Blogs from Palolem, Goa, India, Asia - page 5

I definitely know my standards in terms of hotel rooms have altered significantly since I’ve been in India. Tonight I’m staying in a shit-box in Delhi. I’m not going to lie, I knew it would be a shit hole but reality has really hit because tomorrow night mum we have to sleep here too…sorry Mumma! I have the last section of time in Goa. Goa could be any tropical tourist haunt in the world but I’m not going to lie, it’s awesome!In terms of finishing uni and wanting to celebrate it was an awesome destination. I stayed in a cool beach hut place that had a restaurant attached and the reality was, if I wanted to sleep eat and swim all day, I could! I was in a place called Palolem which is an awesome stretch ... read more

Well as we never made it on our waitlisted train and the next one wasn't until the following night we got the night bus down to Goa. The journey was supposed to take 14 hours. However we left at 7pm and arrive about 12/1 the next day. The most shocking thing in Goa is the amount of litter. Everywhere. Mumbai is so clean and tidy and this place just has shit all over the gaff. (and lots of cows and the shit that comes with them!) We found ourselves a beach hut after about 15 mins of looking at a really good price. The good price turns out that the wall are stapled together. Not even exaggerating. Also we have about 2 hours of water a day, nice and smelly, and two hours of eleccy! Joy!! ... read more

I’m sitting on the beach of this beautiful cove, looking at the sparkling blue water, waiting for my grilled red snapper dinner and listening to Janis Joplin belt out some killer songs. It doesn’t get any better than this. I rented a cabin at the end of the beach for somewhere between $14 and $18 a night, depending how long I stay. It’s a little more than I’ve been paying so far (sic), and it’s a little more primitive, but I love the Robinson Crusoe thing. The floor is tiled and the toilet is new and pink, but the water is cold. However I am adjusting to taking cold showers since it’s really warm. I’m not sure how warm, I don’t really care, as the sweat just runs off my forhead, I’m too busy marveling at ... read more

We arrived at Mumbai CST about 2 hours before our train was due to depart – well we didn’t want to miss it now did we! Actually it was lucky we did as we had to find out which platform our train would arrive and where abouts on the platform to stand to board our coach. After seeking help from a very kind Indian man who was getting on the same train we managed to find the right place! Our beds were right at the end of the coach, so we were in for a bumpy ride! Once we had boarded the train we realised that our e-ticket had no ETA on, and they do not announce the stations on Indian trains as that would make things far too easy for their customers! Debbie seemed to ... read more

(Day 1071 on the road)And then, things got better. The further south we moved, the less hassle there seemed to be. After we left the northern Indian states behind and headed for the UNESCO World Heritage site of the Ellora Caves, Mumbai and Goa, things turned decidedly more relaxed. Of course there were still the constant "Hello sir, auto rickshaw?" cries from the drivers in the streets, but they seemed less persistent than in the north of the country, and non-rickshaw touts declined noticeably. Ah, niiice. Speaking of auto rickshaws: One of these, painted bright yellow, made of plastic, maybe about 20cm long, and in the possession of naughty Luc, proved to be a near endless source of fun for us all and many passer-bys. Jasmin had bought the toy auto rickshaw for Luc in Udaipur, ... read more