Rivona caves The river Khusavati that follows by Rivona, indicates that it was a location for early civilization, given the proximity of the rock cravings found near at Usgalimal. Of particular interest is the presence of the rock cut caves at Rivona, among the cultivation of arecanut trees. The origin of the caves is either credited to the Buddhist …

Agonda beach, a beach for Olive Ridley turtles Personally, I feel that there is no such thing as a secret hidden beach in Goa any longer. The more the beaches have got discovered, the more they may have got destroyed with the rampant commercial tourist activity. It’s a hard truth and let me present to you the Agonda beach to drive my point home. I be …

Sri Gomantak Tirupati Balaji Temple, Ponda Just after the Kundaim Insdustrial Estate, at a left turn around a kilometer away, towards Margao leads to one of the temples not yet on the touristic circuit but none the less deserving of all the attention. The winding inner road takes one to a quiet oasis of the Sri Gomantak Tirupati Balaji Temple. The Ba …

The Japanese garden for panoramic sea view and tiny bay beach Go to Japanese garden, in the locality of the Mormugao Port Trust colony, but not for the garden itself. Oddly, there is nothing even remotely Japanese about the garden. Local hearsay indicates it is a local name that was given because years ago the signboard that was first installed ther …

Visit the Zambaulim temple in Sanguem during the Gulal festival The Shree Ramnath Damodar Devasthan at the Zambaulim temple is dedicated to Lord Damodar who is believed to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva. The temple had been shifted from Margao between 1565 to 1567, due to the destruction by the then Portuguese rulers during Inquisition. In its plac …

Mormugao Fort, yet to be on the tourist grid. As you drive up from Vasco city towards the Mormugao Port Trust (MPT), you can turn into the main entrance (on your right) of the office of the MPT. A few meters away,from the parking lot, is a section of the Mormugao Fort that is accessible from here, offering one a sweeping views of the Mormugao Harbou …

Usgalimal, the writing on the floor. A few kilometers from Rivona, in the Pirla village lie the Usgalimal petrogylphs or simply understood as rock bruising (craving with a sharp tool). One has to get off the main road on to a dirt track for around 2 kilometers to reach the stone floor on the banks of the Kushvati river at Usgalimal. Though the local …

Heart shaped quarry at Marmugao The Mormugao taluka holds the lone Dabolim airport, the Vasco Harbour, the Vasco da Gama Railway terminal and the bus terminals at the city for outstation travel. One can say it is indeed the connection of Goa to the rest of the world. The heart shaped lake lies here, but actually it is not a lake at all. The taluka is …

Surla Tar Mosque and Tank at Dharbondora. If one refers to the older maps of Goa, the Surla Tar Mosque will probably show as being located in Bicholim. However, since 2011 and the remapping of the state of Goa, the Mosque named after the Surla-Tar area it is located in, falls in the Dharbondora taluka. As in the Safa Masjid at Ponda, the Surla Tar Mo …

Safa Shahouri Masjid, an Oasis of serenity. Just at the outskirts to the city of Ponda from Panaji, on the left hand side, lies the Safa Shahouri Masjid, one of the oldest mosques in Goa. It was built in the 16 th century by the Muslim Rulers of the Bijapur dynasty. There is a debate that the Safa Shahouri Masjid was built either by Ibrahim Adil Shah …