Saturday 31st January

we finally arrived in Goa at about 1 o'clock in the afternoon, we got a taxi from the station which cost about £4 to the hotel, which is about 15km (10 miles).Our hotel was very nice, with a pool.

We had a stroll down to the beach via the town and dipped our toes in the Arabian sea for the first time. We could not believe how many people were on the beach. even though it was the weekend, the whole water line was full of people.The sand was very good but the beach was not as idyllic as we had imagined it to be.

Sunday 1st February - Tuesday 3rd February

So far in Goa we have been unlucky with wireless access and the Internet café's are very busy,hence the lack of blog updates!.Sat on the beach last night and watched the sun set into the sea. We have decided to move hotels to a beach front hotel further along the coast.This area is more quiet and how we imagined Goa to be.Our decision was helped when 50 Indian business men turned up at the hotel on a corporate outing, very noisy and leering at the western women by the pool!

Took the bus to Mapusa, where the food market is held for the local people.Bus journey was very cramped, we managed to get a seat but there were so many people standing you could not move.We had spoken to some English people who were out in Goa for the winter, they told us to go to theSatyaheera hotel up on the roof for some lunch, which we did, Good food and great views.

Wednesday 4thFebruary

Good news the businessmen left the hotel yesterday so we have decided not to move. We had a ride out in a taxi to the train station to book our tickets for the train to Mumbai on Saturday.We waited in the queue for two hours, we couldn't get the train we wanted (the over night) as it was fully booked so we had to have the morning train which would get us in to Mumbai about 9.30 in the evening.This way we could confirm our seats not like the tickets we bought on the internet which put us on the waiting list.

After getting the tickets the taxi took us to Anduna Market.This is the hippy area of north Goa and the items sold at the market reflect this, lots of tie dye clothes and bags and other things on offer!! We looked round the market then made our way down to the beach for food and drinks.Anduna beach was less crowded than the beach where we were at Calangute, but still lots of beggars, adults and children, that's the only problem when leaving the hotel, you cant go any where without being accosted by beggars and hawkers.

Thursday 5thFebruary

We had a lazy day by the pool today soaking up the sun.

Friday 6thFebruary

We got a taxi today to the Bom Jesus church in old Goa.This is where the remains of St Francis Xavier can be found.The church is in a very quiet and peaceful location but it has been turned into a touristattraction with lots of hawkers outside, selling tacky items.Had a ride around Panjim(the capital of Goa) quite a busy city again, but with quite a Portuguese influence with the buildings.It was our last night in Goa so we decided to watch the sunset on the beach.Got prime location in a beach bar with a beer.

Saturday 7thFebruary

Got up early had breakfast and set off for the train station.Train actually arrived on time!And we were pleasantly surprised with our seats as this time we were in 3AC, potentially there could have been more people in the carriage. The journey lasted about 11 hours, the scenery was good but we were unable to take photos because the windows were dirty and glass was tinted. About 3 hours out of Mumbai there was an abundance of paddy fields being planted which was interesting to see.

Checked into the hotel Manama which is the most expensive so far at £30 a night and is probably the worst so far. Mumbai is well known for being expensive for accommodation.