On the last day, we woke up very early in the morning to visit Candolim and Sinquerim Beach, just to avoid the scorching heat of the sun. The shimmering sea stretched to the horizon. We spent some time savoring the view and then headed to Fort Aguada. Fort Aguada crowns the rocky flattened headland at the end of the beach. Constructed in 1612 to protect the northern shores of the Mandovi estuary from Dutch and Maratha raiders, it served as a reference point for vessels coming from Europe at that time. This old Portuguese fort stands on the beach south of Candolim, at the shore of the Mandovi river. Part of the fort is now turned into Taj Holiday Village, and another part is a prison. It’s worth a visit for the superb view from the top of the hill, where a four-storey Portuguese lighthouse looks down over a vast expanse of sea, sand, and palm trees. While descending the hill, one can see River Nerul. The roads in this part of Goa are really nice and scenic, and I enjoyed the ride as a pillion rider. Undoubtedly, it is the picturesque palm-fringed beaches, scenic coves, sun-kissed sands, and turquoise waters that make Goa one of the world’s premier holiday destinations.
For lunch, we headed to another typical Goan no-frills restaurant this time, ordered chonok and rice, which was enough for two as the portion was big. Well recommended by the guidebook.
One more time, we went to Baga beach to soak ourselves in the turquoise water. Enjoyed thoroughly and headed to the hotel for pack-up as we were leaving that night by bus from Mapusa; a new experience to travel with a sleeper coach night bus.
The sleeper bus was smooth at the beginning but later along the way, we had two blowouts. Needless to say, we were late by 5 hours, and Santanu was forced to work from home the next day.