Saturday 15th December
There are many beaches and villages along the coast of Goa, similar to what you would find along the Costas in Spain or the Riviera in France, and all of them catering to a growing number of foreign tourists. Some are bigger than others and offer different things to different people. A few of the popular destinations in north Goa seem to be larger and more developed, famous as much for their markets as their beaches. To the south, things are seemingly quieter, but still with a lot of tourist business.
I wanted to check out another beach before meeting up with Pete and the group of people that were coming to spend Christmas on Patnem beach in the very south of Goa. Agonda has a reputation for being a bit more off the beaten track, and therefore with fewer people, even in the peak season (which usually lasts here from December through to the end of March). It sounded like the perfect place to continue my prolonged period of relaxation and attempts to shake off the whiteness of my ghost-like Irish complexion.
Leaving Benaulim at 8am, I got to Agonda with relative ease a few hours later, despite the three buses that I had to catch in order to get there. My first impressions of Agonda were very good: fewer people and less development, with only a single road running parallel to the beach. The red dusted road is lined with palm trees which shelter the guesthouses, restaurants and local houses that run along either side of it.
Despite the relative lack of development, I realised that there was little shortage of accommodation options, not least among the many beach huts – or ‘coco-huts’ as they are called – which met me a few hundred yards from the bus stop. I dropped in on a few places to see what was on offer and what the going rate for accommodation was. After a hot, sweaty walk along the road, I realised that the best option for me was a 200Rs-a-night coco-hut, slap bang on the beach and which would play an important role in helping me to fulfill my ambitions as a proper beach-bum.
The huts were basic, with a double bed, covered in a mosquito net, with a fan above providing welcome cool air during the warmth of the night. These huts are put up every season, and taken down again when the spring comes along and climates in Europe start to improve, and the monsoons in India make the place a washout. It would seem that only the locals and a few die-hard hippies make up the population of Agonda for the remaining eight months of the off-season. There are still places constructing huts, in anticipation of the Christmas rush that may arrive at the start of the week.
The beach itself is beautiful, with the fine, lightly coloured sand stretching out for about 3kms; promontories jut out on either side, covered with palm trees and rocks, and enclosing the beach in what is effectively a small bay. It is a perfect size for a beach, and it never feels too over-crowded, so there is a lot of space between the sun-worshippers, cricket players, kite-flyers, swimmers, walkers and cows at any time of the day. The crowd here is much younger and fitter looking than the wrinklies who dominate the beach further up the coast in Benaulim. Another welcome change is the lack of hawkers trying to sell the ubiquitous textiles and jewellery, so this adds to the sense that you really are getting away from it all here.
After a wonderful swim in the warmest sea I have had the pleasure of swimming in, I went for some food in the ‘Sami’ restaurant, a quiet place right on the beach. Yet another sunset provided the backdrop as I tucked into some very tasty kingfish, which was caught by the local fishermen that day. I felt totally relaxed but also wishing that there were a few more people to share the moment with. Although very grateful to be in such a stunning place as Agonda, I was beginning to look forward very much to seeing Pete and the others a few days later. But for the time being, I knew I would get by just fine on my own.
