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With its fluorescent painted palm
trees and infamous full moon parties, ANJUNA, 8-km west
of Mapusa, is Goa at its most "alternative". Designer leather
and lycra may have superseded cotton Kaftans, but most
people's reasons for coming are the same as they were in the
1970s: dancing and lying on the beach slurping tropical fruit.
While browsing in the area have a day trip to the famous flea
market.
Anjuna is 18 kms from Panaji, the capital of Goa. This is the
Goa Freak capital of the World. A popular beach area adjacent
to Chapora Fort - it was the haunt of the flower generation in
the sixties - and is still popular with the younger
generation. At night, the Anjuna band plays for the beach
party. Palm trees stand motionless in the warm air. To the
east is a mountain. If you want to return to civilization,
climb the mountain to get to Baga where you can catch a ferry
out.
The attractions of Anjuna Beach are the magnificent
Albuquerque Mansion built in 1920 (flanked by octagonal
towers and an attractive Mangalore tile-roof), the Mascarenhas
Mansion, and the Chapora Fort.
Wednesday
Flea
Market,
every Wednesday. Anjuna breaks into a riot of colors. Lines of
vehicles full of tourists start virtually raising clouds of
dust in this area. Anjuna attracts a weird and wonderful
collection of over monks, defiant ex-hippies, gentle
lunatics, artists, artisans, seers, searchers, sybarites and
itinerant expatriates who normally wouldn't be seen out of the
organic confines of their health-food emporia in San Francisco
or London. Full moon, when the infamous parties take place, is
a particularly good time to be here if you want to indulge in
bacchanalian delights. Only a Brit would think about raving
about the main beach, but it's worth the walk to the small,
protected sliver of sand at South Anjuna where the area's
long-term house-renters tend to gather
The Visiting Season
The season in Anjuna starts in early November, when most of
the long staying regulars show up, and peters out in late
March, when they drift off again. During the Christmas and New
Year rush, the village is inundated with a mixed crowd of
round the world backpackers, refugees from the British club
scene and revellers from all over India, lured by the promise
of the big beach parties.
Outside peak season, however, Anjuna has a surprisingly simple
unhurried atmosphere- due, in no small part, to the shortage
of places to stay. Most visitors who come here on market day
or for the raves travel in from other resorts. That said, a
couple of large package tour hotels have appeared over the
past couple of years, and this is bound to radically alter the
mix of visitors here.
WHERE TO STAY
Most of Anjuna's
very limited accommodation consists of small-unfurnished
houses. Some of the resorts and guesthouse can be found at the
main Starco's crossroads area. But the best choice for
accommodation is available in Calangute, Baga or nearby
Vagator or Chapora.
HOW TO GET THERE
Road:
Buses from
Mapusa and Panjim drop passengers at various points along the
Tarmac Road across the top of the village, which turns right
towards Chapora at the Main Starco's crossroads. The Starco's
crossroads has a couple of small stores, a motorcycle taxi
rank, and functions as a de facto village square and bus
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