Margao, Margao

Random things about my hometown:

It is still Hot. And sweaty. And does not help soothe skin which is already sensitive. Thus, acne. Hello, old pimply friends. Don't jostle for space now. There’s a spot on my face for everyone.

It is still soothingly quiet. Especially compared to my new place in Pune which is surrounded by street noise, construction cacophony and loudspeaker music. In my home in Goa, I can hear feathers falling on the ground outside. No, I’m not exaggerating.

There is almost no fish in the market, it seems. But it’s just started coming in, D told me today. Yay! Rava fried fish (in coconut oil), and spicy fire-red prawn curry. Tonight.

The lovely thing about my town-city which is still unchanged – you will bump into at least three people you know every time you step out of the house (Not a great thing when people all but stop short of saying ‘why dear, you look like a whale! Whatever did you eat?’’, but still. I think it’s pretty damn cool to bump into people you know like that).

An average eatery has only one type of coffee. Which makes me seem so snobbish and big city-ish to assume that there’s variety everywhere, I know. Maybe it was the Mocha, Barista hangover. But it actually happened at Canapé yesterday when I was gonna go order and 2 people said they wanted coffee and I asked 'What kinda coffee?' and they looked at me like I had asked for the square root of Bologna or something outrageous like that. Hmm… Miss the 6 Rupees coffee of the open canteen in Pune University though.

The seventeen year olds (based on the ones at Canapé yesterday) are still loud. And giggly. Ah, 11th std, how I miss thee…not!


Margao, Margao. How times change. You have a Levi’s store now. And Pepe. And Adidas and Reebok. No more trips to Panjim for brands. But so much more traffic. No traffic signals yet. But so many more people. No malls yet, thank God for that (Thank Goa for that, hehe). But big, big stores.
I love you because you’re small. Because you don’t have everything available like the big cities. Because you bring up people who are contented with their lives so that they walk, saunter even, but not run some mad rat race. Because you’re the perfect blend of village, town and city. Because I was born here. Because you raised me.
Change will happen. You will change, I will change. Taller buildings will come, with swimming pools and fitness clubs. The fields will dwindle. Take-out food will be freely available. Pollution will happen. And the people will stop walking and start running to keep pace with God knows what. But you will always, always be my hometown. And they can’t take that away from me.


There are many many crazy things
That will keep me loving you
And with your permission
May I list a few

The way you wear your hat
The way you sip your tea
The memory of all that
No they cant take that away from me

The way your smile just beams
The way you sing off key
The way you haunt my dreams
No they cant take that away from me

We may never never meet again, on that bumpy road to love
But Ill always, always keep the memory of

The way you hold your knife
The way we danced till three
The way you changed my life
No they cant take that away from me

(Writers: George and Ira Gershwin)