Sussegad in Goa

I’ve had wonderful experiences of my very many trips to Goa. There was a time when we would be in Goa 4-5 times a year. That slowly waned as life and other things reigned supreme. The type of trips to Goa also changed as time passed.

Shack stays turned to resorts, south Goa weighed over the more ‘popular’ north, but the slumming away on the beaches, the sussegad* way of life and the feelings the place evoked remained the same.

Sussegad* is a Konkani word with origins in Portuguese. It means a carefree or a laid back life; And this was what we had planned for the next three days of our stay in Goa.

I had never experienced Goa in the monsoons and decided to put that to rest when a short trip was planned. The weather forecast promised us thunder storms and that didn’t deter us. I will take Goa anyhow! 🙂

We arrived in Goa to a slight drizzle. The air felt heavy and wet. It felt like I was drinking it in instead of breathing it. The airport taxi quickly took us to our resort at Varca beach in south Goa. Our agenda was to explore this part of Goa.
The first thing on the list, after showering away our travel wearies was to go to the resort’s restaurant for much needed sustenance. Our first meal (brunch) consisted of us inhaling goan chorizo sausages at record speed among other things with lots and lots of freshly brewed aromatic coffee. We rested for a bit and the pool beckoned. While the others splashed around I got ahead with my book.

The following morning, we hired bikes (scooters). This is the best way to explore and experience Goa. The weather was lovely and Colva beach was our destination. Zooming away on the rain soaked slick, serpentine roads was incredible. I was pillion riding, it was all at once dizzying and exhilarating to lean back and spread my arms wide. Taking in deep breaths of the tropical air and sucking it greedily into my lungs. The salty breeze became stronger and fresher as the sea got closer. It was pretty early by Goan standards and not many places were open. Monsoons also meant no shacks on the beach. While parking our bikes we spied a 24/7 café and decided to have a quick breakfast there.

The sun shone off and on. We saw a few lifeguards patrolling in their red uniforms and a few people flapping around in the sea. The rippling, glassy sea with puffy clouds overhead welcomed us. We didn’t realize time passing while we were in the sea happily riding the waves, playing water games or watching the endless surge of the surf. Lunch consisted of budweisers, beef fry and pork roast at a nearby restaurant, after which we were back on the beach.
It got dark fairly quickly and we decided to have dinner there at the beach, at Jamie’s -delicious and flavourful steaks and crabs, before we biked our way back to the resort.

The next day our bikes took us towards Cavelossim where we chanced upon a quaint restaurant called Riverview, right next to the river Sal. We parked there and brunched. Vacation euphoria had already set in. The feeling of having no responsibilities and doing nothing in a beautiful, serene place with river activities to watch, was just wonderful! Soon it was time to head back, the spa at the resort awaited us. After being spa-ed away, our boneless selves had a short nap and then pointed ourselves towards the restaurant for a scrumptious Goan dinner.  Live music during dinner started with the foot tapping goan baila songs giving way to retro rock. The friendly and talented singer was open to requests. We had a great time asking for our favorite rock ballads and yes, we sang along loudly.

Late in the night, replete with good food and music we made our way back to our rooms. The sweet scent of cashew and frangipani filled the air and I couldn’t help but think that this was all picture perfect. Really, how many beautiful features do you need in one place? Beaches, blue skies, green landscapes dotted with churches, wonderful weather (there were no thunderstorms!:), ocean waves, amazing food, friendly people, etc. It was overkill!
Perfect, amazing overkill and I was right in the middle of it – Life was awesome! 🙂