Goa Day 2 Itinerary – Beach And Cafe Exploration

If you’ve landed on the Goa Day 2 blog, you might want to go through Goa’s Day 1 Itinerary first. I’ve shared the flight price, hotel cost, things to consider before travelling to Goa and so much more. You won’t regret reading it, I promise. 

And once you do, you’d know how sleep wrapped its loving arms around me towards the end of Day 1, cradling me in a tranquil embrace. But. BUT… Boy, it was short-lived. 

Incident: Scary or Scarier – Decide Yourself 

I was sleeping like a log, until suddenly, out of nowhere, absolutely nowhere, a loud noise shattered the silence of the night.

It was a sound like no other; a sound as loud as a hundred windows breaking down at once. My eyes shot open (HAD TO). My friend (who was as shaken and disoriented as I was) looked at me – baffled. 

While we both waited, looking for further sounds; all I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating wildly in my chest. We called for help and tried to find the source of the noise. Couldn’t. We scanned the entire house but couldn’t figure anything out. Just couldn’t.

The Horror! The Horror!

Heena Ganotra, you Guys, She Keeps Herself Entertained 

I didn’t know what to think so I thought maybe De Villas (the absolutely beautiful Villa we booked for 3 Nights and 4 Days) was possessed and the ghosts that lived here wanted us all to leave.

I spent an hour thinking about this, convincing my friends to leave the place. When I looked at the clock, I was secretly disappointed that it wasn’t 3:33 AM. Damnit. 

I lost my chance of narrating a paranormal story. In fact, I was only an arm’s length away from a funny story in the making. Literally.

While we were rummaging through the entire Villa for a clue, the culprit was hiding in our washroom.

Cream colour. Brown edges. Near the basin. In pieces. There it was!

One of the tiles. It had fallen from the wall.  

Scary or Funny or Scary or…

The memory of the sharp sound still lingers in my mind. My thoughts about the ghosts, however, make me laugh. I don’t believe in them until things like these happen to me. Haha 😛 In such cases, Hanuman Chalisa flows out of my mouth like a river streaming forth from a mountain, powerful and unstoppable in its course, carrying with it a sense of spiritual connection, especially when this line, “Bhoot Pisach nikat nahi aave, Mahavir jab naam sunaave!” comes.

Are you a Hanuman Chalisa believer too? Do let me know in the comments, please. It’s a way for me to know that my words are being heard; that they are not being pulled into the black hole of nothingness; that they make sense. And if they don’t, I am open to criticism. 🙂

Anyhow…

Goa Day 2 Morning: De Villas 

…the night went well and I woke up feeling excited to explore the BEST-EST-PERFECT-EST-SO-SOOTHING-I-CAN’T-FIND-WORDS-TO-EXPRESS-MY-LOVE-FOR-THIS-PLACE-NAMED-GOAAAA.

But because it was a Monday Morning, I just wanted to stay in bed, and practice my ideal life (the one I’ve described in the About Section) – 

…I want to listen to my body, fall asleep when the moon is high, and wake up slowly, with no place to rush off to. I want not to be governed by money or clocks or any of the artificial restraints that humanity imposes on itself.

Ah, the pleasure of living this life for the entire week. A weeeeeeeek. The fun was about to begin.

And good food sort of sets the tone of the experience right. So I ordered some food and ate in my pyjamas which I never get to do on Mondays. NEVER. I am also one of the lucky ones to have never experienced Monday Blues (because I absolutely love my job) but there’s no denying the fact that I’m always rushing to get to office. This week was about to be different! And so much more calm.

Key Takeaways If You Plan Your Goa Trip

1. Be A Snail, Go Slow

All our lives, we run after something or the other. Good marks, good college, good partner, good career, good kids. But what’s good? Who defined good? Believe me, average is good. Slow is good.

Insight: Much after the sun had slowly crept up from beneath the horizon, I rubbed the ever-precious, delicate sleep from my eyes in slow-motion. It felt like magic. Not kidding!

2. Keep Your Expectations Low

There are a hundred thousand things to explore in Goa and you would never be able to experience them all, even if you start living here. Pick one or two (max three) things in a day and tick them off. You won’t anyway be able to cover more. 

Insight: All I covered on Day 2 was Artjuna Cafe and Anjuna Beach. And I am not a loser. I almost always win at life. 

3. Let Your Happiness Flow

Be so happy that people are happy to see you happy; out of sheer intrigue. And happiness, my friends, is contagious.

Insight: All throughout the trip, my happiness trickled down like the warm, gooey syrup on a stack of fluffy pancakes, adding immense sweetness to the experience. I was quite a sight; dancing and singing without a care in the world! I fell in love with myself.

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4. Be A Show

Wear 2 Kg of makeup or 20 (goes for men too). Wear shorts or a bikini. Be comfortable. Experiment. Goa doesn’t judge people. It’s a happy place for hippie souls. Wear what you can’t in your daily life (just a suggestion). Experiment. And then experiment some more. If you haven’t worn a salwar kameez ever, wear that on the beach. Why not? I saw a couple of foreigners in Indian attire, enjoying the beach. 

Insight: I wore this cute skirt with a wine-coloured strapless corset top and accessorised it with my Banjara Bag. This top has been sitting in my wardrobe for years and was even burrowed by a few friends but I was wearing this for the FIRST TIME. Felt ecstatic. Gave me Hippie-Happy feels! Also, I’m dying to wear one of my lehengas at one of the beaches in Goa to get a photoshoot done. I don’t know when it will happen but it WILL happen. You’ll know when I post HELLOTTA PICTURES!

5. Don’t Forget To Glow

Eat well. Relax well. Sleep well. Enjoy well.

Insight: Look at these windows at De 12 Villas! Aren’t they lovely? The stay was relaxing too. Except for the nerve-wracking tile incident, the place made us glow in the truest sense. So make sure the place you choose to stay at is nice. It makes all the difference. 

Noon: Cafe Exploration

With my stomach full and energy levels replenished, I got myself ready to hit the streets.

All dolled up, I hopped on the bike we had rented so I could finally explore the wonders that lay ahead of me. And trust me when I say… As I rode through the winding roads, my heart hung its tongue out and wagged its tail, screaming, rolling, somersaulting, and jumping. Woohoooo! Freeeeeedom.

I felt like froth on a freshly-opened can of Coke – effervescent, bubbling with excitement, and ready to celebrate. On top of this, the wind in my hair and the sun on my face made my heart turn into a bellerina.

I have felt this way on my previous trips to Goa while renting an activa so this feeling wasn’t a one-time feeling. I knew it would be there; hence the suggestion.

Major Suggestion – Please Note

Rent an activa/bike in Goa. It’s a MUST. An absolute must. There’s no other way to know Goan streets/places better and faster.

Back To The Cafe

With so many cafes to explore in Goa, we thought of starting with the one that was hardly 10 steps away from our villa – Artjuna Cafe. IT WAS LOVELYYYYY! You have to (like HAVE TO) read about it in detail and visit the same if you happen to be in Goa.

When my friends told me that the cafe was 10 steps away and I wouldn’t need an activa, I didn’t take their words seriously enough. Hence, I rode the activa to the other end of the road, only to come back, and find it literally 10 steps away from the villa. I swear I wasn’t even high. But Goa sort of gives you the “Meri Marzi” attitude and it’s fun for a change.

Evening: Beach Exploration

Post our lunch at Artjuna Cafe, we went to the soulful Anjuna Beach. 

I felt it would be unfair to club all the information here, so I have dedicated an entire blog to it, sharing what I did at Anjuna Beach, what I ate, where I ate, and what I bought (I’ll share the link soon).

The experience was DIVINE. I was looking at a beach after 2 years and being a beach person, my eyes were all sparkly.

After spending the entire evening there, we came back to the villa; only to walk to the beach for the 2nd time on the same day. Details in the Anjuna Blog as shared before. 🙂

Conclusion of Goa Day 2

Goa is a nectar of eternal bliss. If you haven’t felt this way, you haven’t travelled the right way. This is coming from a place of experience and from a person (me, ahem, of course) who travelled to Goa thrice to –

• Party (clubs, pubs, casinos, etc.) during her 1st Trip with college friends in 2016.
• Explore temples and cruises during her 2nd Trip with family in 2017.
• Have a laid-back experience during her 3rd Trip with a group of friends and their friends’ friends in 2023. 

So you can be sure when I say that this place has something for everyone. 

And not just some random thing; it has something precious; something fulfilling for everyone. 

I hope you discover that precious thing soon. And I’d be the happiest if you get to discover it through my blogs. Truly. 🙂 

Here’s wishing that your Goa Trip materialises soon and that you enjoy the place as much as I did (even more in fact). Good luck! Don’t forget to come back and check the details on Anjuna Beach, please.