Before I start… hi!!! Have you missed us? After a couple days in Mumbai we swiftly came down with a pretty savage stomach bug, likely Giardia we think. To be honest, it totally knocked us about for a couple of weeks, with terrible fatigue, cramps, brain fog and other more unpleasant symptoms. After a few days between bed and the bathroom, we managed to keep moving to a few other destinations, but any time not visiting the sites we really wanted to see was spent resting! Pair this with 40 degree daytime temperatures in most locations, and we were only just surviving, and definitely not thriving. Now, nearly two weeks and a course of antibiotics later, we finally feel like ourselves again, and are playing some much needed catch up on the blog. You can expect some slightly abridged posts over the next few days, detailing our journey from Goa to Manali. There were some hard times (I may have googled flights home, but only once!), but it’s been a real test of our resilience. We still made some great memories and saw some incredible places. Hopefully, we are leaving our sickness behind now, as we have some exciting times ahead of us.
Now, to rewind to the beachside in Goa.
To say I was excited to get to the beach was an understatement. I wrote a list of things I wanted to do during our time in Goa, and my main priorities were:
- Drink a cold, crisp bottle of white wine
- Lie on the beach
- Yoga every day
- Swim lots
- Find good local food
- Read at least three books
- Get a massage
- Catch up on blog and IG posts
- Buy a cute top
- Find some more jewelry
We stayed in two spots in Goa, each for three nights. The first of these was a quieter beach in the south called Patnem. If you go on Reddit you will find countless posts about how Goa has been ruined by over tourism and the consequent development and gentrification. The South is known for being the quieter end of the state and for being popular with families, long stayers and those seeking a more relaxing (less party) experience. April is also the very end of the season, and we had been warned that it would be much quieter than usual, with some cafes, yoga schools and beach shacks shut down for the deason already. Quiet beaches and fewer people? Sign me up. Our experience in the south was lovely.
After arriving off the overnight bus I skipped the usual nap routine to go to a yoga class I had found online. This was one of the best decisions I have made on this trip and it was the start of something very special. Brahma Yoga School is a family affair. Classes are led predominantly by Mohit, but his dad Prem is also involved in teaching the longer courses, and his mum helps with hosting students and guests. We attended the final four classes in Goa for the season, as from mid-April onwards, the family leaves for a small village called Baghsu, near Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh. I left the first class buzzing, and excited to join the classes for the next few days. We went every morning, and gradually got more and more convinced to sign up for the May yoga teacher training (YTT) in Dharamshala. By the final morning we paid our deposit and locked in our spots, already feeling like our practice was worlds improved from when we first arrived.
Starting every morning with Yoga put us in pretty good stead to have some amazing days in south Goa, and amongst hours spent lazing on our local beach, we found some pretty special more secluded spots as well.
I had found a beach on google maps that seemed to have a rough path down to it, and even a small shack like bar at the bottom. On our first afternoon we thought we would take our trusty rental scooty and give it a try. It was about an hour drive from our accommodation, with the final twenty minutes on increasingly steep dirt roads. We arrived at what we assumed was the car park and walked down for about 20 minutes to find a total oasis. Palm tree lined, golden sand and only two small restaurants serving cold drinks. We parked up on some loungers and spent the afternoon alternating between these and the ocean. The sunset was picturesque, finishing off an amazing first day. We rode home at dusk and were just so happy to be there.
In classic Alice and Josh fashion, we managed to find some great food while we were in Goa. A cute cafe run by a New Zealander was a highlight, and we spent a few hours lounging here enjoying coffee and some New Zealand music that reminded us of home. We also went out one night with one of the girls from the yoga studio, and had the most delicious BBQ chicken wings! Not exactly traditional, but we devoured three plates nonetheless. We did a lot of our usual heading away from the main tourist area to eat, and had a great Goan thali with lots of interesting bits and pieces.
We had one not so pleasant experience… a termite infestation in our room!!! I was up until all hours of the morning googling what those dust-like piles were that were appearing all over our bed and stuff… and soon learned they were literally termite s**t! Yuck! Thankfully the management moved us to a new room and gave us a discount, but it wasn’t very fun at the time.
As I was writing this a bit delayed, I went back through my camera roll to remind me what we did in Goa. My camera roll was surprisingly empty, which I think speaks to how nice it was to have this time just to slow down and relax. Our yoga practice was the cornerstone of our time here, and it set us up for some beautiful, slow, intentional days.