It was very hot yesterday. Definitely the heat notched up a few degrees. We spent the day at Salida and on the beach in Patnem. Probably I overdid the heat and underdid the water because I woke up this morning with a headache and leg cramps. Took one of Mr Pai the Druggist’s super strength paracetamol and went back to sleep.
Anyway, whilst overdoing it, had a most enjoyable day. Lots of swims and the water was super clear. The sea is odd here. The bottom is very fine sand all the way, there are no rocks or pebbles, and I guess it must be like that for miles out to sea. There are ridges in the sand and as you walk out to depth, you go up and down a bit…. The odd thing is, you will be out floating and bobbing in a perfectly calm sea and then, suddenly, and without any seeming causation, two or three great breakers will come in. No idea what causes them, it’s definitely not wind and no boats are in sight to cause wake. And they break at depth, not near the shore where normal waves break. So.… they often “get you”….. I have learned over the years not to swim in a hat, wear sunglasses and to secure my jewellery (and swimsuit). I’ve lost all of those things to the rogue waves, plus a toe ring and a watch. Any oceanographers out there who can suggest what’s going on????
Last night our posse went back to the beach and ate at Tantra: Bob and five ladies!!!! Our friend, Mark’s, band, The GoaTs were playing live there. We really like them. Generally Mark and his fellow guitarist play an acoustic folky set first which is excellent and the highlight for us. Then they are joined by Matthew, a vocalist, for a rock set from the 60s and 70s. Last night they also had a drummer which was good. The musicians play that set equally as well as the acoustic set. In their break a guest musician came on a played a short set on the didgeridoo. I really like the didgeridoo and it was quite evocative hearing it played under the stars like that. Apparently this man and his wife have been out playing the Goan beaches this season. She plays a 40 inch gong!!!!! I had to laugh just imagining them rocking up on a Ryanair flight: him with his didgeridoo and her with this massive gong!!!!
So, once my headache had dispersed this morning, Bob and I had breakfast at Eve’s and then sat out on our balcony. It was heavenly up in the trees, shaded and with a lovely breeze. I am reading a book called “Patronising Bastards” by Quentin Letts. Its absolutely excellent and spot on his political observations. If you are someone who cringes at the spectacle of the likes of Tony Blair, Nick Clegg and Dominic Grieve, I highly recommend it.
Tonight we went to a quiz at Royal Italy in the Ourem district of Palolem. Mark goes every week and Bob, Gloria and I made up a team of 6 with him, and another couple, John and Penny. The food there was very good. Gloria had a veggie pizza which was amazing. I had fig, chicken, couscous, spinach and veg salad. Bob had a cheeseburger and chips. Delicious. The quiz was great fun. Four rounds of 10 questions and a picture round. We actually won but because Mark’s team had won three times before (even though it was a different team that just happened to have Mark in it) the quizmaster decided to impose a 2 mark penalty on us, so we came second. Riddle me that, Batman!!! Apparently if we go back again next week we will be allowed to win, so thanks for that.
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