Goa - A weekend in Panjim

We are (probably) in a very small minority of people to have gone on our first trip to the beach capital of India, Goa, and not seen a beach.  Instead, we spent the weekend in Panjim, the capital of the state.  I would like to say that we picked Panjim for its historical charms but, honestly, I booked a late monsoon deal at a new-ish Taj hotel in the city and fancied a good value weekend of swimming, spa and sunshine now that Phil is back from his travels.

Goa is India's smallest state and is situated on the west coast, less than a one hour flight south from Mumbai.  Goa only became part of India in 1961 and was officially declared to be a state of India in 1987.  Although famous for its beautiful beaches and infamous hippy vibe, Goa is packed with history and evidence of the Portuguese colonisation which began in the 16th century.  Parts of Panjim felt distinctly Mediterranean and a world away from Mumbai.  The streets feel more relaxed and less hectic than the other places we have been to in India so far.

We arrived at the hotel at 10pm on Friday having caught a (delayed) flight after work and were typically impressed; there is a risk that I will develop a Taj hotel addiction as they are so good.  We were upgraded to a suite (woohoo!) and ate in the main restaurant; a Goan feast of spiced sausage stew, Goan pork vindaloo (which had loads of flavour, rather than just burning your mouth off) and a Goan fish stew.  The Christian influences in Goa mean that meat is much more common and the state is, not surprisingly, famous for fresh fish - something that we intended to enjoy given that we haven't eaten much seafood during the monsoon in Mumbai.

After a morning gym session (we're running a 10k at the start of October and I've had my half marathon place confirmed for January....one for another blog post!), we left the hotel to explore Panjim.  The city has lots of colourful old Portuguese style houses.  Many are crumbling but this adds to the charm.  We were told that the best way to see the city is to wander around on foot, so Phil put his floppy white tourist hat on, and we marched around the streets with our guide book.

You've been told

Beautiful monument in a public park

Typical old colourful house with balcony

Church of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception.  Stunning location on a hill overlooking Panjim, though sadly shut for renovation so we couldn't look inside.

Statue outside the church overlooking the town

These balconies are standard for old-style Goan houses

St Sebastian Chapel

Nicely renovated colourful buildings

After two (rather hot) hours of exploring the town, we headed for the Ritz Classic Restaurant to try the fish thali which had been recommended to us by someone we had met on a previous trip in India.  We arrived early as we'd heard it can get busy, and were not disappointed.  The fish thali was a filling platter of fresh seafood goodies, all for 110 rupees each, and extremely tasty. People were queuing out of the door and milling around in every bit of free space in the restaurant by the time we'd eaten; I can understand why this place is popular.

Mega thali.  The kingfish steak (tucked underneath the bowl closest to the camera) was my favourite bit.

With our bellies full, we commissioned an autorickshaw to take us the 10km up the Mondovi River to Old Goa, once the capital of Goa and a huge metropolis of tremendous power (says my guide book).  Although now only a small fraction of its former size, Old Goa contains several ancient ruins and churches which are spectacular even now.  The top attraction seems to be the tomb of St Francis Xavier in the Basilica of Bom Jesus.  We walked around for an hour or so to take in some of these big sites before travelling back to Panjim.

 Basilica of Bom Jesus (complete with construction work at the front)

 The grand Se Cathedral - the largest church in Asia (according to our guide book)

To give a sense of scale...

Arch of the Viceroys.  This was built by Francisco da Gama (great grandson of Vasco da Gama) who became Viceroy of Goa at the end of the 16th century and erected this as a tribute to Vasco.  It is the Goa equivalent of the Gateway of India in Mumbai.

Amazing Baroque architecture in the Church of St Cajetan

Exceptionally wonky tree.  Should have been listed in the guide book but isn't.

Cultural stuff done, we relaxed with a swim in the rooftop pool and did well to not drink the whole bottle of complimentary wine in the room before dinner.  Good work all round.  Following a relaxing light dinner in the hotel, we relaxed in front of a film - Silver Linings Playbook - which I'd highly recommend.

Hotel central courtyard with rooms round the edge

Trying to have a swim despite paparazzi intrusion.

Relaxation focus whilst Phil watched the Man U match pre-dinner

Unfortunately, whatever Phil ate and I didn't eat on Saturday (so you can't blame the thali!) didn't agree with him, so he spent the morning in bed / the bathroom whilst I hit the gym again and enjoyed a massage and facial in the spa.  Positive aspects of spas I've been to are the quality of the facilities / treatments and low prices (relative to the UK).  The negative aspect is the frankly disgusting "detoxifying" drink that is given to you before it all starts, which has never failed to make me gag.  However much it's supposed to have good stuff in it, I cannot believe that something that tastes that nasty can do you much good!  My other entertaining experience was getting lost in the steam room owing to an exorbitant amount of steam, but a changing room attendant came to rescue me in the end.

We had an easy flight back and arrived home shortly after 1900.  Since arriving in India, I have now grabbed the following budget airlines; IndiGo, JetKonnect, GoAir and SpiceJet; and can so far conclude that they are more similar than different, so it's just worth picking the cheapest ticket available.

The sky was full with flashes of lightening when we were coming home from the airport in the taxi and the thunder is growling even now, so we cannot say that the monsoon is over yet!

We're back in Goa in early November so can report back on beach quality after that.