Tag: Pagesfromydiary

Goa Foodie Weekend!

North Goa:

Is another city altogether. With quite a few hotel options and so many restaurants and places to choose from.

Goa has tried balancing the two sides very well!

Even the MOPA airport has been done up so well! With shopping options and food options available at the airport.

On my recent visit from Nashik to North Goa.

I was impressed with Goa. It had been years since I visited as a tourist. And being a complete foodie! I did not miss any of the restaurants that were on the other side of Goa.

I had a completely new list of places to explore in north Goa.

Some of the places, that we managed to explore and enjoy in our 48 Hrs In Goa.

Hosa: A Coastal cuisine restaurant in Goa that

is beautifully done up in a 100-year-old Portuguese Villa that was restored by the same hospitality group that also has Indian Accent and Comorin under them. Two very popular restaurants they have been listed as one of the best places to Eat & drink annually in the world best.

The Muttonpepper Ghee Roast and coconut Shrimp were the two things we tasted and enjoyed from the menu.

A sure shot must visit during your visit to Goa.

Assa House: 

A French restaurant in North Goa that shouldn’t be missed by any foodie!

The menu is done by French Chef Alexis Gielbaum who was the chef at Souffle & Slink & Bardot.

Both of the restaurants that I had visited and had meals too.

The Onion French soup at Soufle and the interiors of Slink & Bardot would remind you a lot of it at Assa House. The Baked Alaska, The Clams in Pesto Butter Sauce, The Sea Bass and the Pork Belly were so good! A perfect recommendation for a light meal with a great ambience.

Sakana Goa: A Japanese Restaurant that has been opened by an Israeli-Israeli-Japanese couple is a must-visit for Japanese food. The interiors can be enjoyed during the day as well as at night with green gardens and trees around as you walk in. The Miso Calamari was a different palate but a great combination. The Pork belly Zucchini roll wais s soft & smooth they just melted right away. The Sea Bass in Teriyaki sauce two combinations that we couldn’t get enough of.

These are all not to be missed.
Burger Factory: Juicy meaty or leafy burgers. Burger Factory Burger will remind you of the typical American burgers and fries. The Zucchini fries were crispy and yummy! The Pork Cheddar bacon burger, Avocado and truffle and BBQ Pork Bacon were so well made!

Babka: A cafe that was tiny, but packed with surprises. The Tiramisu & the Salted Eclaris were so Good! Only if we were not dripping in the heat! We would have had more!
G-Shot: A coffee space more than bakes! The Vegan Vietnamese Coffee with Cashew Butter! Had heard so much about the space! And with coffee, it did not fail.

Stay: In North Goa 

  • W Hotel 
  • JW Marriott Goa 
  • Westin Hotel

Bookstore to Visit:

Champaca Bookstore

Hampiness – An adventure in the waiting!

Virupaksha Temple

A journey that had been on the bucket list for the last few years.

And having explored India from the north and west.

South had a been little unexplored and was waiting to be explored.

Hampi is a city full of temples that have references not just mythology ( Ramayan) Hanuman’s Birthplace. But, also with Shiva- A single monolith statue that’s one of the most visited sights of the city. To the Dynasties battles Kilji, Chanayaka and later the British coming to existence.

No Wonder a city filled with so much history and mythology feels like one place with many world heritage references that the The Ministry of Tourism, on 29th September, declared Karnataka’s iconic destination as the Best Tourism Village of India-2023.

Hampi was selected one among the 795 applications received from 31 states and UTs.

Some bits of Hampi feel like you are in Macchi- Picchu to some feel like you are in Greece. While some truly belong to India.

The city has many world heritage sites.Think your ₹50 currency and you will observe the chariot stone. Hampi is also referred to as India’s Rome with so many ruins and history to the sights.

The historians at Hampi, also mentioned to explore the whole of Hampi that has 80 monuments worth exploring would take you an ideal 45 days here! So much history!

And if you would like to travel to Hampi some of the most important sites are Vitthala temple, that’s full of interpretations of history and the home to the stone Chariot. To the Virupaksha temple an active temple that has rituals performed daily including feeding of elephants as an experience of lifetime.

Elephant Stables a monument that was built for the kings elephant many centuries ago is another site worth visiting.

At times Hampi makes you believe you are In Stonehenge with the rocks here beautifully placed naturally or makes you believe you are In Grand Canyon with trekking around on rocks that are placed with boulders for support.

The sunset and sunrise view points of the city, give you an overview of the lush green landscapes covered with sugarcane’s and Banana plantations.

With so much to offer for history & nature buffs.Hampi still has the rawness and beauty of India.

Hampi is still not considered a tourist destination, with only one flight to Mumbai! And limited advertising for tourism in Hampi.

Stay: Evolve Back Resort

Did You Know?

Karnataka once served as the capital of one of the largest kingdoms of India the Vijayanagara Empire around the 1500 AD. And during that time it was known to be one of the largest and wealthiest cities in the world.

The Virupaksha temple dates back to 7th-century, which makes it one of the oldest functional temple in the country is dedicated to Virupaksha, an incarnation of Lord Shiva, built with a pillared hall, three.

One of the must things to do before you leave the temple take blessings from Lakshmi elephant

The pillars in the Vittahla temple would also be used as musical instruments by the locals. Each pillar would have a different sound and rhythm.

Elephant Stables
Vitthala temple

American & British Thriller Books – I have enjoyed reading!

The President is Missing by James Patterson: one of the thrillers that I read this year written by Bill Clinton & James Patterson
The Details of how the president office operates & what happens in the president office- only a Former President can and would have the authentic details. And James Patterson was one author- whose thriller was on my reading list. The Book is too descriptive and can leave one uninterested especially When you are looking for page Turner.

Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins: A thriller that has each character being described and each character’s action also described until only a few are the focus of the story.
And how the writer has something to look forward to in her journey every day.
A simple, yet intriguing story.

The Guestlist: by Lucy Foley A thriller that is set on an island where an important celebration is set to take place and things start going wrong.
What could have happened? Who could it be? A thriller is a page-turner that will take you by surprise.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie :

This was the first time! I read Agatha Christie. Yes! Have watched the movie The Murder on the Orient Express. And loved it! The detective Hercule Poirot was an instant hit!
And Death on the Nile has been another movie that I would be watching soon!
Murder of Roger Ackroyd isn’t a book that comes to your mind immediately when you mention Agatha Christie.
But, it’s been voted as the 3rd World’s best Agatha Christie after And the most popular one And there were none & Murder on the orient express taking the first two place.
* The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
The book has the popular Hercules Poirot solving the case. And in many ways reminded me of many mystery/ crime thrillers I have read! Are they all on the foundation of Agatha Christie?
And how important are the characters?
Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Coyle, Hercule Poirot, and Feluda by Satyajit Ray are some of the characters we read the author’s work for! Similar works have been done by Japanese writers like Keigo Higashino with the detective Galileo series, and Scandinavian writer Jo snob’s Harry Hole to name a few.
Coming back to The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. Some certain scenes & parts have either been entirely replicated or have quite a few similarities in a lot of thrillers that I have watched in the last couple of years…
I am glad to have gone ahead and read this book which has been one of the most popular and well-written books by the author.
The way it’s written! If you read the story carefully you might just be able to solve the mysterious death in no time! But, whenever you realise it’s these characters… There are enough reasons mentioned to change your mind!
Why isn’t Agatha Christie adapted into more movies or more series adaptations?

My Sister The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

When the title itself gives you away what the story is…
A story about how one of the sisters’
boyfriends turns up dead.
Korede’s dinner is interrupted one night by a call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what’s expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach. That’ll be the third boyfriend Ayoola. She should probably go to the police for the good of the menfolk of Nigeria, but she loves her sister and, as they say, family always comes first. Until that is, Ayoola starts dating the doctor with where Korede works as a nurse. Korede’s long been in love with him, and isn’t prepared to see him wind up with a knife in his back: but to save one would mean sacrificing the other…

A book is written in short chapters and very neatly gripping.
Based in Nigeria and written in 2018. This story remains more than relevant today with the world becoming increasingly unstable.
This book is your weekend read. And a rainy day company.
It’s very different from all the thrillers that I have read in the past in terms of the style of writing & language.

Reading and Being a Reader!!

It’s always exciting to start with a new hobby! The moment you begin something, You are hungry to know everything about it. The Rules, The loopholes, the prize, the strength, the weakness, the opportunity that lies and the threats you face in continuing your hobby.

And then there comes a point, in persuading your hobby, where you don’t enjoy it anymore and you start thinking about how time flew by all these years.

Reading was an accidental hobby, I came across right when I turned 18.

It was only after reading a couple of books, that I realised what I enjoy reading and explored more on those genres and topics.

When I was looking to read more newer topics and stories, I came across the prestigious award that have been recognising talent.

While reading about all the books, that had been awarded or had been nominated.

I picked up a book. I genuinely loved the way it was written and narrated.

After that moment, I waited every year for the announcement to read more of these nominated and award-winning books. This I did for about a couple of years, and then moved to some of the other prominent awards and so on…

Then I realised, these book awards were representing a certain style of writing, and storytelling and were very depressive and emotional.

Also either, they wanted to reach a new audience or wanted to market a newer country, when they awarded books to a writer belonging to that region or country.

These book awards were also biased towards authors from certain countries and not equal to the rest who had equally good writing talent.

The book awards, too were very inclined and favouring genres that represent political views, Race, Gender and a cultural movement, which they believe were more important than voicing one’s story.

Similarly same goes for Academy awards… That is considered a landmark of success!

They too seem to have similar criteria, since these awards are reviewed and judged by selective jury members, who believe are the only voice that matters in making decisions.

There have been films and books that have been better than the ones that have been nominated or awarded but are given little importance too.

It was a couple of years ago when I decided to move past these book awards and read books for the stories, they want to tell and to my surprise, there are so many stories in each country in the world, that are worth reading and investing your time into, than to read books that have either been awarded or read by certain nationalities.

Now, looking to read my next book, I either visit the local bookstore in the cities or go through the most-read books in the country and read the synopsis and see what I would like to read next.