|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Things
to Do in Goa with Your Child Most
holidays consist of things that you want to
do, and things that your children want to do,
and a great tug of war between the two since
there is little common ground. Which is unfortunate,
considering that holidays mark the perfect time
to experience things together. Mindfields brings
you a section on traveling with your child.
We recommend doing all these things together!
By
Amruta
Patil
Photos: Luke
Haokip
|
|
Mindfields
01 Contents |
Underwater Exploration with DiveGoa
 What:
Intro to the underwater world.
Why: Introduction
to the world of scuba diving. Explore weightlessness.
Requirement:
Swimmers only!
Age Group:
11 years and above
How much: Bubblemakers:
Rs 500 (20 minute swimming pool session). Openwater
Diver PADI certification: price on request
Contact: Ajey
on 093250 30109 or email divegoa@gmail.com
Website:
www.divegoa.com
The joys of scuba diving are immense. Unlike
snorkeling, where you bob on the surface of
water, when you dive, you interact with the
realm as if you belonged in it. You can experience
weightlessness, you can breathe as though you
were on land, except that you have a sky of
water above head. Not to mention the itinerant
sweetlips or bannerfish.
Divegoa offers you Bubblemakers, a basic introduction
to scuba diving through swimming pool sessions
with a certified PADI instructor. For Rs 500
(cheap!), get acquainted with scuba gear, learn
to rig up your tank and buoyancy control device,
clean and wear your mask, breathe with the mouthpiece,
recognize and respond to divers' sign language,
control your buoyancy, sit and swim underwater,
and carry out basic diving drill. This could
be a perfect first step towards the 4-day PADI
Openwater certification, which is also offered
by Divegoa. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bookshop in a Goan Villa: Literati
 What:
Bookstore with Cafe
Why: Leisurely
browsing, comfortable sofas, in-house café
Timings: Open
all days except Wednesday 10 am - 7 pm
Age Group:
10 years and above
Contact: Diviya
Kapur (0832) 22 777 40
E/1-282 Gaura Vaddo, Calangute, Bardez, Goa
(lane opposite Tarcar Ice Factory)
Website:
www.literati-goa.com
(Look up for upcoming events)
Diviya Kapur moved from Delhi to Goa and from
a legal career to one that revolves around bibliophiles.
An idea that was harbored for over ten years
has come to fruition last year, and Literati
has set up bookshop and cafe in a beautiful
hundred year old Goan villa. In a time when
most bookstores feel the need to double up as
stationary, knickknack and CD stores to capture
the attention of people, there is something
wholesome and quaint about Literati.
Leisurely and decidedly un-shop, there are two
rooms full of used books and a larger room with
new titles, including a section for children
and young adults. The collection is small but
eclectic, and Literati takes book orders (a
sigh of relief for those who live in Goa or
are on an extended vacation).
Several deep cushioned sofas in all three rooms
invite you to sit down and read. For as long
as you please. A little like rummaging the shelves
of some literary granduncle's home, except that
you get to take home what you please. The used
books are reasonably priced between Rs 50 -
Rs 150.
Literati is an ideal space to talk about books,
enjoy the light, read, and introduce your youngster
to the pleasures of the written word. It is
also emerging as something of a hub for the
well, Literati, with a steady book club, readings,
workshops on storytelling, origami and craft.
|
|
|
|
|
|
3D Films at the Science Center
 What:
3D
film on Nature and Marine Life
Where: Goa
Science Center, Marine highway, Miramar,
PanjimTicket:
Adults: Rs 10/- Students Rs 5/-
Timings:
5 times a day 1100/1230/1400/1530/1700hrs
Open all days except Holi and Diwali.
Age Group:
7 years and above
Telephone:
(0832) 2463426
Website: www.goasciencecentre.org
The 30 minute show has three films: Shark island,
Funny animals and Master of Magic. Interesting
experience for younger children. When we saw
it, the sound quality was less than perfect
(though the theatre was air conditioned and
new) but we were reassured that the projectionist
was a novice and that the sound is actually
good.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Diorama of Goa: Ancestral Goa
 What:
Model-village
that depicts Goan life as it was 200 years ago.
Why: Dioramas
make history easy to imagine
Ticket: Rs
20 Children below ten years: Rs. 10
Age Group:
7 years and above
Contact: Maendra
Alvares
Telephone:
(0832) 2777034, 2750430
Website:
www.ancestralgoa.com
Ancestral
Goa is the brainchild of Maendra Alvares, sculptor
and culture aficionado. Nestled in the greenery
and quiet of Loutolim in South Goa is a vintage
reproduction of what life in Goa must have been
like two hundred years ago. Something like what
Dakshinchitra (near Chennai) has done for South
Indian heritage houses. The dioramas make history
easy to imagine, and it is a great way to observe
how people in the past lived in such complete
harmony with their natural surroundings.
Walk around to see the abodes of Victorin the
fisherman, Caetano the coconut husker, Joao
the farmer, Andu the potter, Daku the cobbler,
Anmare the basket weaver, Inas the Carpenter,
Dona Maria and Anand Lotlikar - the wealthier
residents; and a host of village institutions
including the village marketplace or tinto,
music school and taverna. All in the kind of
apparel and the kind of spaces that people must
have existed in Goa two hundred years ago. There
is, too, a Herb Garden and a Handicraft Centre
with an array of locally made artifacts.
Ancestral Goa organizes a 2-3 day Childrens
Camp every May where the activities range from
making earth color dyes, to learning how to
roast cashewnuts, making sand sculpture, and
fishing. If you happen to be visiting during
that time of the year, be sure to call in for
details. A visit to Ancestral Goa is a perfect
half-day trip. You could wrap it up with a Goan
lunch at Nostalgia, two kilometers away. |
|
|
|
|
|
Baby's Day Out: Baba Shack
 What:
A shack for 2-6 year olds and their parents.
With toilet, high chairs, a sleeping area (with
mattress and mosquito net), child-friendly menu,
toys and games, TV with children's channels,
and even a birthday party facility on Sundays
Where: Calangute
Beach (10 shacks down the left of Souza Lobo's)
How much: Rs
100 per hour
Timings: 10
am – 6 pm (Monday to Saturday)
Contact:
Luisa Mistry on 09860366514
After a
few days of chasing crabs, building sand castles
and playing tag with the waves, the beach can
be stressful for a young child. The sun can
get intense, the sand gets in the food, and
baby doesn't want to pee open-air. The newly
opened Baba Shack hopes to solve these dilemmas,
offering child-centered conveniences. Ideal
for a quick recuperation before you get back
to the business of doggy-paddling and sand castle-building
again. |
|
|
|
|
|
Spice Plantation: Savoi Verem
 What:
Spice plantation and restaurant serving authentic
Goan Saraswat food.
Why: Guided
tour through the spice plantation.
Meal for 4:
Rs 1500
Contact:
Savoi Plantation, Savoi Verem, 10 kms from Ponda
Tel:
(0832) 2340272
Website:
www.savoiplantations.com
Just a visit to Savoi Verem village is a break
from the beach resort Goa that monopolizes the
media and public imagination. This is heartland
Goa, and Savoi Plantation is a cleverly thought
out, immaculately managed idea that preserves
tradition even as it draws those who seek the
'authentic' Goa.
Savoi Plantation, owned and run by the Shetye
family, is a 200 year-old estate that offers
you a chance to wander amongst its herb and
spice gardens, and partake of food from a Saraswat
Goan Hindu kitchen. In fact, the walk around
the plantation is as important as the lunch
that follows. It isn't often that children from
cities see vanilla or coffee beans in their
natural environment, or for that matter, rotund
jackfruits, ginger, or bead necklace-like peppercorns.
Swinging on banyan tree roots is an added plus.
Shalan Shetye is the smiling matriarch who runs
the kitchen and blends the masalas for the meal.
Lunch, served in earthenware pots and plantain
leaves on a rough-hewn wooden table is as much
of a visual treat as it is, a culinary delight!
You won't find this fare on the ubiquitous shack
menus at Baga or Colva. |
|
|
|
|
©
mindfields 2007 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
