Day 4 - Goa, India

 Mariner of the Seas approaches the port of Goa, India

These questions were asked over and over by our curious cruisers, “What is there to see in Goa? And always, “Where can I get rupees?”

The answers also came back the same, “You must see the churches and the beaches.” The question of where to get rupees elicited a short pause, quick thought and then the answer, “you can go to ATM machine”.

Here is something you may or may not know already but it was news to me, Goa or Mormugao as it is also called was a Portuguese overseas province for over 450 years. You are able to run into people today (ok, it was yesterday) that still wish that Portugal was in change of things.

Just about to dock

I had associated the British as being the ones that kind of ran things for a long time in India but I guess that is recent history because way before all of that in ancient times there were the Greeks, Romans, Jew, Arabs and Chinese then in 1503 the Portuguese Empire slipped in to be the first European colonizer.

One can still find a little bit of Lisbon still clinging to the architecture and ways of life, which do include an afternoon siesta. (Everyone say yes to that custom.) Just outside of the city in Old Goa you will find a collection of grandiose churches among them the Basilica de Bom Jesus, St. Catherine’s Cathedral and the Church of St. Cajetan.

 Dancers that arrived to entertain the arriving cruisers

Or if you would rather just do nothing at all then toss down your beach towel anywhere on the white sandy beaches, enjoy the shade of a palm tree and just a hint of spicy curry in the air to sooth your senses.

Some of our cruisers are leaving the ship here in Goa to take a three-day/ two-night overland trip to see the Taj Mahal. They will rejoin us when the ship gets to Cochin.

Shhh, this is secret, but I heard they have life-size photos of famous people that can be rolled out that you can stand with to have your photo taken with the Taj in the background. Don’t tell anyone.

Cruis Stats: Dubai to Goa 1,278 nautical miles, total 11,784 nautical miles since Galveston, Tx.