lovely photos. Looking forward to reading the rest of your report

Thank you mardon
The photos bring back so many happy memories, of the Goa I love, and what a lovely couple you make
Looking forward to hearing and seeing more
x lassi

Hi Mardon,
those were gorgeous photos. We're thinking about taking our first holiday in Goa next April so am dipping in and out of the forum. Irish Colleen and Gemma have done a very good job of convincing us to go and I must say I am coming around. My sis definitely wants to go and TBH I think that as long as our finances will allow us a holiday in March as well as the summer (can't do without my summer hol), this is where we will be going.

Hi IC,
didn't realize you were going so soon. You'll be gone for my birthday You must be sooo excited now

More to follow:

Palolem, Kola, Hampi & Wildernest

Hi Mardon

Photo's and report excellent, looking forward to the Wildernest part, we went 6/7 years ago and had a great time, but found it quite expensive this year.

jan x

Hi Mardon, great report and your photos are brilliant! Glad you managed to get a decent hotel after your shakey start.

Palolem
I have always had a great time in Palolem. The maximum i've ever stayed was for 2 nights. Overall I spent 5 nights there. (2 in the first week, then the final 3 days of the holiday).
I was deffinatley quieter than last year but was still busy compared to Baga and the North. The atmosphere is still great and chilled out. I think as a couple we were quite approachable by other couples, we met some really great people who I shall stay in contact with.
The 2-4-1 cocktails and mine and Rachel's ongoing pool rivalry drew us to Cafe Del Mar most nights. The music was usually chilled out trance which I do like and don't find played back in the UK all that often. The different dishes I tried there weren't that good. I'd recommend eating elsewhere.
We went to the silent disco at the far South of Palolem beach (called silent noise). This was a great night and i'd really recommend as it's a strange and enjoyable experience. Everyone has headsets. They are fitted with 3 different coloured bands which illuminate to differentiate between the three live DJ's you have the option of listening too. It's a bizarre feeling dancing next to someone who's listening to something completely different!
There are two Fernandes's I spend time in further North of the two and its accompanying beach shacks looked very nice, we ate there a few times. Apparently that's where Princess Eugene stayed while she was in Palolem. We also ate in the Banyan Tree next door. The Thai Chicken Noodles were great!!
The first 2 nights we stayed in Ciarans Camp (over valentines day). The shacks and surroundings were lovely as usual. I found the one meal we did eat there was nice if a little overpriced. The staff were not all that friendly and the two dogs were just as snotty. I do like Ciarans but as this was the 2nd time doubt i'd stay there again for the price. (2900rs).
The final three nights we stayed in a guest house just off the main road. The room was small and clean with a nice big TV, shower with hot and cold water as well as a fridge. All you could need really for a very reasonable 600rs a night.
I'm hoping Rachel will come on and add any information i've missed.
Next up Dwarka Goa (Kola beach), Hampi's Boulder and Wildernest.

Latest slide show!

Dwarka Goa at Kola Beach. Report coming soon

http://s724.photobucket.com/albums/ww243/mardon85/Dwarka%20Goa%20Kola%20Beach/?albumview=slideshow

great photos, thanks

Mardon lovely photo's, enjoying your report. Gel

Mardon i really enjoyed looking at your photo's they were lovely..

Hi Mardon, enjoying your report and the lovely photos

hi, its mardons girlfriend! thought id finally get myself into gear and add to marks post!!

as it was my first time there i was a little anxious. i had been reading both good and bad reports on the forum and so couldnt wait to get there and experience it for myself!! i was a little stressed when we first arrived ha ha!! but after 3 days as mark said, i was fully into the goan swing of things!! i think it helped that mark had people he knew at the bisro's beach shack from his previous years as well!!
the hotel in arpora was amazing, everyone was really friendly and the rooms were great!!

one of th first nights in baga we went out for a few drinks and i noticed a tattoo shop (i have a couple and was looking to get another) it made me laugh as on one side of the door it had the goan address and then on the other side was an address for a second shop in Bolton, Lancs. so we went over to peer into the window and the guy who owned it was outside and invited us in. we sat and just chatted about tattoos. one of the reasons i went to goa (other than mark!!) was because my auntie used to go every year without fail and just loved it there. unfortunately she died of cancer 2 years ago and when she was cremated her ashes were scattered in goa. i have been toying with the ideaof having a tattoo in her memory but couldnt quite figure out how or where. the tattooist wrote her name for me in hindi and it looked lovely!! he was a really nice guy and so welcoming.

a few days later i had the name henna-ed onto my foot to see what it looks like and i think i have finally found a fitting tribute.

i was a bit nervous when mark said that we were getting a scooter as i know what his driving is like at home but i threw caution to the wind and hopped on!! i dont think i was the best passenger at first, not leaning and all that round corners, and i certainly wasnt good at night but i really enjoyed the freedom it gave us! we went through truly indian villages which really opened my eyes. and seeing the buildings that were so beautifully painted was lovely!!

Palolem was great too!! a much younger crowd than baga so it had a completely different vibe to it! the silent disco was great fun too and i would definitely recommend it!!!

Khola beach was the next stop and was defintely an interesting experience!! before our holiday i professed to hate the sea!! hated sea water in my hair, hated the idea of fish being in there - everything ha ha but mark had persuaded me (and by that i mean picked me up and ran itto with me over his shoulder!!) to get into the sea in baga so i was feeling pretty ok about it and the fresh water lagoon there. the shacks were basic, and didnt have any mossie nets and as we have discovered im not great with insects!!! mark informs me that the fresh water lagoon was gorgeous to swimin but as i could actually SEE the fish swimming around i could only paddle in up to my knees before one swam too close and i panicked and ran out - much to marks amusement. he also enjoyed the sea which threw him around as it was so fierce! the food on the first night was lovely and they lit a bonfire for us and another couple and it was nice to chit and chat. that niight we had some fun with spiders in the room but we manged to catch some sleep. the next day we just chilled on the beach again, as i am really fair i tend not to be able to lie in the sun all day long so i had an umbrella over my towels and was more than happy just lying there feeling lovely and hot reading my books.

the second night i was really stressedout with all the huge black ants that seemed to be everywhere!! im not sure if mark has put the photo of this up yet but we had to fashion a canopy of sorts using the 2 rucksacks on either side of the bed, putting one of the bed throws over them. the photo then shows me, wrapped in the white bed sheet and the other throw, essentially mummified, mith my legs sticking out from under the mark-made canopy!!!

after khola we went back to baga for a day or 2 and then on the hampi.

to be honest i dont know where to even start!! hampi is the most magical place on this earth - it has to be!! the scenary is simply breathtaking and on a number of occasions reduced me to tears! the hampi's boulders resort was amazing and the staff couldnt do more for us!! it was marks birthday while we were there and i spoke to them that morning and they made him a birthday cake and a lovely bouquet of flowers as a surprise for him!! it was lovely!! they took us on a lovely walkon the first day through the boulders and it was great!! the formations were almost impossible!! a boulder the size of a car with a boulder the size of a house on top!!!

but the temples on the the other side of the river are magnificent and although we were surprised that this area isnt as well documented as say the roman colluseum (and hugely moreinteresting and beautiful!!) we were so so glad because although it was fairly busy, there is so much to see that you barely notice other people!!!

more of hampi coming up!!!

Excellent photos of Dwarka. Had to laugh at the last one of Rachel sleeping. I wrapped myself up in exactly the same way when we stayed there, except I didn't sleep a wink all night!!
Amazing place and im so glad I went there just wish they could evict all the creepy crawlies!!

You sound like you have really fallen for Goa
I can imagine what you felt like when you first arrived. I had been a mod here for a couple of years before I actually went to Goa. We arrived to grey skies, rain and an uninspiring drive from the airport. I sat in that taxi and wondered if the Goa members were having a laugh and OH sat silently in the taxi, wondering why I had spent so long bending his ear about going to Goa
By the end of the day, after experiencing rain, sun, more rain, sun, thunder we were sitting under cover from the bucketing rain having a wonderful dinner at Nirvana and both of us suddenly realised that we loved it (That might have been something to do with not realising that when you ordered bacardi they gave you triples!)
Looking forward to hearing more about Hampi

Really enjoyed reading your report Pixie , and I must go to Hampi again and stay at Boulders. You describe it well, it is almost too amazing for words, someone said if dreams were carved out of stone it would be Hampi.
I hope Mark is going to post some photos, and look forward to hearing more
x lassi

This is strange to me being an Indian.We are one of the top growing economies in the world and till today there is no recession here.
I request moderators to take care of our sentiments when such lines typed in a forum.We grew of our own and perhaps don't need anyone support to stay fit.

India is still magic! We need to support them.

Excellent report Mardon and Pixie...so glad you had a great time, I'm looking forward to the Wildernest section!!

Globetracker - I'm sure there was no offence intended I think by "support" what is meant is that Goa as a tourist destination is still a worthy place to visit despite the bad press etc. The locals out there who run business' etc are having a very tough season with less tourists than in previous years and they definitely still need and deserve our support

GFF xxx

:roll:I don't think anything said was meant to be offensive!

I can understand it from both sides. But support does not always have to be monetary. Goa has suffered greatly this year, and I'm not sure how much is due to the recession outwith India and how much to fears of terrorist actions. In the immediate aftermath of the Mumbai incident, people, both holidaymakers and business people expressed support for Mumbai by continuing on with their travel plans. Goa has probably suffered far more than other areas of India, which do not rely so greatly on tourism.
Goa needs as many positive reports as it can- and this is one of them