Goa.

19th Jan 2013 to 6th Feb 2013.

After we left Hampi our next destination was Panaji or Panjim as it is commonly known. We stayed in the very pretty Portugese quarter. 

While here we sent back two parcels to Germany. Firstly you pack your own boxes with your goods and then you have to take them to the 'parcel man'. They can always be found close to the Post Office. He will skillfully encase the box with cloth and hand sew the whole thing tightly. After this the corners are sealed with hot wax. It's now ready for addressing with a marker pen and weighing and costing at the Post Office. We sent back just under 10 kilos for about £40, and using standard mail it reached they reached their destination in about four weeks.

After three nights we then left for Calangute. This is a place that we stayed at about five years ago and liked. But.....when we got off the bus there we had found that it had changed almost beyond recognition! It was now so busy and congested that we got straight into a rickshaw or 'tuk tuk' and went to Anjuna. Anjuna is well known for being a party town and of course.....we were happy to oblige!

OM!!!!

On Wednesdays is the flea market. Again, in the five years since we were last here it had grown enormously but it's still nice to wander around and buy a few bits and pieces.

On Saturday night there two markets to go to.....Ingos and Mackies.

Our two favourite eateries are the German bakery........

.......and Cafe Delish which is run by an old friend of mine who I hadn't seen in thirty years!! His partner Jane makes the scrummiest cakes!!

I was very fortunate to be able to rent this almost brand new Royal Enfield which allowed us to venture further afield.

Below is Fort Aguada.

As we have moved around India we have met many people who leave European winters behind and relocate here for months at a time. One reason is that the Indian tourist visa is available for six months and also the cost of living here is so low. Our friends Udo and Mona are renting the two bedroom house below for about £1 a day!!

It's very easy to get pulled into Anjuna and difficult to leave....but we did, and we headed south to Palolem. 

Whilst here we rented a twist and go scooter and as is common practice here it is always drained of fuel so the first thing you have to do is get some petrol into it. Alas this time I pushed it too far and ran out in the middle of nowhere. This is not a problem though as every village will have someone who has a bottle or two for sale.

We went to Galjibag beach one day. This is a beautiful and as yet untouched area, but I suspect that like Calangute it will be unrecognisable in ten years time.....but for now we enjoyed the peace and this will be our last beach memory for some months.

Turtles are laying eggs at this time of year and these are protected by these small compounds....

Two days later we would be 1115km further north in Gujarat, the days still burning hot but the nights and early mornings would start to feel decidedly chilly in comparison. 

Elephant abuse in Hampi.

http://www.elemotion.org/

Elemotion on facebook

While in Hampi we heard that there was an elephant called Lakshmi that was bathed in the river daily before being taken to the temple. We had been there the previous day and watched as locals and foreigners alike hand over a coin or small note to Lakshmi and in return get blessed or 'smooched' which is a gentle tap on the head with her trunk. There's another account of her here.

We know how these animals are treated and 'trained' to do the things they do but we thought that her bath time might be pleasant for her but even that is filled with pain and fear.

At first it looked like her 'owner' was giving her face a good scrub with a small brush but I could see she was getting agitated and uncomfortable with this especially when he got close to her eyes. I went closer and saw that she was actually being 'shaved' with a piece of stone. As this stone was without a sharp edge I can only assume her hair was being ripped out. Asian elephants generally have more hair than African. 

I can't find anything about this practice but as their faces are painted I believe this is done to make brushwork easier. 

Lakshmi started getting quite vocal about this so I started filming.......

Ulli and I seemed to be the only ones that were shocked by this. We spoke to some other tourists afterwards and they all thought that nothing wrong had happened and that this was acceptable behaviour.

It left us with heavy hearts and it's something we will report again on when we see such things.

If you are going to a country where elephants live and are tempted to take a ride or similar please look at this page and reconsider. For a country that reveres the elephant as a deity their treatment of this magnificent beast is anything but godly.

Sankranti and Pongal in Hampi.

Our first day in Hampi coincided with the festivals of Sankranti and Pongal. And yes that is cow poo in the middle of the flower below!

From the early morning people flooded into the place to celebrate. We later heard that people had to park as far away as four or five kilometres and then walk in. 

There was lots of washing in the river....

Quite often the head is shaved as an offering. This youngster may have had it done before as she sat quite happily through the whole procedure.

We walked up into the hills and we were called over by a big family group who were so friendly. One of the ladies offered us some food and before we knew it we were sat with them and weren't allowed to leave until we had had a full lunch. Most of the food is cooked on site which means cookers and big gas bottles are carried up!!

The mood was even happier than usual and of course we were 'coerced' into taking lots of photos of everyone!!

An amazing day topped off with an amazing sunset....