Just Like That | From sartorial freedom to seafood feasts: Goa’s enduring allure

I don’t know if others feel it, but I am overcome by a sense of soporific abandon every time I land in Goa, as I recently did on a short visit. Suddenly, the sterile protocol, formalities, engagements, and commitments of the metropolises and our daily lives become distant and unimportant. In the balmy breeze of the winter months, when cities like Delhi are freezing and under a pall of smog and pollution, Goa is like an oasis of warmth, clean air and cavalier nonchalance.
There was a time when I was keen to have my own place in Goa. I was seriously pursuing this option, when a friend, who has a second home here, strongly dissuaded me and my wife from doing so. According to her, maintaining a home in this paradise takes away from the pleasure of enjoying it. When you reach your coveted aashiana, your joys are distracted by issues relating to maintenance, repair, and sundry other concerns inevitable when you own property. Besides, you have to pay all year for staff and taxes and deal with meddling and difficult local authorities.
I am aware that some of these issues are now handled by the management of fancy gated villas and condominiums. From the point of investment too, buying a place may be a smart thing to do, since property prices in Goa have seen a dramatic upswing. Such properties can also be a source of substantial rental income almost around the year, and certainly during the peak tourist seasons, which now include the winter and monsoon months. But, on balance, I still felt that unless one has the luxury of spending extended time in this state, buying a property — for me at least — is not a good choice, and nor do I have the kind of money being demanded now even for modest homes.
My commitments in Delhi are such that I can only visit Goa for a week or two in a year. For this, we have found the ideal solution of renting a comfortable villa, in a nice area. Somebody else maintains it, pays for the staff to run it, and provides us with mostly trouble-free service, including food on order, laundry, and household facilities. In this way, for the short time that one is there, with a car on hire, we have a carefree and relaxed holiday.
Over the years, I am surprised how Goa has blossomed to become a culinary delight. Cuisine of truly exceptional quality, if you know the right places to go to, and of all kinds — Goan, Japanese, Chinese, pan-Asian, North and South Indian, and many more varieties, is available in dozens of old and new restaurants. Of course, fresh seafood — fish of all kinds (including river fish if that is your preference), prawns, calamari, squid, mussels, crabs, and lobsters, presented in the most irresistible and innovative ways, is the top attraction. But equally, the number of trendy cafés, and casual eating places, offering an amazing range of snacks and small bites, with an extensive choice of coffees, teas, mocktails and spirits, have sprouted in almost every corner.
The real attraction of Goa is that sartorial informality is the norm here. Immediately on arrival, an attitudinal metamorphosis occurs, as people slip into shorts, gaily printed shirts, and casual footwear. One can go dressed like this to parties and the most expensive restaurants. It is a feeling of liberation, an exhilarating sense of freedom from the constant dilemma of city-life dressing, because nothing you wear—or don’t—matters. It is, simply put, the joy of being who you are, of being comfortable under your own skin.
There was a time when the greatest attraction of Goa was its pristine and serene beaches. They still are, but alas today no longer as they once were. Overcrowding, lack of hygiene and cleanliness, too many oglers, and ugly — and often illegal — encroachments have robbed them of their original appeal. Still, a meal of fresh seafood in the many legendary shacks on the coastline, while sipping a glass of the local brew Feni (which, with apologies to my Goan friends, I have never developed a taste for), while dipping the local Poi bread in a mouthwatering Goan prawn curry, remains, as always, a memorable experience.
No tribute to Goa can be complete without a salute to the Goans themselves, and to the distinctive Indo-Portugese culture that they have nurtured. The churches, and Portugese-style villas, many alas in a sadly dilapidated state, are a treasure trove for those who are interested in history and architecture. Goans are among the nicest, fun-loving, helpful, and caring people. Their love for music, rhythm and dance is effortless and infectious. I recall once when Gulzar Saheb and I were in Goa for a literary event, a group of youngsters took us out for dinner in a private boat for a river cruise. The moment the boat sailed, the guitars were out, and in minutes we were all dancing and singing. Viva Goa!
Pavan K Varma is author, diplomat, and former Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha). Just Like That is a weekly column where Varma shares nuggets from the world of history, culture, literature, and personal reminiscences. The views expressed are personal