“The landscapes that look as green as if they are painted freshly by a painter who brings life to its art; the cloudy sky and the dewy leaves, the terrifying sound of the Dhudhsagar waterfalls and the never-ending avenue stretching along the sandy beaches that are washed away with crazy monsoon sea waves… ” this is how the world’s favourite beach destination looks like in monsoon. And who wouldn’t wish to run away to enjoy such offbeat Goa!! Goa is unarguably much more beyond just its beaches.
Search Results
A walk through Fontainhas, A Colourful Portuguese Colony of Goa -Photostory
The state of Goa is certainly blessed with amazing geographic location along with variety in culture and architecture. The state was once a Portuguese colony and still has many beautiful reminiscent of the Portuguese era. One of such places is located in the capital city of Panjim. Fontainhas area, near Ourem Creek in Panjim, has the Latin quarters of the Portuguese colonists. Portuguese Architecture can thus, best be relished in Fontainhas Goa, a Portuguese Colony in Goa. Read more
Visit these Ancient and Famous Temples in Goa
Temples?? And Goa??? Sounds quite contradictory …. Doesn’t it? But Goa is not just about Portuguese architecture, beaches, parties, and churches. The colorful temples in Goa have their own charm. Their unique architecture provides you a glimpse of Goa’s old Indian religious life. I rode on for the temple run across the Ponda region of Goa and was really amazed by its beauty and serenity.
The common feature of most of the temples is colorful interiors, kund (water tank) and Deepa Stambha ( Lamp Tower). These temples in Goa must not be missed during your offbeat trip.
Here are some beautiful and famous temples of Goa that you must Visit
The Big Foot Museum in Goa – The Lost Goan Culture
If you think Goa is just about beautiful beaches then probably you are wrong. Goa has rich culture beyond just the Portuguese and French colonies and traditions. Unfortunately the real Goa, before it was transformed by the French and Portuguese, can now only be seen in museums. One such beautiful museum showcasing the tradition and culture of Goan people is the Big-foot Museum. Read more
Ocean Deck Homestay Karwar : An Ecofriendly Homestay in India
Inspired by Shivya Nath’s posts on responsible travel and the importance of choosing an eco-friendly homestay, I took this pledge of opting for only homestays in the year 2020. Trust me, it was way more difficult to search for a perfectly eco-friendly homestay in India. After going through almost a hundred websites, I finally found Ocean Deck Beach Homestay for my road trip from Bangalore to Goa. This lovely home of Mr. Vinay seemed to me like a dream home that I could never own. Soothing tranquillity, enchanting music of the sea waves interrupted by the sound of the local birds and a pleasant ambience combined with natural living at Ocean Deck Homestay was an experience in itself.
Sometimes, you may go to a place to tick off the list of must-see attraction but the homes like this make you want to practice the art of doing nothing. Or let us name it as an ‘art of soaking in nature’. Read more
Chennakesava Temple Somanathapura – A Handy Photo Guide
The Chennakesava Temple of Somanathapura, built during the rule of the Hoysala Dynasty of Karnataka, illustrates the prolific skills of the sculptors of that era. It is a sheer exhibition of Hindu scriptures moulded in lifelike sculptures. For an artist, it is a temple where the creators left behind an art gallery for the generations to come. Even for a layman, it would have been a school to grasp the unwritten mythology through an easy pictorial representation. Historians claim it to be an artwork that led Hoysalas to the zenith of their architectural glory. This ornately chiselled ancient temple of India is located near Mysore and is also accessible from Bangalore by road.
Being a non-functional temple, it opens only at 8:30 am and closes down before the sun sets by 5:30 pm. On any weekend it would be a sea of humans in the temple complex. However, weekdays are quiet and only a handful of tourists come for a visit here. We went on Thursday noon and we were around 10 people on the premise at any given time. We took about two and a half hours to completely understand the stories depicted in each sculpture. Read more
Madhukeshwara Temple of Banavasi, Your Detailed Handy Guide
“Oh dear Lord, let me be born again in Banavasi, if not as a human then maybe as a honeybee. Let me over the flowery fields surrounding this beautiful land.” – Adikavi Pampa.
The Banavasi village is still a less explored place, the beauty of which has inspired the works of many ancient poets. A belief also persists that Mahakavi Kalidasa was inspired to create ‘Meghdoot’ by the beauty of Banavasi. Dramatically set around the Historic Madhukeshwara Temple, Banavasi looks like a movie set in the land where Varada River flows on both its sides.
The quiet and often misty lanes of Banavasi are flanked by old-styled and yet aesthetically neat houses. The ancient walled fort dating back to the 5th Century now lies in ruins veiled by bushes and trees. The town of Banavasi also finds its traces in the work of Claudius Ptolemy. (the one who created the first world map) Read more
12 Things to Do in Gokarna; A Detailed Guide
Famously known as South Goa’s neglected cousin, Gokarna is also loved for the very same reason. Sprawling beaches, the bliss of nature, the tranquility of countryside areas and the mélange of cultures attract travelers and hippies from around the world to Gokarna. We visited Gokarna for around 3 days on a road trip from Bangalore. Though beach hopping would be the main thing to do in Gokarna, you would be startled at the list of the other interesting things that you can do in this religious town of Karnataka in India.
This page contains the list of things do in Gokarna and places to visit along with a detailed guide on cost for the same or how to reach a particular spot. Keep reading to enlist the places and activities for your exploratory trip to Gokarna.
If you have no clue about ‘what, where and why’ of Gokarna, then read this detailed guide to plan your trip to Gokarna
10 Things to do in Udupi for an Interesting Experience
The moment we hear the name ‘Udupi’ , a spiritual town image pops up in the display screen of our mind. And at the same time, our foody mind scrolls through all the possible images of Udupi sambhar, vada, idli, and dosa. But this little town has one more image of it to show you. With a number of amazing beaches, you can prepare an unending list of places to visit and things to do in Udupi.
A few of the beaches in Udupi are as beautiful as the beaches in the islands of Andaman. In fact. the St. Mary’s Island in Udupi can definitely give you a feel of being in Andaman. Unlike the beaches of Goa and other famous tourist towns, the beaches in Udupi are clean and well maintained. In fact, while in Goa, I totally avoided the crowded beaches and instead opted for the exploration of Museums, spice plantation, Portuguese colonies and the temples of Goa.
But Udupi was altogether a different experience. Read more
5 Must-do Road Trips from Bangalore – Self Drive Adventures
Bangalore lies at the center of a fascinating region – where green mountains blend into the arid Deccan plateau – a land of lush forests and dramatic coastlines. There are many not-so-popular destinations, known locally but seldom mentioned in the traditional itinerary. With the easy availability of self-drive cars, one can plan a weekend road trip to these unique destinations very quickly. Here are some top recommendations for the road trips from Bangalore.