Ganesh Chaturthi Meal

The celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi in Goa has a charm of its own. But the beauty of the occasion celebration is enhanced when celebrated with friends and family!

I was one of the privileged few to be invited over to a friends’ place for lunch.

But one does not move hurriedly into lunch. First there are the multitude of sweets that have to be tasted!

What I enjoyed most were the modaks

(I hope the picture speaks for itself)

We then participated in the aarti, which are devotional prayers and hymns sung by the entire family, and then Amay Parrikar, our host, explained the various symbols and rituals of the celebration.

Two of these which I found very meaningful were the matoli (a canopy of fruits and flowers grown locally in Goa)

… and the tray which offered the first corn of the fields to the deity.

From the time we entered his house till the time we left I think I ate more than I did on in an entire day 😉

Festivals are indeed occasions that keep the flame of brotherhood alive in society

Summer fruits

Weekends at my Aunt’s house in Raia, Goa are always memorable. This time the highlight was the abundance of fruits in the garden.

Under the watchful eyes of these deadly red ants called domle  in Konkani, we “harvested” pineapples, cashews, mangoes and jackfruits.

Can you guess to what does this texture belong to in the pictures below?

With the smell that still lingers in my car it may as well be mistaken for a fruit cart!

The Silent Beach – Agonda

If you want to see the way beaches in Goa should actually be, visit Agonda. The very remoteness of the beach from the main cities ensures its exclusiveness and for this reason it is gets the nickname, the Silent Beach!

Agonda, does not have much to boast about. A mere 3 km long stretch of beach untouched by human incursions (read: no commercialization, no plastics strewn around, no noise of a million tourists, no souvenir stalls or hawkers).

I read online that the best way to reach this beach is by a scooter or motor bike. And that is the advise we followed.

Except for a couple of eating places and these pretty beach huts, there is nothing to draw the crowds here

For some reason, this fire dancer practicing his act reminded me a lot of Barney Stinson (from How I met your mother) 😉

While, this chap was “para surfing” for almost 3 hours (we all assumed he didn’t know how to get the parachute back to the ground!)

Sometimes you want a beach all to yourself, and Agonda beach is gives you that chance! Not only did it provide an opportunity to relax on the beach but the long drive that got us there is something I will cherish too.

On our way back, we made a short detour. The place is called the Miraculous Cross of Baradi.

As goes with all miraculous crosses around Goa, this place too draws a lot of people from the villages around. Situated on a tiny hillock the view around was fantastic.

This panorama shows the river Sal meeting with the Arabian sea in the horizon. It is still left to speculate if this is a tributary or an estuary… but I guess that is a story for another day 😉

Shigmo Saturday

Shigmo (Shigmotsav/Shimga) is often called the Goa’s version of Holi (Rang Panchami). The annual Shigmo parade held on Panaji’s 18^th June Road is the culmination of Shigmo celebrations. The parade is a kaleidoscope of Goa’s Hindu roots through folk dances in resplendent traditional costumes and larger than life floats depicting scenes from Hindu mythology.

There are three categories on display: fugdi, romtamel and tableaux

The procession is led by a series of such Kunbi dances (a folk dance performed by village tribal women, dressed up in colourful sarees).

The Romtamel included various village groups clad in their festive colors, their pulsating drums and blowing flutes accompanied with multicolored cloths, torans, flags and column-like red spotted Dwajas

and this is the amazing goff (the ‘ribbon dance’, through co-ordinated dance moves the dancers intertwine numerous ribbons into a braid)

These were interspersed with lots of individual fancy dress entrants…

And finally came the sights that I was waiting for the whole evening… chitrarath… the shigmo floats!

It began with Laxmi bestowing blessings on everyone

and a series of other floats depicting scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata

The waking of Kumbakarana, complete with a two-truck long float and the evil laugh hehe hahaha (which left me in splits!) was a sure shot prize winner!

And three others that were strong contenders were:

The heavenly abode

The Abduction of Sita (Sita Haran) with Rama in close pursuit

and The Dance of Shiva

Shigmo stands in stark contrast with the commercialisation of Carnival. It is truly a celebration of community, culture and creativity.

Supermoon Saturday

The moon on the night of March 19, 2011 was different because it was 356577 km from the earth, one of the closest approaches in the past 18 years… and it gets the label… Supermoon (or scientifically speaking, a lunar perigree)! Going with all the hype created by the media I had to witness this first hand!

The most convenient location that came to mind was the Dona Paula jetty. Good thing I went out here, because at “moon rise”, the moon actually took on a reddish hue…

I could not resist taking this night panorama (click on it for a better view)

But then as it goes with every spectacular “breaking news” everything went back to normal, there were no high tides in the sea, no other celestial phenomenon and the biggest news discussed next was how India crushed West Indies to enter the World cup semi final!

Carnival Time

It’s difficult to separate the word Goa from the concept of Carnival.  Any tourist brochure, travel package or billboard describing Goa will have at least one snapshot of the vibrance and joie de vivre seen at a Carnival parade in Goa.

This year may have not been a very colorful parade, but the spirit was there!

Spectators stamped on toes, broke barricade restraints and stretched their necks as hard as they could to watch the floats going by (at least that is what I had to do to get a few clear shots :))

Here is a snapshot of the many snapshots that I managed to take that day… which I call, the Faces of the Carnival.

Can’t wait for the carnival next year!!!

Monte & Music ~ Take 2

The second year that I made it for the Monte Music festival (here is the earlier post). This time I could only make it for the second day. Two reasons why I eagerly await this festival. First and foremost, the Monte festival is a great photo op and secondly words fall short to describe its magnificence.

The Monte Music Festival 2011 organised by Fundacao Oriente and Cidade de Goa was held from February 4 to 6 at the Chapel of Our Lady of Mount, Old Goa. This was the 9th edition of this festival which began in 2002 after the restoration of the Chapel, which was in ruins, was undertaken by Fundacao Oriente.

With a greater emphasis on Indian music and dance this year, I got to experience the Bharatnatyam-Odissi dance performance titled ‘Temple Bells’, by couple Raul and Mitali D’souza from Mumbai. Let the pictures speak for themselves.

You cannot deny that watching a dance performance silhouetted against such a gorgeous sunset and capturing it in a perfectly framed shot is a dream come true!  😉

This was followed by an Indian-Western violin recital by Hans Versmeersch from Belgium.

Not did the notes of the violin tug the heartstrings of all those present, but Mr Hans Versmeersch was an excellent entertainer too.

He took us through the nuances and interpretations of the various pieces that helped identify and be part of that time and age in which they were composed… His musical stream built up in tempo and emotion, from melodies of the time of the East India Company, to soulful compositions of Rabindranath Tagore, flowing through Kashmiri and Hindu love songs and culminating in a blend of Carnatic music and Bach.

A short interval followed, where I pointed the camera to the famous “tree” on the Monte that does not escape any photographer 😉

Nobody challenges the fact anymore, that the natural acoustics of the Monte chapel projects the sound naturally and needs no amplification.

To conclude the second day as predicted by Ms Yvonne Rebello (of Fundacao Oriente), this year the most commendable feature was in fact the performance of the 32-member Paranjoti Academy Chorus from Mumbai conducted by Coomi Wadia .

By a rare chance of fate, I experimented with my camera to try a panorama shot.. and succeeded!

Over the years, the Monte Music Festival has become a much awaited event for music lovers… and I just can’t wait for take 3 😉

The Wine-irony: Grape Escapade 2011

Wine is bottled poetry
~Robert Louis Stevenson

The grape escapade is about two things… wine… and people!

First, comes the wine… 🙂

Wine can get people together… unknown strangers begin to smile at each other, offer each other a seat and even inquire about what the other is drinking! All that at the Grape Escapade 2011.

One thing I keep a photo lookout for are the deco elements at the Grape Escapade. From large bottle cutouts to life-like grapes… everywhere you look, the ambience gets you in the mood.

And then, there are those elements, which only make you smile…

… a friend once said to me, “In Goa, we don’t smoke… so, we drink”

If you love wine, and food with wine, this is the place to be.

Wine is sunlight, held together by water, said Galileo… how true 🙂

From the archives: Grape Escapade 2010

Here is a link for a detailed programme of the Grape Escapade 2011

It only takes a moment…

It takes 50 seconds to cross the Mandovi bridge in minimum traffic… it takes 10 seconds to get the camera case open and set it to continuous shutter mode… but it only takes a fraction of a second to capture one image that freezes time itself!

(and it always helps to have someone by your side while driving who can think like you!)

Ajara via Anmod

There are some places where a single visit is not enough. You have to return to it again and again and discover it anew. Ajara is one such place for me.

Located just beyond the Amboli ghat it promises a relaxing drive and a weekend photo op. However, this time there was a roadblock in the plan! Amboli, was sealed off because of a landslide. There had to be another way.

Anmod! A ghat that I am not too familiar with loomed ahead. Challenge accepted!

So we went through Ponda, crossed the ridiculously narrow Khandepar bridge (which mind you is still NH 4A!) and gasped at the breathtaking sight before us!

Anmod! (literally translates as ‘the place with innumberable turns’)

The clouds look majestic and welcoming from a distance, but once you drive in them, it’s an altogether different story. With visibility just a few meters there was no option but to drive at a cautious 10 kmph.

Anmod comes alive in the monsoon with its range of waterfalls. Here was one such… that was free from the infestation of beer bottle wielding “tourists”… (I fail to understand why these hordes of tourists travel all the way up here only to create a drunken ruckus!)

Despite the ‘experienced’ navigator travelling with us, we did manage to lose our way… but it only meant cruising through idyllic villages such as these

Our first destination…

Ramtirth, is not much of a waterfall… but I like to call it the ‘Niagra’ of Ajara..;)

True to the definition of ‘water’ plant!

The river flows on bringing life and prosperity to the vast township around.

A very amusing set of crows, who braved the rain on this weather-worn tree.

The return trip had its own share of exciting sights! Take this rock for instance…

I wonder how long it will take for it to shift a little 😉

This was another sight that called for a closer inspection. The entire rock was strewn with flowers. Here today, gone tomorrow.

The weekend was over… the memories remain.

Will I make another visit to this place? Anytime!