Lazy Arab

Well, we have been very lazy in our last 3 days of this holiday, especially me as I have hardly ventured out of our room other than for some meals and when they clean the room. Claire has spent a long time by the pool but it is so hot I can’t explain. There is no breeze as buildings surround the pool on all sides. The ground seems to reflect the heat and it feels like an oven to me. It feels so much hotter than even out walking in the streets. I did spend a half morning, as promised with Claire by the pool but it felt like torture. Once back in our room I’m happy again with the aircon, tv and comfy bed and settee.

This is our new favourite laundrette called (it has no name but is opposite Soul Vacation in Colva); they are very cheap, good quality and the quickest in South Goa. It is a little family run place and two boys seem to be the main men there. Also a big thanx to Anthony and his family for the motor bike again. As their little dog has no name and they asked us if we had an idea of a name for him we suggested “Mish Mar” after our favourite beach Shack. I don’t know if it will stick but will find out if we ever come back. In fact, even though we get our lunch in at Soul Vacation, we decided to go back to Mish Mar in Majorda for one more lunch and spend our last day there. There are so few people around now that the sellers are so bored and have so few people to go around they are back to you 10 minutes after they were there before. Claire had promised Lilly of the Valley or “Shell girl” as I call her that she could do her nails. Here she is doing them and also the final result; not bad eh!

One last thank you to our best beach shack in South Goa 2009 the Mish Mar (www.mishmargoa.com). We have stocked up with plenty of cold drinks to watch qualifying at the Barain GP so must get ready for that now. Still haven’t heard who won the election but if the result comes in before I post or get pissed I will pass it on. Unfortunately, I will miss the actual GP tomorrow as we will be in transit but maybe I can watch the rerun.

It’s a bit of an odd title for this last entry from Goa but this place(Shalam) is so Arabic in the attitude and food and we are right at the end of the season and all the workers are ready to go home for a couple of months and nobody wants to work anymore. Quite different to when you come at the beginning of the season when it is buzzing. Well I hope Goa gets more tourists next year as it has been a bad one for them this year. It started off miserable as they had the Mumbai terrorist thing and a world recession. One local told me that in his estimation there were 80% Russian tourists here this year, which seems the way it has been going for quite a few years now. The vast majority used to be British but not any more.

Really not sure how long it will be until we come back here again as we have seen all there is to see and been everywhere we like now. There is only really the North that we haven’t explored too well, although we have been to all the main places along the coast. Our minds turn to home and what has happened there without us; is our house sale still going through or will we be stuck in the Kebab flat forever. If it does still go through I don’t need to look for a job straight away and it might give us a chance to get the property ladder working again. We have a week upon our return to finish the Oldbrook flat off for Harriet and Shane anyway and Claire doesn’t even need to do the washing and ironing upon our return. Goodbye Goa, we don’t know when we will be back. If there are any people surfing Goa blogs we have lots more info on our very first blog, www.philandclaireingoa.blogspot.com where we spent almost 4 months here and around.

One last ps. Remember our entry when we watched an illegal buffalo fight in Benolim? Well they have now passed a law in Goa and it is finally legal for buffaloes to watch a football match.