Time for a good old-fashioned peacock hunt.

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Goa has been the much-needed antidote for the maniacal pace of Mumbai; it’s lush shades of green, palm trees and sandy beaches proved to be accurate foreshadowing for the mood of the trip.

The city was Portuguese for…..ever (don’t make me look up dates here, I’m on vacation!) and it sure shows. Many elderly residents still speak the language, but more telling is the architecture. Spanish tiles sit atop every house and wrought-iron decorates most windows and balconies. Crepes are available anywhere you go too, which was a pleasure for my mouth but didn’t stay in my stomach for very long (sigh). The local crop here is cashew and the drink of choice, if you’re into Indian moonshine, is called fenny, and made from cashew as well. Most notable, as anyone who knows about Goa, are the beaches! Fucking exquisite. One of the thousands of Hindu gods or goddesses was listening to us as they halted the monsoons for a few days, long enough to snooze and read by the ocean for hours.

We met Lara, a former poker PR company owner who sold it all to travel the world for 4 years (!!!), on one of the sets in Mumbai. She was also planning on Goa so we met up with her again and pampered ourselves a bit, ayurvedic messages, manicures, and what not - much deserved after our “working vacation camping trip in the rain” (what I call the Mumbai part of the trip). She introduced us to some loving and friendly locals, the equivalent of SOLID GOLD when you are traveling.

Dinesh and Mukesh, or Dino and Mac as they like to be called, are a funny and jovial pair. I heard that Hindis think their actors are better than those of other countries because they can “scream with their eyes”. This duo would certainly be proof; they shriek and giggle and emote just about everything else with their eyes as well. In the jewel and real estate business, they were more or less bored out of their minds because this is the low season and there is essentially nothing for them to do. Lucky us! They drove us all around town, to Old Goa, home of the Basilica of Bom Jesus (where there are relics of St Francis Xavier…a bunch of his bones out on display in little jars), Se Cathedral, and St. Xavier Chapel -did I mention Goa is 75% catholic? Checked out the highest point in Goa and searched for peacocks (we found 6!), zenned-out watching the waves crash into the rocks for an hour or so, went to a Hindi temple, and more stuff I can't remember; and let's be honest, you're probably skimming over this part because I'm basically making lists of semi-interesting things and putting a lot of commas between them (you're still reading?). After our tourist bout we had tea at Dinesh’s, a luxury-ish apartment where I met the cutest little old man in the world, his dad. Drank whiskey, went to the club, and then late-night beach - closer to holy than anything so far this trip. The next day we went to the beach, then back to his place, swam in his pool. Mukesh took me via his bike (super thrilling to finally BE the motorcycle weaving in and out of the buses and cars instead of just trying to avoid hitting one) to the markets in Mapusa, where my eyes and nose feasted on the gorgeous displays of fruits, spices, and other mystery items. After purchasing fresh prawns and mackerel we headed back to make a traditional Goan fish curry using coconuts, tamarind paste, spices, etc. Over the course of the trip they shared stories, explained mysteries to us about Indian culture, and displayed the lovliest gestures of generosity anyone could ever ask for.

Now in Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, where saris are few and far between, efficiency is prioritized, trash and beggars are almost at a minimum, and shopping is the main hobby. In other words, Japan.

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