Best Lifestyle Blog of Goa
Art in its any form, literally draws me and pulls me to it. Creativity is something that I imbibe in myself and have a great appreciation for. Be it performing arts or static, I have huge respect for artists who vent out their innermost emotions through their art. I sometimes try to do that myself through my writing or my paintings and even through my cooking.
India’s online poker giant Adda52.com is organizing the country’s biggest live poker tournament series, Deltin Poker Tournament (DPT) in Goa from 7thto 11th February 2019. This 5-day mega tournament is an effort by Adda52.com, India’s largest poker site and Deltin Royale, the biggest floating casino in India to provide a platform for the best poker minds to participate and win from a prize pool of more than 1 Crore. Adda52 does not limit the players to have a poker experience online; in fact, it extends it to a live environment with tables, dealer, fellow players, and the sheer environment.
Many a time we get engrossed in the daily hustle of life so much that we almost forget that we need to stop, breathe and live. Although I try my best to maintain the work-life balance, sometimes the drudgery of life takes a toll on me too. But trust me whenever I get an opportunity to spend some me time, travel, explore a new place, I simply leave everything aside and grab the opportunity with both hands.
Well, this is my first post of the year and it has been so delayed simply because I have been either too busy sometimes or too tired and lethargic the other times to even think about writing a blog post. In fact a past few days I had not even been keeping well, and didn’t feel like doing much anyway, but then came this wonderful opportunity that I wanted to make the best of. I was invited to cover a beautiful event comprising of some soulful jazz music and a 3-course fine dining meal and was also offered a stay at the property. Now imagine, a person who has been feeling so tired and overworked since so many days, don’t you think I would have literally given anything to get a relaxing day at a beautiful hotel followed by a luxurious meal and music and of course that is exactly what I did. I did not think twice before confirming my spot both for the stay and the event.
The property was Sol De Goa, a very quaint hotel situated amidst open green fields and a serene river. I live in Porvorim area of Goa, and the property located at Nerul was about 20 minutes away from my house. I caught hold of a pilot taxi and started my way towards the hotel. One step into the hotel and I knew I was going to have a great time. The warm hospitality of the girl at the reception gave me enough insight to gauge the quality standards that the hotel maintains. I was given a quick tour of the property and the more I saw it, the more I loved. The hotel has two beautiful swimming pools to indulge in. One of the pool is like a sun deck and the hotel’s restaurant also surrounds that area. It seemed like a perfect place to spend some time relaxing. This was also the venue for our evening event.
After touring around the property, I was escorted to my suite which spelled class right at the entrance. The moment the door to my room was unlocked, I was spellbound. The expansive living room area, with a huge TV screen and the couch that you want to jump right on to and all modern amenities seemed very inviting. As I moved further and took my first glance at the bed, I shifted my mind and wanted to jump in right there. It was just the kind of bed I adore. But then there was more, the highlight of my room was the attached balcony which oversaw the green fields and also the pool deck area. The view seemed mesmerizing enough to spend my entire day there, maybe with some music on the iPod, or a nice book and a cup of coffee. Bliss! Check out the full room tour in the link below
https://www.facebook.com/aditinona/videos/pcb.10156999280189855/10156999278684855/?type=3&theater
So all of this led me confused on what did I want to do, dip in the pool, be a couch potato, take a nap on the bed or sit in the balcony and enjoy the view. Phew!! But then I felt that given my tired state of mind and body, the bed seemed just the right thing to do. So after fooling around a bit with myself, clicking some funny pictures and posting stories on Instagram, I cuddled myself up in that cozy bed and took a short and sweet nap.
After the nap, I woke up feeling quite refreshed and ready to do more in my room and began exploring all the windows and the scenes behind them. One of the windows offered me a spectacular view of the inner pool, the other opened to the pool deck and yet another gave me a glimpse of the fields and the river. For some time, I just kept sitting by each window, admiring the beauty of these scenes.
Then I made myself a cup of green tea and headed to the balcony to witness a beautiful sunset. The feelings can’t really be put in words and sometimes you literally have to experience to believe. Well, all I can say is, it was wonderful. The setting sun, the chirping birds, the orange sky and a silhouette kind of a tree, everything was just perfect.
After enjoying the sunset, I headed for a quick bath and got ready for the lovely evening that was waiting.
As I went down at the deck, the entire setting seemed magical, beautiful table layouts, candle lights, the reflection of lights in the pool and soulful Jazz music by a band named Orleans.
It was all fantastic. As my other friends joined in at the table, we started with what I can say was a mind-blowing culinary journey and riot of flavors.
Our menu comprised of:
Chilli Coco Pine- a drink made with white rum, pineapple juice, coconut syrup, and green chilies and it was amazing.
Pepper Rasam- Red snapper ceviche served in a puri with chilled rasam shots.
Camembert En Croute With Tomato Thoku And Coriander Chutney
Beef Seekh Kebab
Calamari Pepper Fry
Murg Afgani With Lachha Parantha
Meen Chettinad With Coconut Curry And Kosambri Salad
Tandoori Spiced Pork Belly With Mango Chutney
Cranberry Kofta With Lachha Parantha
Guava Cheese And Ricotta With Profiteroles
Gulab Jamun With Gelato
Well, now what words do I use to describe the food, I basically have just one word that it was amazing. We all had a tough time deciding what was the best, there was barely a difference, each and every item was delicious. But still to give you some grading, I would say that the Camembert was the best dish of the evening unanimously for all present, and the meen chettinad came a close second. Put everything else on the number 3 and I am sure you will get an idea about the kind of food experience I am talking about.
After this hearty meal and loads of fun and conversations with my friends, I happily retired to my cozy room for a good night’s sleep. I literally slept so calmly and peacefully that I had to force myself out of the bed for breakfast. But I surely didn’t want to miss it, and hence I headed to the pool deck once again for a lovely buffet spread of the breakfast. And now it was almost time to return home, so I went back to my room and got ready once again, but this time I wasn’t too excited to get ready because it felt that my holiday got over too soon. But nevertheless, I was taking back some great memories and feeling fully charged up and already looking forward to my next visit at Sol De Goa soon.
Sol De Goa
Address:
Road Opp Bank of India, Bhatiwado, Nerul, Goa, 403114,
Nerul India , Goa – 403114.
Phone : 0832 671 4141
Reservation Phone : 9552134385
Email : [email protected]
Vaishnavipratima is as unusual a studio as its name. Just like its name, it stands for uniqueness, uniqueness in approach, uniqueness in designs and uniqueness in attitude.
This interiors studio opened its doors on the 14th of September in Soccoro, North Goa. Expansively created in a 90-year-old Portuguese Villa, the visuals take your breath away right from the entrance. As you move in, the individually designed pieces of art start talking to you. One biggest uniqueness about the store is that no two pieces are identical, Pratima has carefully chosen it to be this way. Unless placed on order, all her designs are individualistic in nature.
The store has both a mix of traditional and contemporary designs as well as ultra modern, chic and minimalistic designs. From bold chairs to rustic looking almirahs, sofa sets, lounge chairs, designer shelves, beds, colorful cushions, photo frames, paintings, artifacts, you name and its there. The huge villa has been beautifully designed with various sorts of art forming a cluster.
The first room of the villa showcases some beautifully designed and handcrafted furniture pieces. The color tones strike great contrast from subtle pastels to bold color pops, the area looks stunning with this combination of colors. This area showcases consoles, bookshelves, bar cabinets, wing chairs etc. and these all are made by Indian artisans.
Pop art dining couture and various artists’ works are on display in the second room. The third room comprises of an elaborate four-poster bed with cushions, throws, and rugs, giving it a very homely feel. There is also an open cafe area in the passage and back foyer of the villa and will soon serve exotic teas and bites.
This studio also houses some exquisite jewelry and designer apparel pieces; Chanderi Sarees designed by Prama and Pratima Pandey has designed the indo-western outfits and Bhavaa jewelry comprising of semiprecious gemstone collections. These have been introduced for the first time into the brand.
With its maiden store in Mumbai, Vaishnavipratima expanded its wings to Goa. Goa is the ideal choice as more and more people are investing in properties in Goa. And most of these properties are converted into villa homestays and resorts and thus the need for an exclusive interiors studio is obvious. Thus the brand opened up its second store in Goa with its signature collection and some add-ons like the jewelry and designer wear.
A self-made and self-taught interior designer, Vaishnavipratima started her passion by designing and redesigning her our house along with those of some close relatives and friends. In 2012, she thought of taking it up as a profession and started working on interior designing projects for other people’s home. The year 2016 saw her making it big by opening her first store in Mumbai. The store has a vast collection of home decor items that are customized and exclusively designed drawing inspiration from Pratima’s travel and aesthetic sense.
Have you been there yet?
Studio Address
Vaishnavipratima- Signature Collection, Goa.
Villa No-190 -268(1) Vadem, Near Vetal Temple,
Soccorro, /Bardez, Goa.
Open From
Monday-Saturday, 10 AM- 8 PM
Normally, we don’t think of a lifestyle shop and food together, for most of us they are two different things and we have to go separately for eating and shopping, but If I tell you about Artjuna, it offers more than just food, its a perfect place to shop apparels, fashion accessories and even furniture, yes you read that right, Artjuna has all this and a lot more to offers its visitors.
Right from the entrance, the warm vibes engulf you, the place has such a colorful and vibrant feel to it that one can simply spend hours chilling there. I am sure once you step in, you make up your mind right then, that you don’t want to leave soon. It’s a place that holds your attention and keeps it intact until you leave and even after that. For me, Artjuna has been a wholesome experience. The Bohemian fashion apparel, accessories, and furniture is something that Moshes and his wife Anastasia, two passionate people who own the place, have collected over the years. Their love for art and classy things is evident in their collection. If you really take a closer look at the items on display, they give you a feel of a very personalized collection, it’s not that they have just picked up anything and everything to fill up the place, but its a very selective and tastefully placed collection.
An old Portuguese house that has been converted into this lifestyle shop and restaurant also houses a decent sized library for book lovers and also a place for yoga and recreation.
Coming to food, Artjuna takes great pride in not just saying but maintaining high-quality standards in all their food items. They strictly use fresh farm produce, seasonal vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, imported tahini and wild honey to prepare healthy meals. They serve Meditteranean, Israeli and Lebanese cuisines. This garden ambiance adds to the overall appeal of fresh serves and healthy food. Every juice that you order at Artjuna, is prepared right after you order, nothing is pre-prepared and kept and hence the freshness is always guaranteed.
I began my culinary experience by ordering a Watermelon Salad with Feta, as it has been one of my all-time favorite dishes and Artjuna totally lived up to my expectations. The best part was the Feta, it was perfectly balanced and not over salty as most of the places serve. To go along, I settled for the Energiser, a combination of beetroot, carrot, orange, ginger and some cinnamon which gave the kick to this fresh juice.
Followed this up with a Mazzet Plate, served with Pita Bread, this platter had a perfect selection of Meditteranean flavors, with a smooth tahini, greek kalamata olives, olive pate, feta cheese and mixed vegetable pickle. It makes for a really delightful dish and is surely a must try.
Baba Ganoush was another dish that I tried, flame roasted eggplants, creamed into a thick paste with tahini, and seasoned with lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil, this makes for a flavourful dip to enjoy with pita and I loved it. The creaminess was almost mouth melting.
A chocolate fondant cake with vanilla ice cream and a chocolate eclair is what made for the amazing desserts. The cake was so soft and fresh, that the quality of the products used was once again brought to notice.
The place has its own charm and I insist on a visit at least once, the second time you would not require any conviction from my end :). The food, the ambiance, the warm people, the lifestyle shop, the books and a couple of dogs and cats will give you more than you need to enjoy a day out. Trust me on this one, not that you shouldn’t trust me on others ;), but do give it a try, it will be worth your while.
As far as I am concerned, I enjoyed myself thoroughly and look forward to visit the place soon again. Let me know what you think about it, have you visited it yet, or is it on your list now?
