Catching up! 3 more India posts, starting with GOA

Maybe it’s because we visited the ever so popular Palolem Beach in late November, but I found it to be really affordable and relaxing.  We had fears that the prices for beach huts would be astronomical but we found a lovely little hut, with a private bathroom, on stilts, with a view of the beach, for 500 rupees (~$11).  Not bad. 

Food was a bit more expensive on Palolem.  We had been pretty good at finding cheap food away from the tourist drag. There were a few restaurants on the street (parallel to the beach) that were a little cheaper, and if you stuck with Indian food, then it was possible to eat a meal for about $2, instead of the $3 minimum on the beach.

The beach at Palolem is the real draw though.  The sand is soft and the beach is devoid of rocks or other things that can rip your feet up.  The water is warm and the dropoff is very gradual.  We walked about 100 meters out and could still touch the bottom.

There were a lot of women selling things on the beach.  You have to be firm with them if you don’t want to purchase their goods, otherwise they and all their cohort will show up and lay out their goods.  Also, you need to bargain really hard with them, because you can’t easily pick up and leave.  I got a few good deals from them, but only after hemming and hawing and refusing to buy.  “You’re killing me,” the lady would say.  I’d say “well, I don’t need to buy anything from you,” and we’d go back and forth.  Fun times.

As this is India, there were cows on the beach.  Photogenic animals they are.

On a few evenings, after a day of sunning and playing in the water, we’d grab dinner on the beach and watch the sunset.  What a beautiful world we live in.