Arambol
Trip Start
Nov 15, 2007
1
10
16
Trip End
Jan 22, 2008
Goa,
Goa,
India
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
'Here on Lamuella, the days were just a little over twenty-five hours long, which basically meant an extra hour in bed every single day. It was not merely reassuringly like earth, it was actually rather an improvement' - Mostly Harmless, Douglas Adams
This summed up the place (and indeed Arambol) perfectly. Arambol is a place where when you ask people how long they've been there, they look all apologetic when they tell you it's only been a month so far (They usually then proudly tell you how much their accommodation is costing - often in pence - and claim not to mind sharing their room with rats and 'roaches.)
It's not all good though. Arambol is, well, a bit messy and also smelly in parts. And despite it's Portuguese history and the Goans' fierce independance (they don't see themselves as Indian) there's all the usual Indian chaos. Now, this wasn't a great problem for me as I live in Walthamstow (the dirt and whiffiness reminded me of home). However, Stephan lives in Zurich and Mercer Consulting currently has it down as the Best City In The World To Live In (http://www.citymayors.com/features/quality_survey.html). So anywhere else is going to be a disappointment. Here's a tip kids - live in a shithole and you'll enjoy your holidays more.
I'd love to tell you about all the fun things we did in Arambol but it's now 10th January and I can't remember much from November (or even from 9th January). Maybe I'll update this when some of it returns to me.
I do remember not going clubbing in some place that I can't remember the name of due to Stephan having a mild case of Delly Belhi (or at least the local version of it, called Goa To The Toilet More Than You Normally Would. This is due to my conviction that Delly Belhi occurs partially due to lack of sleep and stress weakening the immune system and that doesn't really apply in Goa).
I remember the food at Lamuella being absolutely excellent (as the guide puts it: 'cooked to delicious perfection').
Another thing: while we all associate Goa with the mid-nineties beach party scene (even having a musical genre named after it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goa_trance) that's all gone now as the Goan authorities decided they didn't like all those crusty raver types showing up in their fractal print t-shirts and dreadlocks making a mess of the place. So now they have strict rules about amplified music and parties and stuff so it's all a little more low key.
However there was a bit of an obsession with Pink Floyd. On one particular evening, I heard in different establishments five or six songs in a row (including an English bank doing a punk cover of Have A Cigar) and one of the bars is even called Pink Floyd. One local alleged that the reason for this is that the travellers of the seventies left their Pink Floyd tapes at the bars and they've never bothered to buy anything new. Sounds like grade-A bullshit to me but what do I know, eh? I think the Goans just appreciate good music.
Struggling a bit now. We must have done SOMETHING in Arambol but I think most of that something was nothing and I can't remember anything. You probably don't want to read about nothing so I'll stop now.
