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Showing posts from October, 2023

Goa - Part 2 - Zambaulim, Lord Damodar's Holy Abode

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Zambaulim  is a village in South Goa, Quepem Taluk, 22 KM from Margao. This place is famous for Shri Damodar Temple which is located on the bank of Kushawati river. The temple houses an incarnation of Lord Shiva, the deity of as Lord Damodar. Goans fondly call him "Dambappa". It belongs to the GSB community ( Gowda Saraswath Brahmins) and there are accommodation facilities made available in the temple premises for community members only.   We had booked our stay for two nights here. As mentioned in my earlier blog( link ), we reached Margao via KTC bus from Vasco at around 11:30 AM. . At Margao  bus stand, we inquired if there is a bus to  Zambaulim  and there wasn’t any for another hour. So asked for a taxi outside Margao bus terminal and one taxi driver agreed to drop us to  Zambaulim  for Rs. 1000. So we agreed since we didn’t want to miss the 12:30 PM aarti at Shri Damodar temple.   Journey from Margao to  Zambaulim  is very scenic with lush green fields and calm breeze w

Goa - Part 1 - Exploring Vasco, Port City of Goa

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I have been visiting Goa almost every year since my childhood since we have our Kuldevata temples in Goa and have explored some beaches along with old Goa Churches too. But this time, I had planned my trip with an intention of exploring some offbeat places and to let people know that there is so much see in Goa beyond beaches. I had planned a week long itinerary and we started our exploration with Vasco city. Vasco da Gama also commonly known as Vasco is a city in Goa named after the Portuguese Explorer Vasco Da Gama. This is one of the oldest towns of Goa and used to be an important Port during the Portuguese reign.   We had booked our stay at La-Paz Gardens Beacon for 2 nights and I must say this is the property if you want to explore Vasco all by yourself since this is located at the heart of the city. All important transport links – Vasco Railway Station, KTC bus stand, Auto/taxi stand all are at walking distance from this property. And even stay is quite luxurious. We really had a