As we happened
to reach Goa on Monday evening, we had not planned for much for that day,
taking into consideration the fact that flights at times get delayed. The furnished apartment that I had booked for
our stay in Goa was in North Goa and in Arpora locality. As the Baga
beach was the nearest and in a walking distance, we decided to visit this
destination in the evening. Baga is located at the north end of the contiguous beach
stretch that starts from Sinquerim, Candolim and stretches right up to Calangute. We spent the evening enjoying the various
activities taking place in the beach and also enjoyed the sun set from the
Beach. The beach has a long row of
colourful umbrellas with sitting decks placed below them in a neat row all
along the coastline. Since we had placed
ourselves in a serviced apartment, we through it fit to have our dinner at the
beach side shack and then head back to the apartments. Accordingly, we decided to dine at the
famed shack, called as St. Anthony’s running since the 1960’s and we enjoyed our
evening to the hilt, as the ambience as well as the food was worth every penny
spent.
Here is a short video of the Baga beach
Early next
morning, as scheduled by us, especially it being a Tuesday, we had decided to
visit the temples in South Goa and the Churches in Old Goa. Accordingly, we
started in the hired vehicle early in the morning, so as to avoid the stinging
late morning/afternoon sun.The first
destination visited by us in South Goa was the famed Balaji temple, which is
situated in Kunkulied village. The
temple whose full name is Tirupati
Balaji Padmavati temple and it is placed amidst a lush green complex, with a
carpet of grass that is interspersed with flowering plants, provides for a
soothing experience.The temple complex
consists of the main temple, housing a tall statue of Lord Balaji and similar
in appearance to the deity in Tirupati.Next to this main temple is a smaller temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha
and Goddess Padmavati and this temple complex too like all the other temples in
south India has a tall ‘dhwaja stambha’.Despite having started early, walking on the
paved path was next to impossible due to the heat and we had to trudge
alongside on the green grass.Having
paid our obeisance in the temple, we proceeded further to visit the next temple
in South Goa.
The entrance to the famed Balaji temple
The lush green temple complex of Balaji temple
The most famous temple destination in South
Goa is the Mangeshi temple, which is
about 450 years old and dedicated to Lord Shiva and is situated in Ponda.The main features of this temple is the seven
story lamp tower called ‘deep stambha’
and a magnificent water tank that is considered to be the oldest part of this
temple complex.Apart from this there is
also a prominent Nandi Bull in the temple precincts.Earlier the temple was well exposed for
viewing, however, at present the corridor in front has been covered thereby
obscuring the temple façade to some extent.It is one of the most beautiful temples in Goa and is a must visit
destination.
The magnificent 'Deep Stambh' in Mangeshi temple
The corridor in front of the main temple in Mangeshi
The water tank in Mangeshi temple
We retraced our
way back to Old Goa to visit the old churches there, as it was the part of Goa that
housed the Portugese invaders and they had developed many churches in the
region over the centuries.These
churches are really an architectural wonder in their own rights.The first of such church that we visited was the
Basilica of Bom Jesus, which is
famous for housing the mortal remains of St.Francis Xavier and is also an
UNESCO heritage site.No amount of
narration would truly portray the architectural beauty of this church and I
would rather let the photographs do the talking.
The outer facade of Basilica of Bom Jesus
The inside view of the altar of Bom Jesus church in Old Goa
An ornate altar inside the Bom Jesus church
Another close up view of the altar inside Bom Jesus Church
A painting inside the church of Bom Jesus depicting remains of St.Francis Xavier
The next church
that we visited was the Se Cathedral
that is located right across the road, opposite to the Basilica of Bom
Jesus.The
main entrance of the cathedral has Latin inscriptions of Corinthian columns.
Out of the eight chapels in the Church, two have ornamented perforated wooden
screens and remaining six panels have scenes of Saint Catherine’s life carved
on them. This filigree carving gives a royal look to the place. The Chapel of
Blessed Sacrament is famous for decorated wall and ceiling painting. The arches
of the altars are decorated with old paintings. One can also find many small statues,
wooden figures and other artefacts.The
Se Cathedral also holds a huge brass bell called as Golden Bell that is the
largest in Goa. The main altar of the church stands as a dedication of
Catherine of Alexandria.Only a
pictorial representation can do justice to the beauty of this church as well
and you may enjoy the photographs.
A panoramic view of Se Cathedral
View of the altar of Se Cathedral
Close up of the altar in Se Cathedral
One of the statutes inside Se Cathedral
Chapel of Blessed Sacrament inside Se Cathedral
St. Catherine of Alexendria inside Se Cathedral
By
the time we were finished with visiting the Churches, we were totally famished
and being a Tuesday, we had to have a vegetarian food only and hence as advised
by our driver, we headed for Krishna Restaurant to have our lunch, which is in the vicinity in Old Goa. The driver dropped us there and went for
lunch, but thereafter, despite calling on his mobile number umpteen number of
times, it was found to be unreachable and with all the camera equipment in the
car, there was a sense of panic that set in and just as I was about to approach
the local police, the driver came in claiming that his mobile has malfunctioned
and thereafter, we headed back to our service apartment.I am putting this incident on record so that
all those who follow my blog do not leave their costly equipment in their hired
vehicles to avoid unnecessary stress and anxiety.
Family having lunch at Krishna Vegetarian Restaurant
