After spending almost two weeks in Penang, Malaysia and 4 days on the island of Koh Lipe, Thailand, we need to make a decision.
Our house in Sri Lanka is occupied by home exchangers, one after another, (from France, Spain, Holland and Chicago) until mid February. (This is the other side of home exchange ~ where we reciprocate with our home for those who have let us stay at their homes. )
What direction should we head?
This is the joy of having S.E Asia as our “backyard”. From Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia, one can pretty much get a cheap flight to anywhere in the region. So many choices…
Having left our home at the end of November for Bali, we have already at this point been travelling for 6 weeks. Fun as it is to travel, it also takes energy and time in airports, dealing with logistics to concretise our ever evolving nomadic lifestyle. Simple and chill and low cost is what we are currently looking for until our house in Sri Lanka becomes available to us once again in February.
We are about to book tickets to one of our favorite places where we have lived and spent extended time, Hoi An, Viet Nam. But then, a work project for Ben pops up….. in India. He needs to be in Bombay for meetings. Soon. Change of plans.
India, is not a new destination for us. We have been there four times before, with each time being distinctly different. Spending extended time in India however, is both exhilirating and occasionally overwhelming. Ben loves it all, and I have more of a love/hate relationship. (I struggle with the dust, as I am allergic to it, and dust is everywhere. I struggle with the high intensity and constant street noise ~ and also with the food… I need fresh greens. I enjoy Southern India food, but there is only so much of it I can eat.)
So we will be India based for this period.
Home exchange is always our first avenue of exploration. And come to think of it, we do have a credit of a home exchange from a year ago, when an Indian family stayed in our home for 2 weeks, and they own a guest house in rural Goa. We have been wanting to visit and to enjoy their restored colonial countryside home. This seems like the perfect time to use this exchange.
Coincidentally, our close friend, (Brook) has made the decision to move from the U.S. to India about the same time, and Goa is the location she has chosen to move to. When the stars align… and the universe has the answers.
So, Goa it will be!
We do a little research…. Goa beach has an abundance of yoga offerings, a vibrant international music scene, plenty of vegetarian/vegan restaurants, as well as small inexpensive bungalows close to or on the beach.
We will start in the North, at Arambol beach (which is what this post covers), and then go inland to our exchange host guesthouse, followed by returning to Palolem beach in South Goa. We have been to Goa before, but only briefly, and out of season. This time, we will be there in the height of the season and we are interested and curious to experience it.
We fly from Malaysia to Bombay where we spend a few days for Ben’s meetings, before a short flight to the state of Goa, which will be our home for the next 6 weeks.
The beach
At dusk every day on Arambol beach, there is a surprising collection of vendors, drummers, dancers, jugglers, strollers who congregate to enjoy the sunset. Gone are the days of Goa as a hippie/drug destination. While you might still see a few “hippie” looking types, the majority of visitors seem to be Russians, a smattering of other foreigners and Indian tourists from the North.
One of the interesting things about Goa is that there is beach after beach to discover. Some days we go exploring on our rented motor scooter, driving through small rural villages and find new beaches. India has an admirable rule of no construction within 500 metres of the shorefront. This means that there are no huge hotels at the beaches, only small structures, and rarely is anything over 2 storeys high. The beaches are also surprisingly clean, not just for India, but for beaches anywhere.
A saddhu, (Ascetic Hindu) renounces all worldly goods in the pursuit of holiness. We share a non-verbal “conversation” with a saddhu and he blesses us with his mystical powers. Showing us a photo of himself (on the right) during a ceremony.
What else makes up Arambol?
Yoga
There is more yoga here than anywhere else we have ever been! One street has yoga classes and cafes, one after the other ~ literally every type of yoga every day. From Hatha yoga, to Iyengar, Ashtanga and acroyoga…. Workshops, classes, retreats. The choices are endless….
Shopping street
We are staying in a tiny basic one room “cottage”. It’s clean and comfy, walking distance to the beach, walking distance to the main street with all the restaurants and yoga, but also a string of great stalls and shops.
Gastronomy
Lot of fruit to be had: pomegranates, figs, papayas, mangoes…
Vegetarian and vegan restaurants are plentiful. Not quite the standard of Ubud, Bali, but definitely up there. We quickly find a few favourites and have some terrific meals. (Honey glazed eggplant, spinach momos, fruit smoothie bowls, veggie rolls, salad greens with nuts and figs). There is also very good seafood at beach restaurants all across the sea front.
Beyond the beach and the yoga and the delicious food… there is one more dimension to Arambol that fills our evenings: Arambol is a magnet for all sorts of music ~ some experimental, some “unplugged”, some ethnic… Spanish Flamenco, African drums, ancient Indian string and wind instruments whose names we don’t know. Every night, world class musicians…
Motorbike adventures
Getting away from the beaches, we start to discover of rural Goa. We quickly learn that Goa is predominantly Catholic (from earlier times when the Portuguese dominated), and yet one can still find small countryside Hindu temples scattered here and there.
Love your red dress, and your vibe fits with Goa perfectly. What a serendipitous discovery! We were there for just two nights. Wish we would have had two weeks like you to really dive in. Thanks for sharing all the charm of this beachy locale.
Thanks Kelly! We don’t get to do any shopping in Sri Lanka because the designs here are just not at all appealing, so it was very fun to find cool stuff in Goa.
We had heard good things about Goa’s beaches, and as we, like you, had only had 2 nights there, we felt as though we had not really seen enough. So this was a great opportunity to really experience it, in season.
Peta
I love your dramatic red dress! It also matches your spectacles beautifully. The veggie food is mouthwatering and โcapturingโ the sun is very clever.
Thanks Anabel. I must say I love it too! Red is a good colour for a fire sign (Aries). While I enjoy Southern Indian food such as dhosa, I definitely cannot eat only Indian food for six weeks, so this was a perfect choice to be in Goa, food wise as well.
Peta
I knew I should have eaten before reading your post! Peta, you look incredibly relaxed during your Goa stay and at least while there the dust allergens will not be as worrisome.
There is dust no matter where in India. Here at least the shopkeepers do pour water on the street every day to reduce the dust as much as is possible. I partially solved the allergy problem by covering up my mouth and nose with a scarf every single time I ventured out on the bike.
Peta
I don’t know, that walking the plank looks like good yoga to me. Good old diverse crazy India, just steals your heart like nowhere else. Thanks to this little vignette of yours, Goa will now precede its reputation. Enjoy your Sri Lanka homecoming, whenever that will be. You will be so much richer for visiting all these cool places, but no place like home eh?
Johnny we were just discussing how diverse India is depending on where one goes. For example, when we were in Auroville and Pondicherry, they were like NOWHERE else, and Goa is like nowhere else in India. Pushkar is unique… and so on… Yes it keeps pulling us back, and given that we live so close by, it is an easy short flight.
We are finally back home and it is great to be back and especially to have our own bed, and our own kitchen and a CLOSET to put clothes in. How unique!!
Peta
“Characters everywhere . . . ” The one I see in the most pictures is Peta . . . who has the best character of all.
Great pictures. These were some of my favorites you’ve taken. I could enjoy them without drooling – less food and lots of “characters”.
Judy that’s funny. Thanks for the lovely compliment! Haha….So glad you enjoyed the photos so much.
Peta
Our Indian friends have said Goa (where they are from) is a great end-of-India stop, a nice relaxing option at the end of so much visual and other stimulation elsewhere in the country. I’m longing for the day we can take them up on their offer to visit … until then, I have your experiences to relish. The stay looks heavenly. I believe you are home in Sri Lanka now; hope all is well!
Lex, for sure Goa is a great end-of-India stop, as would be Pondicherry (on the East coast).. both are often referred to as “India light”. For us, given that we have been to Idia so many times before and that as well we had already been on the road for six weeks, Goa was the perfect choice.
We are finally back in Sri Lanka and it is so nice to be home and actually unpack our suitcases and have a kitchen for making meals in!!
Peta
Lovely pics and summary of Goa.
Did you partake in any of the Music sessions. I could find some pretty good uses for the gong over someones head!!
Are you home now?
Thanks Roch. YES, we went to live music almost every night. It was often free and held in restaurants where everyone sits on the floor on cushions. It was great, we heard so many awesome musicians.
Haha thats funny re the tibetan bowl.
Finally home in Sri Lanka, yes.
This looks great. I love the mix – kind of gentle (certainly for India) and yet plenty of excitement as well. I’d love to hang out there for a couple of months!
Tracy it was a perfect mix of “gentle” and “exciting” and was the perfect choice for our state of mind after having been on the road for a significant amount of time, and knowing we still had 6 weeks. Neither of us was in the mood to country hop and nor did our budget allow for that. This was a great decision for sure.
Peta
Sounds like a good solution for you guys. ๐ ๐ You’ve set me thinking again as somebody suggested we might try Home Exchange this summer, when we plan to spend 3 weeks in Leeds looking after a 6 year old. Not sure that I could organise it in this space of time and we’ll probably look for a reasonable Airbnb place, but it’s a thought.
Johanna it was a great solution for us. As you know we have doing home exchange for about ten years now and we absolutely love it. We have stayed in about 60 or more homes all over the world. Yes, you totally could organise it by summer. Feel free to email me petakaplan@hotmail.com and I will help you get started if you like.
Stay tuned to the blog for the next post about our wonderful rural home exchange in Goa.
Peta
Sorry, Peta- I just saw this today! Thank you for your kindness ๐ ๐
Every time I drive by California’s fragile and gorgeous coast, I’ve wondered why buildings are allowed near it. Wealthy people and corporations hog the coast, leaving only small beach access to the rest of California’s populace. After Hurricane Sandy destroyed much of New Jersey’s coast, I read articles suggesting that people be paid not to rebuild near but move inland. Barrier islands (there are many along the Atlantic side of the US) are detached bits of what used to be connected to the mainland and are now shattered and over built land chips.
Goa has the right idea, more forward thinking and environmentally advanced than the US.
I always learn a lot about the world from your posts – thanks for your generous photos and stories.
Sharon, with climate change and the rising of the oceans now, it makes NO sense to build right on the ocean and I totally agree that it is annoying when private homes are one next to the other leaving very little public places for everyone else.
It is not only the state of Goa, but all of India which has this rule. It makes so much sense both from an environmental point of view and an aesthetic one as the coast in Goa is so lovely with trees rather than huge hotels to look at!
Thanks for the lovely compliments!
Peta
How fun to spend an hour this morning catching up on your travels, Peta. Goa looks like a perfect go-to destination as well as a great place to find some colorful wardrobe additions!
Well thanks Anita, so glad you enjoyed! Goa was perfect for us at this point in time when we were already a bit travel weary and not wanting to move around too much thereby using up time and energy on logistics. Definitely great for a wardrobe refresher. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your comments.
Peta
This sounds so idyllic. I’ve longed to visit Goa, and now you’ve really convinced me. Perhaps it will be our next trip to India. Love your beautiful red dress, and it sounds as if you found just the food you needP
Thanks Alison, that is compliment indeed!
Stay tuned because the South of Goa was even more idyllic! Yes I chose Goa in part due to the abundance of plant based restaurants as I eat plant based 90% of the time (unless I happen to find myself in Japan haha then.. no way!)
Peta
Such a lot of colour and activity in your beautiful photos. Love your red dress, Peta. You always look so elegant.
Your capture of the sun going down is perfect. This home exchange thing seems to work very well for you both.
Thanks so much for sharing your adventures.
Sylvia thank you for such lovely compliments!
We have been doing home exchange for 10 years now and have stayed in over 60 homes all over the world. It is such a great system for us, we love it. Especially when we travel to Europe where accommodation is more pricey.
Glad you are enjoying our posts. Stay tuned for more on Goa.
Peta
I’ve never been to India, so I find posts about it fascinating.
Thanks for sharing your travels with us, and I look forward to reading more!
Ann we are very happy to share our impressions and experiences and especially with those who have never had the opportunity to travel to our destinations. Re India, it is SUCH a large and diverse country that if we have peaked your interest, you might like to search our prior posts in the archives for wide ranging posts from our travels in India from the North to the South, East and West.
Peta
What an interesting place to explore. I could definitely channel my inner hippie there. Love your red dress and how it matches your glasses. I’ve never been to India… always a little turned off by photos of huge crowds and the noise and smells that usually go with them. The beach, on the other had, looks much more manageable.
Thanks Janis, luckily for me Ben is always on the lookout for interesting clothes so he gets the credit.
It is true that India has a huge population, however, when one gets out of the cities and goes rural, then as you can see by the photos, the density of people drops considerably as does the noise. What till you see our forthcoming post on rural Goa, it was completely tranquil and idyllic.
Peta
We have never been to India but have often heard wonderful things about Goa. Your in depth article completely reinforces that. I am curious about the cleanliness of the beaches. Is there a special initiative in Goa? It would seem if they have a model that is working it could be shared widely.
Sue that is a great question.
There IS a special initiative in the state of Goa. Firstly, Goa is the richest state in India which of course is helpful to preserving the environment. There is a very important and effective law in Goa, which is NO plastic bags. Every single shop uses very thin cotton bags instead of plastic (they cost 5c to the vendor) and this in and of itself makes a huge difference of course.
Secondly, there are garbage bins, recycling bins on all the beaches we saw in Goa. There are also trash picking brigades which go around picking up trash. This is probably credit to President Modi who is strong on the environment.
Finally, because there did not seem to be any big industry near the shore front due to the rule that buildings must be 500 feet away from the beach, this of course is very helpful in keeping the waters clean.
We have been on other beaches in India (on the East coast) which were shocking they were so dirty, so this was a wonderful surprise to find such clean beaches all along the coast in Goa no matter where we stopped!!
Peta
Goa looks like such a vibrant, colourful, eclectic place but at the same time peaceful. It’s amazing all the activity, commerce, gastronomy that goes on at the beach.
I had a chuckle about the guy with the Tibetan bowl on his head. I’m so glad to read about the construction laws and the fact that the beaches are cleanโthings I didn’t expect of India. We’ve never been to India and share some of your concerns, but it sure looks fascinating.
Love the red dress!
Caroline, you are absolutely right in your observation of Goa being vibrant, eclectic and peaceful. Usually we like being in places in off season, but in this case, I doubt that Goa would have enough to keep one interested beyond the beach out of season. Lots of interesting shops, all of which close out of season as the owners go back home to the Himalayan region.
In addition to the beaches being clean, Goa also has a ban on plastic bags which is pretty incredible and as well, recycling bins on the beaches. Very different to other beaches we have seen on the East side of India which are nowhere near as clean as this.
Thanks for the compliment on the red dress! Credit to Ben for finding it and insisting that I buy it.
Peta
Thanks for bringing me along with you to Goa. I loved the visit! From your photos, I could HEAR the people and the ocean and the yogic chanting.
I think what I most loved (and I enjoyed everything about our visit) was the prolific yoga ‘classes’ everywhere. R E A L yoga. I laugh here in the States with the hot yoga and the lulu lemon yoga (my term) where 20-somethings work up an aerobic sweat forgetting to breath and competing with each other. Y I k e s.
The red dress says it all – a trip full of color and relaxation and blessings.
Such enthusiasm and nice compliments indeed Pamela… thank you.
It is quite amazing how different yoga is here from in the States where it is high powered and competitive. And as well, its great to pay $4 in India for a class, compared with $15 and upwards in the States and Europe. Yoga classes in India do take some getting used to, as there is no music and very little explanation of benefits or proper form. Unless of course you take an Iyengar class, then every little move is analyzed and corrected.
Thanks re the dress. Thanks Ben for insisting that I buy it.
Peta
PS – the day after I read your post I was teaching one of my creative writing classes. One of my students is from India (but has lived in the States and raised a family here many years). But he wrote about his honeymoon from a prompt I gave – and guess where he honeymooned? Yup, Goa. I felt like I could act all smart and intelligent about the area; he was impressed. :–)
Oh that’s funny and so great. I think it is synchronicity at play here. Once you are aware of a place, person, or anything, then somehow we attract more of the same or we are more mindful of “coincidences”. You will really enjoy our latest rural Goa post then….
Peta
Any place where people gather to celebrate the sunset (or sunrise) sounds like my kind of place. Love your red dress, Peta!
And love these posts. You are giving me so much travel inspiration!
Keep up the great work guys!
Deb
Deb it IS nice to celebrate the sun coming up and/or going down each day. Thanks for the kind words and so glad you are enjoying these posts. Stay tuned for two more posts on Goa.
Peta
Reading one of your posts is like going on the adventure itself. You capture the essence of being there. Thank you – I enjoyed this morning journey with my cup of coffee ๐
The last photo is my favourite though. It shows how fit and strong you are, dressed in that vibrant yellow, in a pose of joy like you are embracing the world. Love it!
Joanne this is the ultimate compliment, “capturing the essence of being there”. So nice to be part of your coffee routine.
Ahh Ben is very happy with you. He loves bright colours and yellow is one of his favourites. Thank goodness for yoga ~ hopefully keeping me fit and strong. Such lovely words, thanks!
Peta
Peta, I love all your colorful outfits. Although you mentioned a love/hate relationship with India, sounds like Goa was a perfect place to visit. The delicious food would be a reason enough for me to visit. Your posts are always a lot of fun to read๐
Thanks Gilda, you are absolutely right that Goa was the perfect place for this particular trip, so we chose well to suit our current needs. Sometimes we are looking for more excitement, but having just had an incredible trip to Flores in Indonesia and Penang in Malaysia, we were definitely ready for some down time in a relaxing place.
The food WAS definitely a reason for choosing Goa, as I really need to eat fresh and plant based to feel good.
Peta
Your first photo is absolutely stunning! Goa looks quite beautiful.
Thanks.
Especially enjoyed this post. I was in Goa in 1970 and always worried it would get overdeveloped and too commercialized. Still looks like a great place to hang out. And I love the red dress too!
Glad you enjoyed this post Steve. I imagine that Goa has changed quite a lot since 1970 in terms of the overall vibe, but in terms of development it remains a very low key place, which is great.
Thanks for the lovely compliment.
More coming up on Goa in our next two posts.
Peta
When I saw your first photos, I thought โWhat a busy beach!โ But later on, it became obvious that there are many different beaches in Goa, a place Iโve only heard of. It has quite the hippie 60s reputation and still seems to be a big tourist draw. Iโm glad you managed to find enough food and yoga options. Love your new red dress and matching glasses. ๐ Another place to add to the list for us. India is huge, though, so picking and choosing there would be difficult!
Liesbet, correct, the main beach in Arambol gets busy at sunset, and there is a fun vibe. In addition there are SO many other beaches, both North and South (and we will be writing a post about the South Too) mostly with very few people and it is quite easy to walk a short distance and then there is literally no one. Yes, Goa was a huge hippie epicenter for decades, but now it is has evolved into something else. Plenty food, plethora of yoga options.
Yes, the vastness of India is unimaginable and every single place we have been to is SO very different to any other! One could spend years just travelling around India. Am sure you both would really enjoy it.
Peta
Since Mark and I really like peace and quiet, Iโm a bit apprehensive about returning to India. I spent five weeks in the north when I was 20 or so. It was my first trip outside of Europe, so it left a great impression. Mark has never been. Yet, we are both curious about exploring (more of) the subcontinent. I swear, one day the two of us will find ourselves in Asia. ๐
We do too so I completely get that. Of course you can find peace and quiet in India in rural parts, see our latest post.. but first you have to land in Delhi or the like and deal with the noise and the chaos.
Peta
Peta – what a vibrant post. Thank you for taking me to a place I’ve never been. A close friend of mine lived in India for a long time, and you’ve really put life into her descriptions of a place she loves. Cheers – Susan
Thanks Susan, so glad you enjoyed this “visit” to Goa. Wondering if your friend lived in Goa? India is so large and each place we have been to over the year is so different from any of the others it is quite remarkable.
Peta
You are SOOOOOO making me regret bypassing Goa! Yet another reason for a victory lap or even a top to bottom backpacking trip through India. A photographer’s and a sociologists dream!
It’s funny Lisa because we too had bypassed Goa, other than a few days a few years back. And somehow it was at the back of our minds to try to get there one day, and here it was!! I do think you would seriously enjoy it. Top to bottom backpacking through India sounds like an adventurous endeavour indeed.
Peta