From Hampi, we took a 14-hour bus ride to Goa. Everyone talks about the beautiful beaches in Goa...the nature, the sunsets, the fresh seafood. We spent a total of 8 hours in Goa, and only because we were flying from Goa to the north of India. Essentially, it was a "day-over" in Goa.
To make the most out of our 8 hours in Goa, it was important that we got some sleep on our long bus-ride. So we bought the most expensive, luxurious bus tickets. We expected that the bus would be clean, comfortable, safe and on time. We had obviously learned nothing.
We ended up in the weirdest bus ever. It was a bus with no seats, which just had mats on the floor. It was cold. The mats were dirty. The road was winding all the way. We were not comfortable at all.
To add to this difficult sleeping situation, we had no idea when we needed to stop, and we definitely did not trust the driver to tell us. All we knew was that we should get off the bus about 14 hours after we got on. We were therefore in a constant state of stress, trying to figure out where we were and if our stop was coming up. The road around us was pitch black so we had to use the stars to figure out our location. Jeremy managed to fall asleep. Alina did not. In the middle of the night, Jeremy sat up, looked around, and said "We are here!" and then proceeded to fall back asleep.
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| Jeremy chilling in the bus |
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| Alina's version of chilling in the bus. She looks happy |
4 hours after Jeremy's premonition, we got restless and decided that we were probably in Goa. So, when the bus stopped, we got off. We found ourselves on a highway, in the dark, in the middle of nowhere. Alina's stomach grumbles.....
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We had no idea where to go but we figured that, if we were in Goa, we should be able to find a beach within a few kilometers. So we called an Uber and it took us to the beach. JUST KIDDING! We started walking aimlessly and then a car stopped and offered to drive us to the beach.
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| Camping on the beach |
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| Bogmalo Beach at dawn |
And, around dawn, we found ourselves on the beaches of Goa, Jeremy went for a run, a little boy tried to outrun him, and the 2 ended up going for a jog together. Our grand plan was to spend the 8 hour day-over napping on the beach and spending money on some delicious fish instead of a hotel. This didn't happen. It turned out that the bus ordeal would be the more the enjoyable part of the trip for Alina. As soon as we arrived at Bogmalo Beach, Alina decided that she was sick, checked into a hotel room (unfortunately, it was not possible to just rent out a bathroom for the day)...In the meantime Jeremy had a feast and chilled on the beach. But you don't want to hear about that, so back to Alina who .... and then .. some more... and then emerged in time for the flight.
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"I found my bathing suit!"
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| Jeremy taking care of poor Alina |
We successfully made it to the airport though, and off to the North of India! Next stop: Udaipur.
Jeremy and Alina,
When You Gotta Goa, You Just Gotta Goa
