GOA

Well my phone is supposed to arrive by courier tomorrow. 
I waited for my phone to no avail.  Too much waiting around.  The cab driver texts me that it is in Mumbai and will come soon.  So I wait.

The beaches here are gorgeous.   The sand reaches out what seems forever.  The water is warm.  The surf is about 1 to 3 feet. The local people just love the play in the surf.  The height makes it easy to play.  What throws me off is that no one wears a bathing suit.  They go in the water with their clothes on.  I’m not sure if it is because of modesty, not wanting to get sun tanned or all of that.  I just think it is strange.

The sunsets are beautiful… and when the sun goes down, the tables and chairs go up on the sand, and the lights come up.  What fun… music is loud, the food is great and the drinks start flowing.  I have yet to find somewhere to dance, however.  The nightclubs don’t begin till at least 11 pm. I’ll find dancing somewhere before I leave.

We went on a sunrise hike to this rocky shore area where fishermen used to go and still go.  Nice view, but a relatively easy hike. 

Almost every day we went to a different beach.  Jhit had never been to the ocean before and didn’t know how to swim, so it was fun to watch him learn and experience that.  By the end, he was able to swim!

The beaches are all kinda the same, but yet still very nice.  Warm water, long sandy areas, small waves and lots of water sports.  Para gliding and jet sking for reasonable prices.  You can’t complain.  $5 for a minute paragliding and $8 for a short jet ski.  Of course if you want to go longer it costs more. 

The food was delicious, and there were many restaurants within walking distance from our Air B &B.  It was fun to try as many as we could. The seafood was good… pomfret, prawns, and crab, and the South India food had a different flavor than North India. I think more coconut milk, different spices and Portuguese influence.

One night, after dinner on the beach under the stars and lights, I saw a place where there was dancing.  I quickly went up and joined in. It was great, but I noticed it was mostly guys.  It got a little weird, especially when a guy kissed me on the neck when he dipped me and then did some inappropriate touching.  I moved away and soon after left the dance area… little too friendly.  I did have fun dancing for a while.  I need to go back to Hawaii, where I can dance with no harrassment.

I loved Goa, but what I didn’t like was the pollution in the sky.  No beautiful blue sky like I am used of in Hawaii.  I am also coughing and a bit conjested maybe because of the pollution. 

This was a nice way to end my trip to India… just relaxing and enjoying the beauty of Goa.  I really liked the beaches and the feel. 

Well, my cell phone arrived a week later than it should have, but not without texting and calling to and from the cab driver and the courier.  Finally it came and I thanked the cab driver for all he did.  I don’t know why the courier had so many problems, but finally, it did come. Now I feel complete.  Finally, I got my phone back to where it belongs.  I haven’t been able to text, so some of my friends were worried. My phone came back only because of the kindness of the 2 guys in Chandigarh,  India.

On the last day, Jhit and I decided to get matching tattoos.  Just that his is a little bigger.  The tat he chose was the lotus flower with the Tibetan script saying nying-je … meaning compassion.  I love it, both the meaning and the look.  This connects me forever to Jhit and all he has done for me.  I will remember as long as I live.  Hopefully, I’ve done something for him as well.

As I leave India, I have many thoughts.  This, I feel, has been my best trip so far.  Maybe it has been the organizations I chose or the countries, or maybe it is just me learning how to travel better and how to make people connections. I’ve loved the volunteer organizations I have been to… Wildlife SOS and Volunteer Journeys.  The people I have met along the way have been awesome.  I feel I have made some lifelong friends.  From meeting Pauline, from Honolulu, on my flight to Tokyo, to the guides in Varanassi, Avinash, and in Jaipur, Sonu,who have kept in touch, to Eiko, the Japanese tourist studying in Varanasi, to Jen Rose, the travel writer I met there and to, Maya, the resturant owner who feeds the homeless, to the staff at Wildlife SOS and Volunteer Journeys, to the amazing hotel manager, Jana, who spent time to get to know me, to the Jain family who hosted me for 5 days, to the shop owners, Apsara Thapaliya  and Pandey Ramesh in Kathmandu, to the laundry guy, Mohit, and the taxi driver, Mr. Cool, to, Nikhalish, the man with the dog named Lucy, to the fellow volunteers David, Emni, Mary, Christina, Sonja, Glo, Susan, Karen, Leone, and to Jhit of Himalayan Scenery Tours and the other awesome trekkers I met along the way.  What a journey it has been… made best by the people I met.  You just can’t make this stuff up… it has been nothing short of miraculous.