The serious lapse in the journal updates this year is because of our staying in Benaulim. We do little touring as we have seen much of the area during our other trips. We did find that staying in one place for 3 months is too long. Our plan for the future is to travel for 6 weeks and then stay in one place for 6 weeks or so. Nevertheless, we thoroughly are enjoying this change in our pattern and it allows Barbara to work on editing her book on line as we have very good access to the internet. Staying in one place also gives us a very different perpspective on village life. We become privy to the local gossip, issues, politics etc. Goans fiercely defend their territory. The do not like "foreigners" (read Indians from other states) to set up businesses. So we heard that some of the shacks that were set up along the beach and sold souvenirs were burned or torn down by locals. Also, Goa is trying to restrict the sale of land to non-Goans and have tried to prevent Kashmiris from setting up stalls to sell their rugs and jewellery. That seems to be in flux and the Kahmiris we spoke to said that it won't work because they are Indians and have a right to work (and buy land) anywhere in India. After all, Goans are not prevented from working or buying land in other part of India.
Goans also have the reputation among some of the beach shack owners as being lazy and so the beach shacks have hired workers from other parts of India like Orissa. Nepalese also are employed as cooks and waiters. The other belief is that they are not lazy but think of being a waiter in a beach shack as demeaning and do not want their neighbours to see them doing that kind of work. So Goans go to work in some of the Gulf resorts. Dubai is a very popular destination. They also work the cruise ships and many of the young males we have talked to hope for a job on a cruise ship. However, it seems that costly bribes are involved any many cannot afford it.
While this has been a slower season for many of the hotels here there is much building going on. Not as much here but to the north and south of us. Palolem which is south and was a sleepy village two years ago now has wall to wall beach shacks and everyone who has been there says it is chaotic. Palolem is where the latest in the "Bourne" series was filmed with Matt Dillon. I doubt that this would be a major factor in it's popularity but it is a possibility. After all, there is now a route that tourists take that was inspired by the movie Sideways.
As for us we have a very busy social calendar. We have met quite a number of very nice people. There is a British couple who run an inn in the south of France and we are trying to arrange a house exchange with them. They are a very enthusiastic couple who tour the area on a motorcycle and really don't like the beach but love the area. The have an interesting quirk; when they relate an anecdote or give information about anything, they both speak at the same time and but give different information. It was quite disconcerting at first but we became accustomed to it and were able to listen to both views at the same time. An interesting new talent we have developed but will likely have limited use in the future unless they visit us or we them. We also spent time with an Irish couple from the north of Ireland. He is an antique furniture refinisher so I learned some of the trick of finishing from him. A virus destroyed some of the nerve endings in his middle ear (we were told) and he cannot stand or move without a cane. He reels as if he were drunk unless he is heavily leaning on his cane or stands with his back against a wall. Then there is another British couple who also live in France. They grow all their own vegetables, live on a shoestring and have travelled extensively over the past twenty or so years. He works as a Grip on movie sets and we are told earns gobs of money. He works only enough to earn what they need, which appears to be little. They are a charming couple and are fun and interesting to be with. Both they and the Irish couple believe that Princess Diana was murdered and have the "facts" to back up their belief. It seems that there is a large group of Brits that believe in a conspiracy that involves the royal family to get rid of Diana.
Cricket fever has taken hold here. The world cup is now being played and all the restaurants have a TV tuned to the match being played. They advertise "big screen" but what they mean is "flat screen" as they are only about 23" or so. Cricket is a serious game here and national pride is associated with success. So when India lost to Sri Lanka there were riots in various parts of India. The team captain was given police protection. Posters of the team player were defaced. In Pakistan an even more disgraceful loss. They lost to the Irish a "minnow" team, meaning that the Irish is not a team expected to win but are given a chance to play in the majors to gain experience with top teams. This was a disgraceful loss. The team coach was found dead in his hotel room. Scotland Yard was called in and said that he was murdered by strangulation. The team is being questioned as are others connected with the sport.
Well that's it for now. I thought in closing that I would give a description of some of the dishes we eat. These descriptions are the ones we got when we queried a waiter.
Johncy Special Chicken - it's green and red
Chicken Cafrael - not spicy
Kadai Chicken - spicy
Chicken Tangdi - has a bone
Murg Muglai - white sauce
Handi Chicken - brown sauce
Kollapuri Murg - very spicy
|
