MISCELLANEOUS, Goa

This is the explanation I got from a local - "No , no, no - don't do it. Land and property belongs to designees of state government and cannot be legally deeded over to foreigners"

So my advise is be very careful. It is very difficult to understand / negotiate around local laws, so keep your life uncomplicated.

Goa's British residents also feel that getting or renewing an Indian visa has become much more difficult since the UK government reversed its visa policy towards highly skilled migrants from India two years ago. New Delhi, they believe, is playing tit for tat. "They've got us like a puppet on a string," said Tracy a resident British national. "My whole life depends on my visa. But if you have a British passport, at best you get a one-year visa. And to get it renewed you've to keep flying back to London, and beg on bended knees. Even then they make you feel you've done something wrong."

The British community in Goa is still trying to recover from the shock of the rape and murder of 15-year-old Devon teenager Scarlett Keeling in February.

"I know there's nastiness and corruption in every society, but this goes beyond that," said Hillary, another British lady living in Goa. "This was evil. And evil strips away every vestige of Goa being a jolly place. When something like that happens you think, what sort of society have I chosen to live in? There's a definite feeling in the expat community now that Goa has had its day. The golden days are over. Many people feel it's time to move on."

Hillary said she knows six English couples running restaurants in Goa who have shut up shop and gone away. Another British couple who had opened a small hotel and restaurant 12 years ago that had grown into a profitable business recently sold their business to a Delhi company and left.

India is not encouraging foreign nationals spending their retired lives in India.. so be careful when you consider a long term stay in this country.

If you are one of the lucky few who have descended to Goan earth from the sky, to be swiftly borne to your Hotel by cab, you will see none of the dirt and grime that seems to be such an integral part of India.

If, however, you disembark at the Bus Stand or Railway Station, be prepared to see the universal filth that is associated with urbanisation anywhere in India : there is uncleaned garbage piled up in corners, the platforms themselves are dusty and covered with litter and yes....er, spit. ( it is a sorry fact of life that Indians are addicted to spitting in public places, often after chewing tobacco with betel leaf, called paan ). Occassionally there is also some kind of stench emanating from nearby.........

These are the main handicaps that tourists have to bear. Being familiar aspects of their own daily lives, Indian citizens are able to disregard them, but I do admit that they can be shocking to first-time foreign tourists.

The State Government is well aware of this fact and periodically puts up hoardings exhorting its citizens to 'Keep Goa Clean' and Goa's Schools and Colleges routinely carry out cleaning drives annually, but nothing seems to work.

To some extent it is true that these dirtying habits are not 'native' to Goa and that the large amount of filth has come into the State along with migrant labour, in addition to the extensive use of plastic and other disposables, in this last decade. The 'Use and throw' culture has caught on, to the detriment of our environment.

Goa has this effect on everybody : it's welcome is so whole-hearted, that it assimilates everybody who comes here!

Goa is as safe as any other place in this world! its upto us to exercise necessary precaution when we r travelling. If u go looking for trouble you are sure to find it like this stupid woman who left her teenage daughter in the care of a person who she barely knew! add drugs and alcohol to that and you set yourself up for disaster.Ofcourse the system is not foolproof and the police are corrupt but i can assure you from personal experience that Goa is a great place for a beach holiday if you r there for the right reasons.

I did want to mention that we all appreciate clean surroundings and especially so when we travel. We loved the beaches of south Goa and more so as these were so very clean mostly. I did notice some bottles of beer and empty cigarette and chips packets. Please do ensure you carry an extra packet for waste and deposit in the nearest garbage bin or at your hotel.

I know for a fact that some communities in India, do not eat food from kitchens where non-veg food is cooked, due to religious reasons. So if you are a vegetarian and you eat from totally veg restaurants please ask your waiter at the restaurant since most of the restaurant will have seafood and non-veg cuisine.

Goa is a lovely place to laze away and spend hours on the beach just doing that, i guess the locals believe that too. So in the afternoon from 1 pm to 4 pm is Siesta time and all shops are shut during that time. If you plan to go shopping during that time please think again coz u will find all the shutters down.

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As expected, the roads in Goa are rough (to say the least!)
If travelling to a country like India, I'm sure most of us don't expect smooth highways - it's a fact of life and people simply live with it.
Holes, bumps, tight corners, crowded roundabouts and crazy drivers.

You'll also notice many cows leisurely crossing the street, not letting the screaming & horn-beeping of the drivers bother them at all - as well as lying fast asleep on the side of the road!
There are also numerous dogs that run around in packs, and also choose to doze-off on the side of the road.

Although we had some extremely close encounters, the drivers seem to do very well with avoiding the animals that share the asphalt with them... I guess it's not so much because of their "love to animals", I could imagine it's more the fear of seriously damaging their cars, tuck-tucks, etc.

If you want to find out about how to help the animals in Goa (and about how we chose to help during a day-trip), click here...


Scooters/motorbikes are widely available for rent, at good prices. But unless you trust yourself and others on the roads; play it safe and take a taxi. During my short stay I met at least 4 tourists on crutches and in bandages that had been involved in some scooter-related road accident!