Advertisement
Published: January 15th 2009
Edit Blog Post
The view from my balcony
Peace and quiet in Benaulim 5 Dec - I don't sleep much following Liam's departure and am up at 6am to get to the airport. The staff have been so friendly at the Lytton Hotel. Very sad to leave but glad to get away from the madness of the black hole of Calcutta! I fly Kingfisher Kolkata to Mumbai to Goa with no need to change planes. Kingfisher are a FAB airline, I recommend them to anyone flying within India - new planes, friendly staff, v tasty food and lots of freebies! Just a pity they don't sell their beer during the flight, lol.
Goa is a tiny airport and I can feel both the heat and relaxed pace of life here as soon as I step off the plane. I get a taxi to a resort in South Goa called Benaulim and the Carina Beach Resort. I'm feeling look a true traveller now...picked both the resort and accomodation straight from Lonely Planet, pot luck. It's a beautifully scenic drive to Benaulim along single track roads surrounded by coconut palm groves, rice paddies, more cows, pigs & dogs and quaint colourful houses. Initial thoughts about my accomodation aren't good but that's prob cause I'm tired,
lonely and I've been staying in luxury for the last week! It's a basic, single room but has a great wee balcony looking over the pool and beautiful gardens which are surrounded by palm trees. I go to bed early completely knackered and an emotional wreck.
6 Dec to 12 Dec - after a good nights sleep, I decide to stay here in Benaulim for a week to chillout. The accomodation is good value for money and the waiters are friendly and chatty. When I head out to explore the village I find it has everything I need for the week - various internet cafes, supermarket, bottle store, clothes & jewellery stores and various bars and restaurants. The only thing missing is the beach...where is it???
I spend my days having leisurely al fresco breakfasts in the garden, reading, emailing, blogging, shopping and generally enjoying the laid back vibe of Goa. I find it difficult to talk to anyone as there's only couples and families staying at the hotel (now I realise why backpackers stay at hostels!). I find the evenings hard - dining alone and there's no nightlife.
During my stay in Benaulim it's a time
for reflection...4 months of travelling...it's flown passed. Already, I have seen, done and experienced so much. The London to Aqaba trip seems a lifetime ago, even Africa seems a distant memory and yet it's only 3.5 weeks since I was sitting in Joburg airport, heartbroken to be leaving a country I loved so much. The three weeks in India were extremely intense...the madness of the cities, enjoying the tigers together with Liam, surviving our change of plans following the Mumbai terrorist attacks and then I'm on my own without the security of a tour group...so many mixed emotions, can't stop crying 😞 However, I'm still not really missing home yet although I sooooo miss my mates to talk to. Start to dread spending Christmas alone and wonder where I will head to next.
On a more positive note though, I turn to retail therapy! I spend Rs1000 (approx GBP12) and get a long brown gypsy style skirt, stripey long sleeve top and orange sparkly vest top with a bracelet thrown in for free thanks to the extremely friendly shopkeeper and his wife. The Goans are inquisitive of a single, white female but ultimately very friendly and just want to chat, I don't feel threatened at all being on my own. I finally find Benaulim Beach and start to realise THIS is what TRAVELLING is all about. I spend hours chilling on the beach (who would have thought it eh, I'm not normally a beach sun worshipper!). I really do feel in a happy place whenever I'm beside water and / or mountains. I enjoy fab lunches of Goan fish curry, cheese pakora and Kingfisher beers while listening to the sea and watching the fishing boats and the world go by. Already my travel plans are changing...at home this would have freaked me out but I'm learning to go with the flow and believe that things happen for a reason, call it karma, call it what you want 😊 I'm now going to be in Nepal which I didn't expect and the Cat & Dog placement on Koh Phanang has been cancelled so instead will spend 4 weeks in Cambodia working at a bear sanctuary!
Eventually though, after a week in Benaulim I decide it's time to explore some more of Goa to find somewhere I bit more lively...
Advertisement
Tot: 0.153s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 10; qc: 46; dbt: 0.062s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb