We are just back from a fantastic trip to Goa. For those who missed 3 issues of Neighbourhood Times, we extend our apologies but we desperately needed a break.
Driving to Goa was a last minute plan. Since most of our staff wanted a vacation we gave them the go ahead and decided to take a summer break ourselves. Since it was too late for tickets we just threw some clothes in a bag, jumped into our car and zoomed off. The drive was relaxing. We took National Highway 4 which has less ghats but takes longer.
We stayed at a resort near Calangute, Castle House, which was highly recommended by a friend.
Castle House is a picturesque gleaming yellow and white villa/resort with cute little balconies and a pool. The tariff was so reasonable, I couldn't get my husband to stop grinning.
The swimming pool got all the kids excited. The rooms were spacious, clean with excellent service. The bar was fully stocked with all kinds of booze with ludicrously low rates eg a bottle of beer was 55 and a shot of whiskey/rum was Rs 20 only. The sea food was very nice especially the fish steaks and garlic butter prawns. The service was so good we ended up making friends with all the employees.
To any body who wants to stay at a hotel in Goa and get complete value for their money, I'd highly recommend Castle House. The owner is Dev (a very friendly chap).
If you visit North Goa and want to eat out, try Britto's at Baga beach. The portions are huge, the food is delicious and the prices are cheap. Just avoid it on Sundays as it gets too crowded. Try booking the deck chairs on the beach which cost around Rs 100 for a couple,lie back,and the food from Britto's will come to you, at no extra charge.
If you want a foot rub ask around for a guy called Rajesh and he will haggle at first but give you a nice foot rub for 20 minutes if you pay him 100 Rs. If you want your nails painted and decorated with little crystals you can get the Nail paint women (who constantly roam the beach) to do some fancy nail art for Rs 110.
Another place bang on Calangute beach is Souza Lobo. They are very popular and always very crowded on weekends.They have a dance floor and have live music every day.. The food is good, the portions are generous but watch out as the service is very iffy. They have a talent for botching up orders. Over and over again. Be careful coz if you order rice and get noodles instead ,they will make you eat the noodles no matter how much you protest and make you pay for it too.
Another place at Calangute is The Flying Dolphin.It's nice and quiet with a great 180 degree view of the beach, which is not crowded at all.It's the perfect place to go with a book,lie back,order a cocktail and watch the sun go down.The food is pretty ok too and worth a try.
Calangute Grande also has good Chinese and Continental food with big portions. Another place which I was told is good, is David's for their seafood platter but I didn't get a chance to go there. Oh and do, do visit Infentaria for their all day dining. Their pastas and cakes are delicious. I spotted Director Sanjay Gupta kicking back and enjoying a relaxing brunch with a large group of friends.
Which brings me to some of the friends I made. I ran into an absolutely lovely British couple, Janet and Graham at my hotel bar (where I had become a permanent structure). We hit it off almost immediately and hung out after that, almost every day. Once they learned I was a writer they told me about a strange predicament they were in...
Now ever since Janet and Graham came to India, they fell in love with our country, our weather, our people, our food......in fact everything. It is for this reason they decided to make India their home and bought a house in Goa.
Cool.... ..right? Wrong! What happened soon after is unbelievable. According to them they did every thing by the book. In October 2001 Graham Goodburn went to the Indian Embassy in London and declared his wish to retire in Goa. He got a One year Ex-Visa,under which, he and his partner were allowed multiple entries, they could stay longer than 12 days AND buy property..
Delighted,they arrived in 2001 October and registered with the Foreign Relation Officer. They viewed a property and made a sale agreement. Their advocate made proper papers under FEMA ie the Foreign Exchange Management Act, which meant within 182 days in one financial year, they could apply for the sale deed, which they did and received. They got the deed stamped the by the Registrar in Maupsa and received the No Objection Certificate for Electricity and House tax.
At the end of their 1 year visa,they went back to UK and were issued a 5 year visa. After 5 years in India,they returned to UK to renew their visa but were shocked to learn that they would receive a visa for one year only and would be required to leave the country every 182 days, for at least a day and then only would they be allowed to return.
Irritated and upset they returned, only to have their their advocate drop another bombshell: The rules had changed further. They could sell their house to an Indian national only AND There was a new diktat …...even though they owned a home in Goa, they could only stay for six months at a time, then they had to leave the country not for a day but for at least 2 months.
Soon came another set of rules, they were now forbidden to sell their house to anybody, not even an Indian.
So here they are, stuck in a country where they own a home, but cannot live in it for more than six months and have to get out for at least 2 months and they cannot sell their home either!!!
Quite understandably, they feel helpless and outraged. It seems Graham and Janet are not the only ones. “This is happening to all the foreigners” informs Janet.
Why don't they just leave? “I love India. This is my home now and I won't leave”says Graham Goodburn passionately as Janet nods vigorously. I feel so bad for this couple, despite all this the poor things are still in love with India and want to stay.
Pfffft !!! Atithi Devo Bhava indeed!
For their sake I hope the Indian Government is listening.
