... Convent &ChurchofSt Assisi...... Church ofStFrancis Church ofStCajetan...... Church ofStAugustine...... Rosary...... Church ofOurLadythe Monica...... Chapel ofStCatherine...... Chapel ofStAnthony...... Basilica ofBomJesus...... Art Gallery...... (see4) Shah...... Archway ofYussufAdil Archeological Museum....(see11) Alberqueque’s Steps...... SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES INFORMATION Church &ConventofSt Post Office...... 5 9 AC 13 7 13 12 11 10 OldGoa 5 4 3 2 1 9 8 7 6 A3 B3 C2 D2 A3 A3 A3 B2 A3 C3 C2 C2 C3 12 Bus Stand...... Bus Stand...... Bus Stand...... Bus &TaxiStand...... Restaurants...... Old GoaHeritageView...... Viceroy's Arch...... Sisters’ Convent...... Se CathedraloftheJesuits... Professed House...... (see4) EATING SLEEPING TRANSPORT NH4 18 22 B 15 19 ὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈ 6 Divar Island

22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 Old Goa Rd Goa Old 11 B3 C3 C3 B3 B3 C3 C2 B3 C2 opposite DivarIsland. new site onthenorthof themainisland, the nameGovepuri were transferred to the of and in1470,thestatus sultanate capital after thearrivalof theMuslimBahmani Velha’s tosiltup.Shortly port,hadstarted theZuariRiver,and 1470)because Goa Muslim invaders fromthenorthin1312 ofcause itsvulnerability(itwassacked by bothbe- importance, had started tolose (at thesite knowntodayasGoaVelha), it of tothesouth wasstillofficially thestate near thetinyvillage of Ela. Whilethecapital sprang uponthebanksof theMandovi took placeinthe15thcentury,whenaport The first large-scale inthearea settlement History a Hindutemple. outsideastheywouldat leaving theirshoes many Westerners (unnecessarily) –even the churches show much more respect than cred toChristians.Indiantouristsvisiting ate disintegrated andGovepuri cameinto sultan- a thrivingcity.WhentheBahmani 4 Within a short time the new capital was Within ashorttimethenewcapital 2 14 1 0 0 16 Rua Direita Divar Island CENTRAL GOA ••OldGoa Ferry to 20 To Shubankar Hotel(2.5km); 21 Karmali TrainStation(3km) 3 17

Mandovi River 10 D To Churchof 0.3 miles Church of Our Ladyof St Francis 500 m the Mount Xavier To Ponda

(1.7km) (24km)

101 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA eventually ledtoplans toabandoneventually the city. recurreddisease inthe following years and epidemic, which struckin1635. Boutsof cholera accelerated by anotherdevastating Dutch andFrench. Thecity’s declinewas usurpedbytheBritish, had been on theseas of supremacy the16thcentury,Portuguese Goa’s fortunesbegan toturn.Bytheend population of around250,000. spread. Goaatthistime hadanestimated and themoatfilled intoallowforthe panded hugely; thecitywallswere removed the dozen. ters, barrel arches and flying buttresses by thereand consequently are domes,pilas- were modelled onEuropeancounterparts produce themostsplendidbuildings. All vyingwitheach otherto and seminaries, the missionariesbuiltchurches, hospitals Undeterred,timated 200,000inhabitants. when acholera epidemicwipedoutanes- were abandonment, toleaditseventual enced itsfirst taste of theproblems that (among others) theyoungFrancis Xavier. real influxbeganin1542withthearrivalof Albuquerque aschaplains the tohisfleet, thefirstAlthough missionariesarrived with tus wasthearrivalof thereligious orders. new rulers startedtobuild.Amajor impe- Day)recapturedCatherine’s Gove. in theautumn,andon25November (St Albuquerqueattackedindomitable again ridden outthemonsooninhisships, the Yussuf AdilShah twomonths later. Having briefly inMarch, by butwasthenevicted managed togaincontrolof theentire island but twotakeovers. Afonsode Albuquerque asGoa)wasthesceneoftuguese notone Goveguese, (which wasknowntothePor- for itsshipbuilding. pilgrims toMecca, andgainedprominence trading centre andadeparture pointfor ramparts andamoat.Itbecamemajor the citywasenlarged andstrengthened with palace. Intheyears followinghistakeover, the cityandof thegrandeurof theroyal porary accountstell of themagnificenceof Contem- capital. that itbecamehissecond Gove wassofavoured by Yussuf AdilShah the handsof the MuslimBijapursultanate, 102 Ironically itwas alsoatthistimethat By thelate 16thcenturythecityhadex- In thefollowingyearcityexperi- With Gove nowfirmlyundercontrol,the In 1510,withthearrivalof thePortu- CENTRALGOA ••OldGoa Rajagopalan’s excellent booklet Rajagopalan’s which has bookson OldGoa, including S also inquire at theArchaeological Museum, available atthemain churches. Youcan There’s but guides are notourist office Information frommiles around. seen the Church of StAugustine,which can be est reminder of thisistheruined tower of down, thereprieve cametoo late. The stark- for buildingmaterials orhadsimplyfallen of plundered thebuildings,which hadbeen returned Butformany totheirformeruses. to clearthearea andsomebuildingswere terest toincrease, started workwasdone barracks.Whenarchaeological in- military as apart fromoneortwobuildings used mid-20th centurythecityremained empty, empty. the ruinsof thegreat citywere leftallbut in regular Whenthat wasabandoned use. 1846 onlytheconvent of Monicawas Santa the missionarieswere shippedhome. By sion of thereligious societies andmostof governmentPortuguese ordered therepres- to continue. from cholera andmalariabecametoohigh later whenthedeathtollamongworkers be healthy.Workwasabandonedfive years cleaned andreconstructed thecitywould supply anddrainage couldbethoroughly the cityberebuilt, arguing thatifthewater in 1777thegovernment inLisbonordered time toPanjim. the viceroyagainmoved hisresidence, this problemsand struckbythesame had been acenturybefore.been By1759,Panelim too 20,000 –lessthana10thof whatithad yearthepopulationofsame thecitywas cape theappallinghealthproblems.Inthis todosofollowed hisexampletoes- afford remained whocould everybody thecapital, lage OldGoa outsideOldGoa).Although decided tomove toPanelim (thenavil- reallyplan never gotofftheground. when ordered todosobyLisbon,butthe doned theproject andthenrestarted work inMormugao.capital Hissuccessoraban- the viceroyordered worktobeginonanew In 1684,againstconsiderableopposition, From thelate 19thcenturyuntilthe The finalblowcamein1835whenthe Despite OldGoa’svirtualabandonment, theviceroyhimselfIn 1695,however, www.lonelyplanet.com Old Goa,

Oscar deNoronha(2004). books is of India. Oneof themostcomprehensive published bytheArchaeological Survey www.lonelyplanet.com made in 1532 and is said to havemade in1532 andissaid used been locked area afont thatwas thatcontains as youenter isasmall,plain. To theright rich tone. largest bellinAsia andisrenowned forits thefamous houses in 1776,hasgiven it.Theremaining tower the lossof onebelltower,which collapsed tion, andforthe ratherlopsidedlookthat for itsplainstyle, after theTuscantradi- torious Palace of theInquisition. wastheno- andtotheright House Senate the large market square, to theleftwas The grassyarea infrontof thedoors was somethingofalise thecity’sformerlayout. from themainentranceit’spossible tovisu- main square of the city,andlookingeast ordered. the building’sconstructionhadfirst been finished until1652,some90years after pleted until1619andthealtars weren’t slow. Workonthebuildingwasn’t com- as acathedraluptothistime. Progress was church which of hadserved StCatherine, of ,toreplaceSebastiao theolder begun in1562,ontheorders of KingDom largest church inAsia. Thecathedralwas At over 76mlongand55mwide,thisisthe Sights The huge interior of thecathedral isalso The exterior of thecathedralisnotable onwhatwastheThe cathedralstands now standsintheArchaeological MuseuminOldGoa. success,buttheauthoritiestookhintandremovedit upmetwithonlypartial thestatue. It decidedthatitwasanunacceptablerelic ofcolonialism.Anattempt byradicalstoblow nationalism. icon ofPortuguese tures ofVasco daGama. Classicalinstyleandimperialist insentiment,thepoembecamean Written atthistimewashismostfamouswork, administration. officialdisapproval forpubliclycriticisingthe beforewith somedistinction further attracting a magistrate inLisbon.Hewasobviouslynosofttouch,forheenlisted inthearmyandfought banished toGoain1553attheageof29,after beingaccusedoffightingwithandwounding Luís Vaz deCamões greatest (1524–80)isregarded asPortugal’s poet.The youngmanwas LUÍS VAZ DECAMÕES A statueofCamões, erected in1960,stoodthecentre ofOldGoauntil 1983,whenmany rewardHis thistime wastobeexiledtheMoluccas,andhereturned toGoa only in1562. Old Goathe Complete Guide Golden Bell , which isthe by Os Lusíadas, interior. contrast totheausterity of thecathedral and beautifullydecorated –acomplete inchwith every of wallandceilinggilded the BlessedSacrament the across theentrance. Ofthese, side of thenave, twoof which have screens Loyola. There are fourchapels oneither are of StFrancisXavier andStIgnatius ettes, which are intothemainpillars, inset by StFrancisXavier. Thetwo smallstatu- moved tothecathedralin1845. widened toaccommodate it.Thecross was and thatthedoors of thechurch hadtobe church itwas foundthatithadgrownagain came timetomove thecrossintonew built thecrosswasstored nearby.Whenit vision hadappeared andwhilethiswasbeing church wasplanned onthespotwhere the an apparitionof Christhangingonit.A saw cross grew witnesses andseveral bigger erected onahillsidenearOldGoa. The simple crossmadebylocalshepherds was of Miracles other screened chapel, the being carried toMtSinai byangels. showing herawaiting executionthose and exandria, andamong theimages here are edral isdedicated. She wasbeheadedin Al- the life of towhomthe cath- StCatherine, withscenesfrom main panelsare carved inGoanchurches).behind thealtar Itssix huge gildedreredos screen (ornamental 7.15am, 10am (high mass) and4pm. 7.15am, 10am (high urday at7am and6pm; onSunday it’s at Opposite, on the right ofOpposite, ontheright thenave, isthe Towering above isthe themainaltar Mass takes placefrom MondaytoSat- anepicpoemglorifyingtheadven- . The story goes thatin1619a . Thestorygoes CENTRAL GOA ••OldGoa isquite outstanding, Chapel oftheCross Chapel of

103 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA here thanelsewhere. The walls and ceiling were given greater freedom with theirskills thelocal artisans beautiful –perhaps because had bythat timebecome the fashion. rest of thefaçade,plainness of which Manueline style,contrastsstronglywiththe structure. Thisoriginaldoorway, inornate old buildingwas incorporated intothenew rebuilt in 1661,andonlythedoorwayof the Holy Ghost.This church was subsequently was replaced byachurch tothe consecrated friars ontheirarrivalin1517.In 1521it was builtonthissite Franciscan byeight esting buildingsinOldGoa. Asmallchapel isoneof the mostinter- the Cathedral, West of Se Church of St CHURCH OFSTFRANCISASSISI 104 The interior of thechurch isparticularly it seemedanidealopportunity. plenty tobedoneinotherareas, andwhenmissionarieswere requested fortheeastern empire, Holy Land,where theMuslims. theyhopedtoconvert Althoughtheplansfell through,there was the SocietyofJesus(theJesuits)in1534andalmostimmediately hatchedplanstotravel tothe Loyola andthuscametotheturningpointinhislife. Togetherwithfive others,theyformed Spain, on7April1506.Abrilliantscholar,hestudiedatParis University, where hemetIgnatius Goa’s patronsaint,FrancisXavier, wasbornintoawealthyand aristocraticfamilyinNavarre, THE INCORRUPTBODYOFSTFRANCISXAVIER 2 December1552. HediedontheislandofSancian,off theChinesecoast,on a missionthathisdeathcutshort. places. InFebruary 1552hepersuadedtheviceroyto allowhimtoplananembassyChina, teaching, hecommencedhistravels, whichtookhimtoCeylon, MalaccaandJapan,amongother people declared tobeamiracle. itspreservation rot despite thequicklime. The followingyear,FrancisXavier’s bodywasreturned toGoa,where body wastransferred toMalacca,where condition–refusing itwasseentobestillinperfect to consume hisfleshincasetheordercametoreturn theremains toGoa. Twomonths later, the found tobeabsolutely untainted.’ it. Henoted, ‘Whentheywithdrew them,theywere covered withthebloodwhichIsmeltand twoJesuitstoputtheirfingersintoused. Henoticedasmallwoundinthechestandasked declared thatalltheinternal organs were andthatnopreservative agentshadbeen stillintact in1556bytheviceroy’sphysician,who the bodyhadnotbeenembalmed.This wasperformed cycle ofexpositionsbegan. corpse inaglasscoffinoutofview,and itwasnotuntilthemid-19thcenturythatcurrent state ofdesiccationandthemiracle appeared tobeover. The Jesuitsdecided toenclosethe scattered throughSoutheastAsia. Bytheendof17thcenturybodywas in anadvanced ofoneshoulderblade andalltheinternal organsJapan andRome,by1636parts hadbeen corrupt theincorruptbody.In1614rightarmwasremoved anddividedbetweenJesuitsin with the next event taking place in2014. eventwith thenext taking the 450-year-old remains. The placearoundXavier’s expositiontakes feast day–3December CENTRALGOA ••OldGoa In April 1541, Xavier sailed from Portugal, arrivinginGoaMay1542.AfterIn April1541,Xavier abriefspell sailedfromPortugal, After his death his servant issaidtohaveAfter emptiedfoursacksofquicklimeintohiscoffinto hisdeathservant The churchwasslowertoacknowledgeit,requiring amedicalexaminationtoestablishthat It wasnotuntil1622thatcanonisationtookplace. Bythen,holyrelic hunters decidedto Every 10years,theglasscoffin containingthebodyisbroughtoutsomassescansee this church has thetombstones of many of and obedience. of the Franciscanorder – poverty, humility onthethree Francis, who isstanding vows Jesus armfree hashis right toembraceSt The symbolismof thissceneisunmistakable: and above thereredos isChristonthecross. lower partof thereredos are of theapostles, inthe for thetabernacle. Thefourstatues from others recess inOld Goa,withadeep dos againdominates, itisdifferent although pulpit are worthlookingoutfor. Therere- with floraldesigns,andtheintricately carved arch that supportsthechoir, painted vividly paintings onthewallsof thechancel. A huge wood panels,andthere are anumberof large are heavily gildedandcovered withcarved Like many other churches inOld Goa, www.lonelyplanet.com Museum Museum St Francisof Assisi isnowthe The convent atthebackof theChurch of ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM from aHindutemple. made partlyfromafragmentof anoldpillar The font,situated justbesidethedoor,is gentry laidintothefloor.the Portuguese www.lonelyplanet.com short of miraculous. of transport atthe time, they were nothing became legendary –considering thestate its), StFrancis Xavier’s missionary voyages the founder of theSociety of Jesus (theJesu- site ). Aformer pupilof StIgnatius Loyola, the so-calledApostle of theIndies ( oppo- remainsand mortal of StFrancis Xavier, thetomb world.Itcontains man Catholic This theRo- basilica isfamous throughout BASILICA OFBOM JESUS and israrely opentovisitors. laterite in1952.Thechapel remains empty wasrebuiltThe Chapelof StCatherine in tobethemaingate ofused theMuslimcity. thatthechapelis believed isbuiltonwhat entered the cityatthisspot,andhenceit thatAfonsodeAlbuquerqueactually states stone thatwasaddedduringtherebuilding and in1550itwasrebuilt. Theinscribed byPopePaulgranted cathedralstatus III Day. In1534thechapel wasCatherine’s commemorate hisentryintothecityonSt site by Afonsode Albuquerque in1510to ine. An earlierchapel waserected on this the St Francisstands Chapel of StCather- About 100mtothewestof theChurch of CHAPEL OFSTCATHERINE and displayedhere. the state untiltheywere finallycollected were inrandomlocationsaround housed paintings viceroys.These the Portuguese governor, which stoodatMiramar. and oneof AfonsodeAlbuquerque,thefirst of andtheBasilica BomJesus, Cathedral Se which oncestoodinthearea the between LuísVaz poet tuguese ( deCamões p103 ), are twolarge one of bronzestatues: thePor- this partof India centuriesago. Alsohere ages fromtheanimistcultthatflourishedin influences,andstoneVetaland Hoysala im- temple sites inGoa,which showChalukyan fragmentsofhouses sculpture fromHindu Upstairs, a gallery contains portraitsofUpstairs, agallerycontains (admission Rs5; h 9am-6.30pm Sat-Thu) Archaeological Archaeological . It plaster backyet. trary, no-onehasgotaroundtoputtingthe be strengthened. Despite proof tothecon- more durable andthusthebuildingwould the elements,laterite wouldbecome Apparently to theideawasthat,exposed in1950. conservationist ous Portuguese plaster having strippedoff byazeal- been is notplastered ontheoutside,lime words for‘Jesus’ inGreek. blem ‘IHS’,which istheabbreviation of the the designof thefaçadeisJesuit em- some300kmaway.Prominentin Bassein, from thatwasbrought frombasalt carved thian design,andthepillars are anddetail has elementsof Doric,IonicandCorin- church wascompleted in1605.Thefaçade the sunisadepictionof theTrinity. head, onwhich IHSisemblazoned.Above are toahuge gildedsunabove raised his figure of theChristchild. StIgnatius’eyes shows StIgnatiusLoyolaprotecting a tiny figures Thereredos depicted isimportant. St Francisof Assisi, thesymbolismof the Asthe cathedralitself. intheChurch of strongly withtheclassical,plain layout of ofbaroque detail theornamentcontrasts takes prideofbehind thealtar place. The reredos thatstretches fromfloortoceiling but yetagainthehuge andornate gilded ofthe basilicaisastatue StFrancisXavier, one. Totheleftof the doorasyouenter replacednow been byasimple wooden but grand.Theoriginalvaulted ceilinghas ket, which Jesuit was designed by Italian life.’s Atop thestructure isthe cas- bronze plaques thatdepict scenesfromthe marble. Oneach side of tierare thesecond is constructedThe catafalque of jasper and structure waserected inthebasilica in1698. nally, after 10years’ work,thethree-tiered andfi- sculptor Giovanni Foggini Batista resting. Theduke engaged theFlorentine low onwhich StFrancis’ headhadbeen for hiscontribution hewasgiven thepil- ing of themarblecatafalque. In exchange the duke of Tuscanyfinancedthebuild- the church in1622,andthelate 1680s Xavier iskept. Thebodywasmoved into for itishere thatthebodyof StFrancis forthevastmajority ofhighlight visitors, This istheonlychurch inOldGoathat Construction beganin1594andthe Inside thebasilicalayoutissimple To the right of isthe however, To theright thealtar, CENTRAL GOA ••OldGoa

105 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA 9.15am onSunday. 8am MondaytoSaturday,andat rebuilt in1783. ing burneddownin1633andwaspartially to theeastwere organised. Part of thebuild- 1585. Itwasfromhere thatJesuit missions dates thebasilica,having completed in been covered withlimeplaster. Itactuallypre- of theJesuits Matthew’s Gospel. The largest of thealtars of of the base the domeis averse fromSt dome. Theinscription around theinside above thecentre of which is thetowering have turned theinterior intoa cruciform, of internal buttresses andfourhuge pillars of statues use apostles.Inside, clever tain design andthefour niches onthefrontcon- church. He in1671. wascanonised in anincreasingly corrupt RomanCatholic moralstance ‘incurables’, and for hishigh andwith known forhisworkinhospitals Order of TheatinesinRome1524.He was spent allof his life the establishing inItaly, Francis Xavier. BorninVicenza,StCajetan (1480–1547), acontemporaryCajetan of St after the founderof theTheatineorder,St but thechurch ismore popularlynamed ofcated DivineProvidence, toOurLady church remaining inGoa.isdedi- Thealtar beautiful buildingandtheonlytruly domed interesting thantheotherchurches, it’sstilla it’sperhaps less began in1655,andalthough Goa in1640.Theconstructionof thechurch atOld to workinGolconda,sotheysettled Hyderabad). Thefriars were notpermitted tianity inthekingdomof Golconda(near byPopeUrbanVIIItopreachsent Chris- friars of theOrder of Theatines,whowere in Rome,thischurch wasbuiltbyItalian Modelled on theoriginaldesignof StPeter’s CHURCH OFSTCAJETAN allowing youadifferent perspective. looks downonthetombof StFrancisXavier, worthwhile, asthere’s asmallwindowthat not toyourtaste, a visit tothegalleryisstill the stairs toa St Francis’remains further on, and,slightly risty there are acoupleof items relating to silversmiths in1637. Marcelo Mastrili andconstructed bylocal 106 Mass isheldinthebasilicaat7amand The façadeof thechurch isclassicalin Next tothebasilicais Passing fromthechapel towardsthesac- CENTRALGOA ••OldGoa , atwo-storey laterite building gallery . Even ifthepaintingsare Professed House tains acollection of paintings and tains statuary, museum Adjacent totheConvent of StMonica, this MUSEUM OFCHRISTIANART side of thewestern wallsof thechapel. dressed. There are fadingmuralsonthe in- tors are allowedinifthey are reasonably Dei Institute asatheological centre. Visi- being returned tothe church in 1968. andthen Indiantroops,beforePortuguese first 1950s and’60sthebuildingshoused the lastsister diedin1885.During the any further. Itwasfinallyabandoned when itwasforbiddentorecruit although close, religious orders, butdidnotimmediately tions, itwascrippledbythebanning of the in theeast.Like theotherreligious institu- joyed, thebuildingwasfirst nunnery ofbecause theroyalpatronage thatiten- date. OnceknownastheRoyalMonastery and it’sfromthistimethatthe buildings Reconstruction started thefollowing year 1627, onlytoburndownnineyears later. commenced in1606andwascompleted in Work onthisthree-storey laterite building CHURCH &CONVENTOFSTMONICA where (andheard)today. itcanbeseen of theImmaculate ConceptioninPanjim, moved in1871totheChurch of OurLady tions in1938.Thetower’shuge bellwas the towerfell down,followed bymore sec- in1842.In1931thefaçadeandhalf lapsed church fell intoneglectandthevaultcol- of manyreligious orders fromGoa. The government, which resulted in theeviction of therepressive policiesof thePortuguese in 1587.Itwasabandoned1835because Augustinian friars whoarrived atOldGoa creepers andaccessisdifficult. andweeds, The few otherremnants are choked with and formedpartof thefaçadeof thechurch. asabelfry tower,which served 46m-high All thatisreally leftof thischurch isthe RUINS OFTHECHURCH OFSTAUGUSTINE aimisremarkablywhose accurate. breast-fed byanangel atsomedistance inoneitappearsSt Cajetan; thatheisbeing paintings illustratingepisodesinthelife of Ontheleftsideare himself. to StCajetan sideofon theright thechurch isdedicated The building is now used bytheMaterThe buildingisnow used The church wasconstructed in1602by

(adult/child Rs15/free; www.lonelyplanet.com h 9.30am-5pm) con- Xavier asshelaydying. to legend theywere marriedbyStFrancis womantoarrive tuguese in Goa. According wife, aPiro, whowasthefirst Caterina Por- the northernwallof thechancel isthat of his of thegovernors, into GarciadeSa,andset in frontof isthetombstoneof thealtar one simply of intothe floor alayerof tiles.Set in thechurches below,andtheroof consists wonderfully plainafter allthegoldof those istrue;thereredos Insidethesame sea. is bear testimony toPortugal’sreliance onthe church are which simple rope-twistdevices, locked. but unfortunately thebuildingisfrequently land fromthechurch’s dramaticposition, views of theMandovi River andDivarIs- ingly simpleindesign.There are excellent restored, isManueline instyle,andrefresh- in thanksforhisvictory. andvowedtobuildachurchthe bluff there ontheMuslim cityfrom theattack surveyed in Goa–thelegend hasitthatAlbuquerque Itisoneof theearliest churches bluff. high of onthetopof which stands theRosary, a along theroadis Church of OurLady Convent of StMonica,about250mfurther Passing beneaththeflyingbuttresses of the CHURCH OFOURLADYTHEROSARY fixes, salvers andcrowns. fair amountof silverware, includingcruci- anda paintingsandcarvings, devotional embroidered priestvestments, anumberof artists. Amongtheitems onshoware richly play here, were producedbylocalHindu era,includingsomeof ondis- guese those Goan ChristianartmadeduringthePortu- Many Seminary. ofthe theworksof , mostof ittransferred here from www.lonelyplanet.com end of the 19thcentury. atthe back intouse 1835 butwas brought around it, StAnthony’swas abandonedin on thecity.Likesault the otherinstitutions of Albuquerque inorder tocele brate theas- to bebuiltinGoa, againonthedirections armyandnavy, wasoneofguese the earliest chapel, dedicated of tothesaint thePortu- as partofis nowinuse aconvent. The gustine istheChapel of StAnthony, which Opposite theruinsof theChurch of StAu- CHAPEL OFSTANTHONY The onlyornamentsontheoutside of the The church, beautifully which hasbeen symbolise entry. symbolise dock there wasnonethelessanarchway to for newbuildings,ontheroadupfrom fortifications were demolishedtomake way thecity’s the entrancetocity.Although thebusywharfjustin front ofglimpsed made itatall),thevisitors wouldhave first (and probably givingthanksforhaving city’s heyday.Approaching alongtheriver waythatvisitorsis inthesame didinthe Perhaps thebestwaytoarrive inOldGoa VICEROY’S ARCH third storey of withastatue StCatherine. ishere.message Thearch originally hada her feet. Noprizesforguessing whatthe a swordover anIndian,whoislyingunder sculpture of aEuropeanwomanwielding On thesidefacingcityisahimself. tre of of thearchway isastatue daGama Gama’s coatof arms.Above itinthecen- mented emblemof withthedeer Vasco da restored in1954after collapsing)isorna- side facingtheriver, thearch (which was son, whobecameviceroyin1597.Onthe was erected byVasco daGama’sgrand- was linedwithshops andbusinesses. the citywasknown astheRuaDireita, and theViceroy’sArchdock through andinto of Theroadrunningfromthe StCajetan. you approach theentrancetoChurch gateway All thatremains of the palacenowisthe tually taken over astheviceroy’sresidence. Yussuf AdilShah’s palace,which waseven- Arch, justtotheleftwasMuslimruler areas inthecity.IfyoufaceViceroy’s the quayledintooneof thebusiestmarket after thecitywasabandoned.Toright, they were dismantledforbuildingmaterials andmintwerearsenal here too,although ships were unloadedwere totheleft.The the maindocksatwhich thenewlyarrived old city.Lookingtowardstheferry dock, to imaginesomethingof thelayoutof the Goa below. This isreputedly where Yussuf mands anexcellent view of the whole of Old the hillon which thechurch com- stands by along andovergrown of flight steps, 2km east of thecentral area. Approached which often gets overlooked asitissome There isoneother church in OldGoa, CHURCH OFOURLADYTHEMOUNT This archway, calledtheViceroy’sArch, If youtake amomenthere, it’spossible , which can be seen ontheleftas , which canbeseen CENTRAL GOA ••OldGoa

107 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA around thecorner. Karmali which isimmediately train station, This hotel mainlycaters topeopleusingthe clean (sterile) roomsthatare goodvalue. option isShubhankar Hotel, which has St Xavier’s. Its menu does warn ofSt Xavier’s. Its menu does a 15- andthe viewoveryou can enjoy acoldbeer around the sites of OldGoa, atTouristInn there are afew basicrestaurants scattered Pedro drivers –taxi willknow where itis. 1.5km fromOld Goainthedistrictof St andartexhibitions. It’sonly tural events and care. SolarSoutoMaior alsohostscul- recently restored been withenormoustaste is420 years old,buthasonly building itself ofa series shopsandgalleryrooms.The convertedace thathasbeen into a caféand to thisrestored partof pal- aPortuguese a culinaryandhistoricalexperience, come Solar SoutoMaior Eating Panaji. reason there tostay given itsproximity to vicinity of Old Goa –notthatthere’s much There are onlyacoupleof hotels inthe Sleeping Feast ofStFrancisXavier Procession ofAllSaints Festivals &Events built twicesince. after, re- completed in1519,andhasbeen in November. Thechurch wasbuiltshortly and againwhenhewasdefending thecity torecaptureassault thecityinMay 1510, Adil Shah placedhisartilleryduringthe 108 5327, 2285013;dwith/withoutACRs600/440; villages. around OldGoa’sneighbouring statues ofsaintsare broughtoutfromstorageandparaded outsideRome. Thirty this istheonlyprocessionofitssort everything you’reeverything inOldGoatosee. from distance rooms andisacomfortable GTDC’s offering hasreasonably good-value expo isin2014. 10years–thenext Francis Xavier’sbody,heldonceevery especiallyfortheexpositionofSt here overthis period, of theyear. There are lotsoffestivities andhugecrowds ,thisisthebiggestfestival preceded by anine-day Rs 100/200,withAC400/600; mali; s/dwithbathroomRs300/500,without bathroom Tourist Inn Tourist Old Goa Heritage View View Old GoaHeritage Shubhankar Hotel Hotel Shubhankar CENTRALGOA ••DivarIsland

(curries aroundRs80) (curries ( % 5614524; www.solargoa.in) On the fifth Monday ofLent, Onthefifth ( % Heldon3Decemberand (Old Goa Residency; (Old GoaResidency; 2284619, 2285920;Kar- a ) Thecheapest Although a % ) The For 228 the this site wasbuiltinaround1515. the 15thcentury,sincefirst church on destroyed byMuslimtroopsnearthe endof dade. It’slikely thattheGanesh temple was temple hill inPie- thatstoodonthesolitary persecute theHindus),aswellaGanesh begantoBicholim whenthePortuguese ple (which wasmoved across theriver to temples Tem- –theSaptakoteshwara tant twoparticularlyimpor-and itcontained architecture.crumbling Portuguese butalsohashintsofit’s wellmaintained island, the mainland.Thelargest onthe settlement and more picturesque thanthevillages on waters of theMandovi, quieter even seems ated from therest of bytheforked thestate Somehow DivarIsland,separ-its ownright. (district),butisalsoworthavisitin taluka cut ontheroute fromPanaji toBicholim north of short OldGoa,isnotonlyauseful the southeastof ChoraoIslandandtothe The smallislandof Divar,which liesto DIVAR ISLAND or motorcycleexcursion. Alternatively, makes OldGoa anicebicycle infrontofbus stand BomJesus. theBasilica from eitherthemainroundabout orthe leave 10minutes) whenfull(aroundevery toPanaji OldGoa.through Buses orPonda Panaji; fromPanaji buses toPondaalsopass 25 minutes) fromtheKadamba at busstand There are frequent toOldGoa(Rs4, buses &Away There Getting snacks. theareathroughout drinksand thatsell sites. stop between minute waitbutit’swelllocated forapit Goa are clearlyvisible. whitewashed towers of the churches of Old and south. Acrosstheriver tothesouth, the there are excellentviews tothenorth, west penetrate intothechurch. to into thewalls,allowing onlyadimlight designs, andthe windows are wellback set ceiling ispicked outinplainwhite stucco with anengagingly simpleinterior. The condition. Itcombines animpressive façade The church thatoccupiesthehilltoday, Divar Islandwassacred totheHindus There are random street scattered stalls From the smallparknear thechurch Church ofOurLady Compassion Piedade , is sleepy butpicturesque;, issleepy www.lonelyplanet.com , isinfine a mirage. and theresort willappearbefore you like you’reyou feel asthough lost,keep going the ferry. Whentheroadpeters outand theintersection whenyougetthrough off the road.Tofindit,keep ondrivingstraight land, attheratherunlikely northernendof in theprocessof beingbuiltonDivarIs- port – even taxis are taxis port –even scant. trying toget aroundhere bypublictrans- Piedade, itwouldbeafrustratingexercise theferry runbetween and buses though slog getting upthehilltochurch. Al- Most of theislandisflat,butit’satough especially combinedwithatriptoOldGoa. the southwestof theisland. frequent ferry operates toRibandarfrom by ferry toNaroainBicholim Aless taluka. and theeastendof theislandisconnected roy’s Arch) runstothesouthof theisland, ferry. theVice- AboatfromOldGoa(near ( www.lonelyplanet.com but which isnow knownas OldGoa. the north, which they also calledGovepuri city, and moved to thenewsite thecapital in took Goa, destroyedwhat wasleftof theold were siltingup. the waters its livelihood onwhich itbased ing blowof itsdestructionandthe factthat to declineanyway, duetoboththecrush- the fortunesof hadbegun theoldcapital 1378 thattrade revived, but bythistime was taken intotheVijayanagarempire in havoc. Itwasn’tuntil Goa Muslims caused following years repeated invasionsbythe lim invaders fromthenorth,andover the destroyed byMus- city wasalmosttotally inthearea.began tosettle In1312the national port,attractingArab traders who the oldsite, calleditGoaVelha. Goa,and thenewcapital, guishing between city asGovepuri, distin- butthe Portuguese, of theZuariRiver. TheKadambas knewthis south sideof Tiswadi Island,onthebanks city underthe Kadambas onthe hadbeen themajorMuslim capital, portandcapital of theestablishment Before OldGoaasthe % VELHA GOA % At thetimeof research, Divar makes agoodoutingbybicycle, Divar Islandcanonlybereached by In 1470 the Muslim sultanate Bahmani In itsheyday,Govepuri wasaninter- 0832 0832-5641936) , ahuge five-star resort, was Deevaya AResort Deevaya

area, thesites are easilyaccessible. thecentre through road runsstraight of this nearby,andsincethePanaji–Margaosights bridge. There are, someinteresting however, Agassaim, onthenorth which lies3kmnorthof thesmallvillage of cess occurs isharvested. andthesalt pro- the water acrystallisation evaporates, which water andchannelled. iscaught As pans are man-maderectangular ‘fields’in allaroundhere. insaltpans tised Thesalt- methods of collection,which salt are prac- thetraditional other things,youcansee cycle. Thecountrysideislovely and, among to comeforaleisurely dayoutonamotor- Even so, blackened asitis, withvegetation than sorryfor theappalling state it’sin now. it’snow hardtofeelever, anything other type (baroque withIndian influences).How- that this is oneof the greatest churches of its boasts theclaim made bysomeobservers A hand-painted signby thesidedoorstill fered fromneglect over thepastfew years. is oneplacethathasreallyas Santana) suf- of StAnne(knowntothelocal people simply About 5km northof GoaVelha, theChurch CHURCH OFSTANNE thatrunspast thevillage.national highway the policehave torestrict movement onthe crowds thatattend thisfestival are sobig, The festivities includeasmallfair,andthe and paradedaroundtheroadsof thevillage. of are saints taken fromtheir storage place beforeMonday afortnight 30statues Easter, drew, which hostsanannual festival. Onthe tent of GoaVelha isthe Church of StAn- Just off themainroadatnorthernex- CHURCH OFSTANDREW Sights were raised to obtain anewset. were toobtain raised lost orbroken, butin1895subscriptions and manyof the originalsculptures were Church of StAndrew. Processionslapsed wereGoa andthestatues transferred tothe the religious orders were forcedtoleave andendedatPilar,butin1834 sions started the lives of Originally theproces- thesaints. paraded asareminder tothelocalpeople of ciscans, anumberof life-size were statues century when,atthepromptingof theFran- Little remains of GoaVelha, thesite of However, thiswholeareaHowever, isagoodplace The processionhasitsoriginsinthe 17th CENTRAL GOA ••GoaVelha ern sideof theZuari

109 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA an original statue brought from Spain and fromSpainand brought an originalstatue who wasbeatifiedafter hisdeath. tor of intheearly20thcentury theseminary the life of Father Agnelo deSouza,adirec- whocometogiveages bythose thanksfor andisalsothesite ofin use, localpilgrim- isstill Xaverian Todaytheseminary League. 1936 thebuildingswere handedover tothe movement graduallypetered out andin Society of StFrancisXavier in1890.The came theheadquarters of theMissionary rescued in1858andbe- bytheCarmelites fromSpain. they hadbrought of Pilar,after OurLady thestatue seminary a centre of learningthere andnamedthe monks. They established 1613 byCapuchin The originalchurch onthesite wasbuiltin Hindu temple thatoverlooked GoaVelha. wasoncethesite of stands seminary alarge inary, nearMargao. Thehillonwhich the Sem- theotherbeingRachol still survive, onlytwoof the Portuguese; theseminaries oneof builtby four seminaries Seminary, the surroundingcountryside,is Pilar North of above onahillhigh Agassaim, set PILAR SEMINARY air aboutit. Thewholethinghasarather ghostly intact. thatthe interior doors isstill youcansee the through the building,andifyoupeep chapel off bythelarge isset cross before ably impressive. The ters hangingdown,theplaceisstillundeni- g rowing outof thefaçadeand broken shut- 110 The oldChurch of of Pilarhas OurLady Abandoned was in1835,theseminary the hypnosis. were willandexpectations thatthesubject’s crucialtothesuccessof was thefirsttoassert Franz AntonMesmer–thefamoushypnotist whosenameledtotheword‘mesmerise’–and A pioneerinthefieldofhypnosisand afavourite sonofGoa,JoseCustodia Faria studiedunder ABBÉ FARIA ordained inRomeand thenmoved toParis, where hewasinvolved intheFrench Revolution. Hewas sentfromGoatoLisbonstudyforthe church,was became anunandhis fatheramonk. When hewaseight yearsoldtheywere seized withreligious andseparated; fervour hismother the mad monk in seminal text onhypnosis, by thechurch andhewaspublicly denounced. Justbefore hedied in1819,Faria published a medium, buthisséances, thoughtheyattracted aconsiderable following,were roundlycondemned CENTRALGOA ••Ponda&Around Faria andhismotherIndian. fatherwasPortuguese wasborninCandolim, Goa,in1756.His Alexander Dumaswassointrigued bythestory ofAbbéFaria’s life andwork thathebased In Paris hisinterest inhypnosis developed underMesmer. asahypnotic Hebegantopractise The Countof MonteCristo massive frontof the On theCause ofLucid Sleep onhim. Shahouri Masjid (SafaMasjid). well asGoa’soldestremaining mosque,Safa distinct architectural stylesandhistories,as Goa’s mostrenowned temples, which have terrain ofland; thedense thehillshides issomethingofPonda taluka aHinduheart- % PONDA &AROUND Anne youreally yourowntransport. need Toreach theChurchPilar Seminary. of St willdropyouattheentranceto Buses GoaVelhagao passthrough andAgassaim. Panaji runningbetween All buses and Mar- &Away There Getting intothetiledwalls. set Also interesting are theJesuit IHSsymbols white ceilingof thechancel thescene. sets the reredos Thepanelledblue-and- itself. multitudes of candlesticksprojecting from but alsoforitspeculiardesign,which has is uniquenotonlyforitswealthof detail heavily gildedconstructionbehind thealtar boyantly decorated reredos inGoa. The oneofbuilding thathouses themostflam- aplainandbattered-lookingSt Lawrence, south endof Agassaim, isthe Church of About 3kmsouthof GoaVelha, atthe CHURCH OFSTLAWRENCE temples thatwere onornearthissite. andsomeof therelics ofcarvings, theHindu somereligiouscontaining paintings and there itself, isasmallmuseum the seminary at therear of thechapel. Justup the hill,in also someattractive paintingsinanalcove . 0832 www.lonelyplanet.com to distribute theirgoods. It didn’ttake long hereselves from which as aneffective base largeseveral them- companies established of Ponda. Given its centrallocation inGoa, of theirgrounds( p114 ). coming youwith lavish lunches andtours on theotherside of awinding drive, wel- to visitoneof thatwait thespiceplantations away fromthefamous coastline. detract fromthe contrast of aninland trip temples. Butdon’tletunfaircomparisons in appearancecompared toIndia’sother arearrival of these modern thePortuguese, from scratch, oratleastrebuilt sincethe most hadtobebuilt collection. Because with Ponda’s junkies maybedisappointed tothetemples. posed religious tolerancemeantthatnothreat was control,increased came underPortuguese Conquests). BythetimethatPonda itself occurred intheVelhas (Old Conquistas remained, safe fromthedestructionthat they tookwiththem.There thetemples in which thedeities tosecurely install Upon reaching safety, theybuilttemples waterway thatmarked theborderof Ponda. across the byfleeing persecution tuguese Hindus were forcedtoescapefromPor- many of thetemples came toexistwhen control of MuslimorHindurulers, and Pondaremainedthe Portuguese, underthe www.lonelyplanet.com (10km) Panaji To Carambolim Cortalim PONDA &AROUND The capital of isthe town The capital The otherreason is tovisitPondataluka Despite thetemples’ history,truetemple For nearly250years after thearrival of TISWADI 17 (Old Goa) MORMUGAO Karmali Station To Margao

Cumb Train (10km) Marcaim

ar

jua

Canal Manguesh

Temple Mahalsa Temple Ponda &Around Mahalaxmi Narasimha 4A Bandode Temple Temple Naguesh Laxmi Temple To Panaji (12km) Ramnath Temple Mardol Querim (Keri) Quela Farmagudi Safa Shahouri Priol Ponda Masjid PONDA Tropical Spice Shantadurga Plantation Temple Savoi Spice Savoi Verem Plantation

Spice Farm

Sahakari

tectural styles. Manguesh, anditexhibitsamixof archi- cated toadeityrecognised onlyinGoa, features of GoanHinduism–itisdedi- This temple admirably demonstrates two MANGUESH TEMPLE Sights peace andquietof itssurrounds. slice of contrasttotherelative city–astark now itscentre feels like anovercrowded thetown,sothat for commercetocolonise Mandovi temple was built to house it. temple wasbuilttohouse discoveredeventually byashepherd, anda the spotwhere allthis hadoccurred was gam (phallicsymbol of Shiva) leftto mark time cametobeknown asManguesh. Alin- thus theformin which heappeared atthe girisha back intohisnormalform.Thewords savetains me),whereupon Shiva turned out asatiger.himself cried Inhorror, heranddisguised he decidedtofrighten camelookingforhim, eventually Parvati exile. When came toGoainaself-imposed thing tohiswife inagameof Parvati dice, hasitthatShiva,Legend having lostevery- installed in anew temple.installed The grounds were to Prioland thelingam was brought ever, took control,how- When the Portuguese where thevillage today. of stands Cortalim south side of theZuari River, near the place Manguesh wasanincarnationof Shiva. River Originally the temple was based onthe Originally thetemple was based ‘trahi mamgirisha’ Kandepar Bamboi CENTRAL GOA ••Ponda&Around became associated with the tale and becameassociated withthetale

BICHOLIM Candepar Usgao Spice Farm

Pascoal River Ὀ Usgao Tisk 4km 2miles 0 0 (Olordof moun- Sanctuary Wildlife Bondla SANGUEM 4A Darbandora SATARI

mam

111 CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA this area, anornamented silver framesur- ted windows, and like theother temples in pressive, with huge wooden pillars andslat- peaceful. Theinnerareais pleasantly isim- and out of thebusyside street, thetemple has manydevotees. this, andforher multifaceted identity,she asarepresentativedevotees of peace;for general, sheisregarded however, byher pantheon asan incarnation of Shiva. In plicate matters, Mahalsa alsofitsintothe corrupted toMahalsa, wasborn.Tocom- trick worked andMohini, withhername inordertodistracthisenemies. The seen, as Mohini, themostbeautifulwoman ever himself gle withtheforcesof disguised evil, cornerduring astrug- in aparticularlytight came intobeing.Inone,, who was form. Various legends suggest howMahalsa carnation, thistimeof Vishnuinafemale awaytosafety. smuggled before theworkbeganin1543deitywas into achurch. Permission wasrefused, but andconvertedthey shouldbepreserved oversee theirdestruction requested that jobitwasto priestwhose the Portuguese ings were reputedly sobeautifulthateven village of Verna inSalcete taluka.Thebuild- nally resided inanancientshrine in the village of Mardol. Thistemple’s deityorigi- from theManguesh Temple, isinthetiny The Mahalsa Temple, 1kmdowntheroad MAHALSA TEMPLE first of week February. oftakes placeinthelastweek January orthe the deitiesduringtemple’s festival, which thechariots thatare also see toparade used sideofdown totheright thetemple, youcan the oldestpartof thecomplex.Ifyouwalk infrontof thetemple is (reservoir) The tank domed roofs indicate theMusliminfluence. balustrade designaroundtheroof. The storey thepillaredsanctum, façadeof theseven- toweraboveinfluence isintheoctagonal the tian andMuslimstyles.Evidence of Christian Goan; itshowstheinfluencesof bothChris- ple administrative offices. accommodation forpilgrimsandthetem- there complexthatincludes isasubstantial enlarged inthemid-18thcenturyandtoday 112 Once you pass through theentrancegateOnce youpassthrough Again, Mahalsa isauniquelyGoanin- Architecturally, thetemple isdistinctly CENTRALGOA ••Ponda&Around deepastambha (lamp tower) and the (lamptower)andthe the base ofthe base the note are colourful images inrelief around stone make anattractive scene. Alsoof the overhanging palms andtheweathered the temple where isthe ancientwater tank, Naguesh Temple. Themost strikingpartof lage of isthesmalland peaceful Bandode, furthersouth,inthevil- A shortdistance NAGUESH TEMPLE beyond. sanctum (pillared pavilion) tothe innerarea andthe the lookingthrough to thetank, overall viewof theplacefromgateway to have youget thebest alook.Otherwise only’, nonbelievers willprobablybeallowed andbelieversthat entryisforthe‘devoted temple hasasignbythedoorannouncing the compoundasyouenter. the Although looking water which tank, istotheleft of The bestpartof thetemple istheancient- Old Conquestsinthemid-16th century. deity wasmoved here fromthearea of the ated todefeat aformidableadversary. The Vishnu, halflionandman,that hecre- Ponda. It’sdedicated toanincarnationof is oneof themost attractive temples around wards the NarasimhaTemple.Laxmi This takesroad totheright youupahillto- lage of Mardol onthemainroad,aside Almost immediately after leaving thevil- LAXMI NARASIMHA TEMPLE sion heldinFebruary forthe the largest such lampintheworld. that islitduringfestivals; tobe itisthought pastambha is quite asight. work, palmtrees andpaddyfieldsbeyond thecombinationoftank; theancientstone- thearchway through tothewaterand peer around tothebackof themainbuilding Walk rounds thedoorwaytosanctum. awake to observe the night vigil. thenight awake toobserve whostayed wealth andprosperityonthose tobestow (usuallyinSeptember) night descends ontheearththisparticular brated (Laxmi) here; thegoddessLakshmi moon festival of festival to thegodMahalsa duringthe tivals. Jasmine flowers are offered intribute the temple isalsofamousfortwoother fes- In additiontotheannualchariot proces- In frontof thetemplealarge stands inAugustorSeptember. Thefull- and a 12.5m-high brassoillamp anda12.5m-high Kojagiri Purnima Kojagiri deepastambha www.lonelyplanet.com Zaiyanchi Puja Zatra festival . Unlike its isalsocele- mandapa dee- ,

Loutolim inSalcete taluka. from was brought inthesanctum installed made upof thecoilsof asnake. Thelingam hisconsort,onacouch lying withLakshmi, lingam, whiletheupperoneshowsVishnu figurestwo depictskneeling worshipping a at thetopof thelintel. Thelowerof the ticularly thetwounusualscenesdepicted finery, theworkhere isexceptional,par- othertemples havetum. Although similar pressive silver frameof thedoortosanc- This mainly for theim- temple isnotable RAMNATH TEMPLE symbolising herconnectionwithShiva. India. Here shewears alingamonherhead, inently intheHindupantheonsouthern the Kadambas, andthushasfeatured prom- worshipped bytheShilahara rulers and by the motherof theworld,wasparticularly The goddess Mahalaxmi, looked uponas relatively uninspiringMahalaxmi Temple. throw fromtheNagueshTemple, isthe Only 4kmoutsidePonda,andastone’s MAHALAXMI TEMPLE ple isdedicated toShiva. newish andratheruninteresting. Thetem- todayare Goa, butthebuildingsyousee well before footin set Albuquerqueever neighbours, thistemple wasinexistence www.lonelyplanet.com and makes animpressive sight. on a hillside facingthe road fromPonda ing thereign of Shahu of stands Raja Satara, and has traditionally had a large following. to beworshipped as thegoddessof peace Shantadurga implies.InGoa,shehas come embodying thecontradiction thatthename to make thetwo gods–thus peacebetween she appeared inherDurga formandhelped savage quarrel Shiva between andVishnu thatduring a particularly The legend goes or shecouldhelptobringpeace,as Shanta. could eitheradoptaviolentform, Durga, the mostpowerfulof Parvati thegoddesses, Shiva’sform taken by Parvati, consort.As by thebusload. worship, here butalsowithtouristsbrought not onlypacked whocometo withthose itis famous shrinesinGoa. Consequently, The Shantadurga Temple isoneof themost SHANTADURGA TEMPLE The temple, which was builtin1738dur- The goddess Shantadurga isanother opt to stay overnight.opt tostay ofience tothesights interest, few travellers decent restaurants andlogisticalconven- Panaji andhaslittletooffer otherthanafew Given that Ponda isamere 30kmfrom Sleeping &Eating restoration. of Indiahasundertaken limited ical Survey theArchaeolog-former grandeur,although into thearea. Todaylittleremains of its movedleft todecaywhenthePortuguese ity. Thebuildingswere damaged andthen the mosquesatBijapurinsizeandqual- andmatchedby gardensandfountains, Shah in1560,itwas originally surrounded on theoutskirtsof Ponda. BuiltbyAliAdil Safa Shahouri Masjid, bytheNH4A isright The oldestmosqueremaining inGoa,the SAFA SHAHOURI MASJID of theentrance. the building,ratherthantoeastinfront isonthe southsideof unusually, thetank ancient water constructed tank, of laterite; is usuallykept locked. Infrontof itisan a stoneplatformwellbackfromtheroad, Rs 900; Complex;dwith/withoutACRs 500/450,ste Super Market Rs 100,rwith/withoutAC650/500,deluxe Rs1050; on site. restaurantis alsoanIndian-and-Chinese are unlikely one. There tobeallowed use solofemaledorm beds,though travellers Theretablishments. are 39roomsandsome crete mostGTDCes- blocks thatcomprise which makes anicechange fromthecon- Rooms are cottage styleandquite private, inPonda. is byfarthebestplacetostay Farmagudi isPonda’sGTDCresidency and thing in the air that says thelocal families thing inthe air that says ment isclean andwarm, andthere issome- The environ- it looksand thefooditserves. of Ponda andtakes alot of pridein theway This all-vegetarian restaurant isahighlight for aspecialrate on thesuite. have hotwater. Ifyouwant more space, ask Rooms are plainbutreasonably sizedand trally located inthebusy heartof Ponda. mark theextent of the oldbuildings. broken pillars andrandomblocksof stoneto and thedilapidatedthere tank, are onlyafew Farmagudi Hill Retreat Farmagudi Hill on The mosque,atinywhite buildingset Hotel Prakash Heritage Prakash Hotel Café Bhonsee Café a CENTRAL GOA ••Ponda&Around ) Thisdecentoption ismore cen-

Apart from the tiny mosque Apart fromthetinymosque ( % 2318725; thalisaround Rs30)

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CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA wandering around the sanctuary, andin- wandering aroundthesanctuary, tothecoast. contrast totheterrain closer greenvegetation andricefields–adense, villages,one; theroadswindthrough lush camera Rs25/100; (adult/child Rs5/2,motorcycle/car10/50,camera/video The drive outtothe BONDLA WILDLIFESANCTUARY bus stopinthemiddleof town. autorickshaw ridetotown,andthebusier given thatit’seitheranuphillwalkor Kadamba which busstation, isimpractical Farmagudi HillRetreat. Theothers are the easiest) istheroundaboutjustoutside riving inPonda. Thefirst (andprobably major placestoget thebuswhenar- off inPanaji.damba station There are three toPonda(Rs15)leaveBuses fromtheKa- &Away There Getting the roadfromHotel PrakashHeritage. look forwardtocominghere. It’sjustacross 114 curry (aroundRs50). specialsplusaprawn and boastsseafood cious andairyeatingarea above thestreet, havedoesn’t touristsinmind.Ithasaspa- 11pm) You’re animalsjustby unlikely tosee Sumudra Pub Monday toThursday (Rs450). including breakfast, lunchanddinner).The SavoiPlantation also hasspecialculturalnightsfrom pineapples. There are alsotworooms available, bothwithabathroomand balcony (Rs2000, well-organised spice farm.Inadditiontoitsspices,Savoi hascropsofbetel nuts,coconutsand (p227). tour buses,andthelatterby tourcompaniesandcharter isvisited byGTDConitsBackwater Thrills Spice FarmRs 300,includingatraditionallunch.Both Sahakari andSavoiPlantation are favoured the Pondaregion, eachwithaslightlydifferent character butalloffering aninteresting tourfor Spice farmsare oneofthemainreasons tocomePonda. There are fourmajor spice farmsin SPICE UPYOURLIFE area, whichmight afford aglimpse ofsome birdlife. 45minutes. Itstour takes at firstsight farmore photogenicthan theothers,witha small bridgeleading totherestaurant is avery peaceful place towhileaway adayortwo. without air-con theroomsare Rs1050/550)onthis58-acre nottoofancy,butthefarm property; of Khandepar. around45minutes. Itstourtakes There isalsosomeaccommodation (roomwith/ attractions suchaselephantfeeding.attractions withflowersbybrightlydressedyou willbeattacked andenthusiasticstaff. There are added position toPonda,only2kmaway.It also offers thelongesttour(2½hours).Whenyouarrive, CENTRALGOA ••BondlaWildlife Sanctuary Thisisanotherplacethatrefreshingly Only 6km fromPonda, Pascoal Spice Farm Spice FarmSahakari Savoi Plantation h

( % 9am-5pm, Fri-Wed) 2316779;

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0832-2340272, 0832-2340243;www.savoiplantations.com) ( Tropical Spice Plantation % 9422055455, 9422643449; www.pascoalspicevillage.com) h 0832-2312394, 9422057312;www.sahakarifarms.com) 11am-3pm &7- is a pleasant isapleasant

you’ll need to take a taxi (Rs150)forthe totake ataxi you’ll need Ponda toUsgao village (Rs5),fromwhere By publictransportthere are from buses torcycle ridefromPanaji, Margao orPonda. own transport,anditmakes mo- apleasant find theplaceisfull. it’salongwaytodrive because to reserve of aheadto placehousing ahobbit.Call plete withsmallbalcony,wouldn’tlook out complain) about, buttheexteriors, com- quainthutsisnothingtoravethese (nor The interior ofentrance tothesanctuary. ( spot towalkaroundforhalfanhour. tent sortof tolazearound.It’sapleasant fairlycon- zoos,andtheanimalsseem ental This placeisn’tasbadmanysubcontin- stones attheanimalsisahappyaddition. touch orthrow warning peoplenottotease, (Rs 80).Thepresence of numeroussigns haveyou caneven arideonanelephant are variousanimalsinenclosures here, and Thereyour entrancefee intothesanctuary. pointed. Entrytothezooisincluded in enthusiasts don’tleave the park toodisap- toensureand wasestablished thatanimal in thezoo,which is1.5kmintothepark findingthem bedifficult itcaneven deed % Getting toBondlaiseasiestwithyourGetting There ispleasant

( % 0832-2229701; dm/s/dRs75/250/350) 0832-2340329; HNoA14,ArlaBazar, Keri) isalong-runningand isinasecludedarea chalet accommodation www.lonelyplanet.com enjoystheclosest atthe is ing gaurs (Indian bison), sambars, leopards, animals that inhabit the forest here, includ- likely of tocatch aglimpse manyof the foratleastacouple ofstay daysyou’re un- other Goan wildlife unless you sanctuaries, hanging around nearthefalls.As with are somewell-fed monkeys tourist-savvy much wildlife, butthereprobably won’tsee both roadandrail. from Margao, butitiseasily reached by of 53kmfromPanaji thestate, and54km issituated ontheeasternsanctuary border the 107sqkmMolemNationalPark. The protected wildlife areas; italsocontains 240 sqkm,thisisthelargest of Goa’sfour www.lonelyplanet.com h the –theresanctuary are wall-to-wallstalls. who cometovisitDudhsagar Falls andthe the stream of tourists toserving devoted The townof tobeentirely Molem seems % WILDLIFE SANCTUARY MAHAVIRMOLEM &BHAGWAN the parkoratleasttoUsgao village. there’s there ataxi totake youthe15kmto knownasUsgaothe turn-off Tisk, andhope (NH4A)to Ponda alongthemainhighway native istocatch anyeastboundbusfrom remaining 10kmtothepark.Anotheralter- Rs 30/130; sion Rs5,motorcycle/car10/30,camera/video camera If you’re headingtoDudhsagar Falls you The village of Molemisthegateway to Bring atorch.Andperhapswhip. togethere before theeffort you tothesite; itbecomesaprime touristattraction. it’sworth Bepersistentjunction. andaskarounduntilyoufindsomeoneknowledgeableenoughtotake ment) theywere onlyrediscovered in1970. caves temples. andturnedthemintoHindu appropriated thethe populartheorythatsometimein10thor11thcenturyKadambas ontotheceilingoffirstcavetion. The istypicalofthe motifcarved confirming Kadambas, monks. cave confirmsthistheory;itcontainsapedestalusedforprayerandmedita- The fourth the detailsthatremain suggestthecaves were probablyusedbyacommunityofBuddhist gists date theirorigin backasearlythe9thcentury.The firstofthecaves is thelargest and believed tohave beencreated inthelaterite aroundthe12thcentury,thoughsomearchaeolo- forest around)fourrock-cut behindtheMandovi River youwillfind(withsomeasking caves prove rewarding. For archaeological atripouttothesmallvillageof enthusiastsandspelunkers, willKhandepar INDIAN(A)DETOUR: JONESANDTHECAVES OFKHANDEPAR 0832 Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary WildlifeSanctuary Bhagwan Mahavir Don’t be surprised if no-one knows what you’re talking aboutwhenyougettotheKhandepar knowswhatyou’re Don’t besurprisedifno-one talking These are amongstGoa’soldestremaining historical treasures, andyet(herein liestheexcite- 4A.Setbackinthedense ofPondaontheNH(NationalHighway) is5kmnortheast Khandepar h 8.30am-5.30pm) . Withanarea of CENTRAL GOA •• Molem & Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary Wildlife Sanctuary CENTRAL GOA ••Molem&BhagwanMahavir (admis- % late evening. wildlife isintheearlymorningor to see few kilometres intothepark;besttime platforma cobras. There isanobservation cats, Malayan giantsquirrels, pythonsand slenderloris,jungle (spottedchitals deer), waterfall atDudhsagar. mains atTambdi Surlaand thecascading theancient temple re- in–notably taking couple of thatare sights definitely worth to spendadayortwo. are Nearby alsoa that you’llfindinGoa,soit’salovely place countryside issomeof themostpeaceful of theWestern Ghatsisbeautifulandthe along theNH4A. the mainparkgate, which isabout3kmeast about thekeys forvehicle accessthrough where theforest youcancontact officer gar ResortistheNature EducationCentre, dian elephantaround theyard. watching othertourists rideashackled In- are filledwithpackage-holiday touristsall where thegardensaround therestaurant in Molem.Theresort isaloudstaged affair is justtotheeast of thepolice checkpoint tle truck stop thatconstitutes the village of to getenough by publictransport to thelit- andLonda. It’s easy Goa towards Belgaum the NH4A, which headseastwards outof The sanctuary’s setting inthefoothills setting The sanctuary’s About 100mwestof theGTDCDudhsa- GTDC Dudhsagar Resort GTDC DudhsagarResort The main entrancetothe parkison 2612238, 2612319;dwith/without ACRs650/500;

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CENTRAL GOA CENTRAL CENTRAL GOA less Nandibullinthe completely unscathed(the head- survived something of ithasn’t amystery. Although All inall,theoriginsof thetemple are as therockisnowhere tobefoundinGoa. from acrosstheWestern Ghatsthemselves, –perhaps aconsiderabledistance brought the temple isconstructed musthave been ofmore, blackbasalt which thehigh-quality anymajor nearby.Further-been settlement here and there’s of noevidence there having therethis spotwaschosen; wasnoroadpast isolated position.No-onequite knowswhy invaders purely byreason of itsincredibly ravages of boththeMuslimandPortuguese unlike inthestate. anythingelse interesting butalsovisuallystriking,quite Goa. As such, itisnotonly historically ture of theglorious Kadamba dynastyin at Tambdi struc- Surlaistheonly surviving found Temple Mahadeva 13th-century The Temple Tambdi SurlaMahadeva AROUND MOLEM and farbetween. once youget are toMolem,andtaxis few anyone willingtorent youamotorcycle the mainroad.Itisextremely hardtofind are kilometresthe sights several awayfrom isdepressingcycle, asMolemitself and all under yourownsteam onahired motor- 28km eastof Ponda(Rs10,45minutes). orLonda. Molemis to anybusforBelgaum Molem; take anybustoPondaandchange 116 the ing wascarriedout before worship. Inside steps downtotheriver, where ritualcleans- eastern of of entrances facesaset these reached viadoorwaysonthree sides. The eastern end,theopen-sided cessible after atrek thejungle. through by thefactthatuntilrecently itwasonly ac- preserved of ithasbeen somedesecration), same piece ofsame stone. fromthe small balls carved once contained groove,carved which tohave isthought oneachhead height pillar there isadeeply imported for theconstruction. Atabout also tothequality of therock thatwas not onlytothe skill of but theartisans, ity of thedesignsonstoneis testimony ported byfourhuge The temple the appears tohave survived it’sfarbetterHowever, totravel outhere The temple itself isveryThe temple itself small.Atthe CENTRALGOA ••AroundMolem mandapa theplainslab ceilingissup- carved pillars carved mandapa mandapa is evidence isevidence . Theclar- is to thetemple. a smallcarparkandshort pathleading to Tambdi Surla. Attheend of thisroad is there’s afurtherfork,which issignposted to‘Bolkondo’.Aboutsign, goes 3kmon fork,which,right-hand according tothe totake themost invisible,butyouneed remains of anoldstoneroadsign.It’sal- After 3km or4kmthere’s aforkwiththe road runningnorthtowardsSancordem. own transport. your country lanesiswonderful.Youneed Molem andthetripouttoitalongquiet the deities’consorts. are three more,carvings depictingeach of Brahma. above Onthelevel three these to thewestisShiva andonthesouthis (facing towardstheaccessroad)isVishnu, in theHindupantheon;onnorthside depicting thethree deities mostimportant theretop section) are three relief carvings (which appearstower itself tohave lost its where thelingamresides. the innerhallis of minordeities. Finally,beyond carvings andtwoniches containing is aslab carving On eithersideof theentrancetothisarea outer hallfromthe the finelycarved inthecentreflower, set of theceiling,and are thesuperb skills,however,examples of thecarvers’ Thebest inHinduservices. cymbals used issymbolicofdiscus-shaped section the of Milk’) will take the bestpart of a day, ting to Dudhsagar (the name means‘Sea is expensive andtime consuming. Get- reaching theview.However, through them into cheers asatrain slices and applause fromthe footofsight thefalls often burst tothem.The crowdsadmiringtheclose hanced bythetrain linethatskirtsquite months they are an impressive en- sight, they’re in thewinter inaccessible), even (when at theirbestinthe monsoonseason . thefallsare Though apparently inIndiaafterfalls are highest thesecond eastern borderwithKarnataka; at603mthe Goa’s mostimpressive waterfalls are onthe Dudhsagar Falls From theMolemcrossroads,take the The temple isabout 13kmnorthof The outsideof thetemple isplain.Onthe Above thegroove, thesymmetrical relief panel relief screen garbhagriha antaralya www.lonelyplanet.com that separates the thatseparates depictingalotus (inner area). (sanctum), (sanctum), the wildlife pastanumberof sanctuary, ex- Ghats are undeniablyfine. train linedisappears upintotheWestern mately 45-minute journey.Theviewsasthe per headforagroupof six)fortheapproxi- ferry (Rs300 groupsforRs1800perjeep wherestation, locallycontrolled4WDs Youhavegao station. toget atColem off to Colem;check return traintimesatMar- There’s alocaltrainat7.20amfromMargao as simplegetting andwalking there. off ing of it’snolonger theDudhsagar station ently isbylocaltrain,butwiththeclos- underwater currents. reputedly it’sextremely withstrong deep, beingadangerousthrough spottoswim– thatitgotitsname sided rocks.Localssay thesteep- poolformedbetween with adeep the dramaticname,it’sanattractive spot ofen route tothebase thefalls.Despite the fallsthemselves. leavewhich doesn’t agreat dealof timeat www.lonelyplanet.com the above - ‘Do the right thing withour content.’ the above -‘Do theright theterms andconditions onoursiteforalonger wayofsaying youknow,or resell it.See everyone site,mass emailitto only. Inother words,please don’t uploadthischapter toapeer-to-peer In return, wethinkit’sfair toaskyouuseit forpersonal,non-commercial purposes restricted. © LonelyPlanetPublications. iteasierforyoutouse, accesstothischapterisnotdigitally Tomake The jeep takes you through the heart of takes theheart The jeep youthrough The bestwaytoreach thefallsindepend- It’s possibletostopatthe Devil’s Canyon Canyon Devil’s the end. of of aswimatthebase thewaterfalls at enhancethepleasurewhich wouldcertainly tothefalls, Some peoplewalkthedistance will beotherpeoplehere. Many of them. ing aromanticswimonyourown–there is possible,butdon’tpicture tak- yourself this triptrickybymotorcycle).Swimming three rivers tobeforded,which would make beinaccessible(therewould otherwise are tremely scenicjungleandforest areas that as from the station. as fromthestation. here. willcostasmuch fromhere Thejeep from andpickupajeep Colem station, to Molemvillage (15kmfromthe falls)or is tocharter (orrideamotorcycle) ataxi included inthetourprice. Jungle Retreat ( p115 ) forlunch, which isn’t Calangute. Italsotakes youtothe Molem (Rs 600),andleaves frombothPanaji and Wednesdays andSundaysfrom9amto6pm Tambdi SurlaMahadeva Temple. Itrunson GTDC tour,which includesadetouroutto An easieralternative thetrain totaking The even easieroptionistotakeThe even a CENTRAL GOA ••AroundMolem © LonelyPlanetPublications

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