Thursday, March 18, 2010

Goa Hush-Hush

I was contemplating for a moment if I should write this post since the places mentioned here are only known to locals and the only reason why we even found out about them was because on their first day, A’s dad bumped into a restaurant owner from Bangalore who frequently visited Goa.

Near Morjim Beach
First off, let me tell you about the place we chose to stay. Siolim House is a charming restored 300-year-old Portuguese villa that is tucked away in the leafy lanes near Morjim beach. The original owner was a governor to Macau and according to Lonely Planet, this place contains more antiques than the British Museum.

Siolim House
Entrance to Siolim House

Siolim House
Siolim House courtyard

Siolim House
Inside Siolim House

Siolim House
Our room

A Goan Greek
This place is a gem! This restaurant is located on a cliff and overlooks the sandy beach and coconut treetops. We didn’t get here in time but A’s parents sat at this table and watched sunset while sipping on freshly squeezed orange juice. We met the bubbly owner who is a Greek lady who has been in living in Goa for 25 years and started off by selling lamb wraps at the Anjuna flea market. After much persuasion from her customers, she opened this restaurant.

Greek restaurant in Goa

Dancing in a Greek restaurant in Goa
Customers dancing to Greek songs

Grilled fish
Grilled fish. The food here is a bit more pungent and complex compared to what you would get in Athens or Santorini mainly because the owner came from a Greek island that is located on the west, near Sicily.

Under the Nerul bridge
… you will see a little brick building painted in sea-blue. The people who reside in this building also run a little restaurant called Amigos.

Amigos
Amigos services on a mural, under the Nerul bridge.

Mud crab in garlic-butter sauce
Giant mud crab is one of Amigos' signature dish. We ordered two, this one cooked in garlic butter sauce.

Goan curry + poi (Goan bread)
Goan prawn curry with poi (Goan bread)

Taking a fishing boat into the sea
After lunch, with Auntie Bina’s superb negotiating skills, we went on a boat ride on the river towards the sea.

Picking shells
Fisherman picking sea shells.

Mansion on the Aguada hill
On our boat, we saw this private mansion on Aguada hill.

More photos on Goa
Previous stories on Goa

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