My Summer Vacation

Summer vacation at Goa was like a dream come true. The white sand, the swaying palm fronds, the calm waters were picture perfect. No matter where we went in Goa it felt like it was siesta time. This languidness is typical not just of Goa’s landscape, it extends to its inhabitants and it permeates everything around.

Dad had rented a little bungalow by the beach and every morning we were greeted by the smell of salty air and the sounds of the beautiful waves crashing against the shore. The Cathedrals and temples of Goa stood beautiful and tall, witness to the intense and diverse religious history of the people who had lived there. To date St. Francis of Assisi Church remains Goa’s number one tourist attraction. The Goan cuisine is influenced by its Hindu origins, its four hundred years of Portuguese colonialism and modern techniques. Goa is famous for it’s fiery ‘Pork Vindaloo’ as much as it is famous for it’s ‘Sausage Pulao.’ The water front has many sports facilities like water scooters, water gliding, snorkeling, and scuba diving. We were amazed by the beauty of Goa’s coral reefs. The air was humid and at night we would sleep in the hammocks staring at the star studded night, feeling the gentle caress of the sea breeze and listening to the melancholy strains of Mario, the resort’s violinist.

Goa with its wonderful warm people, its finger-licking cuisine, its beautiful landscape and its wonderful beaches had us entranced and we were dragging our feet when it was time to go home.