Did the Diu!

Yes, I finally did! After a year and half of plans-that-didn't-happen, lectures-at-the-last-minute & ehhh-not-now, I managed to do what I so badly wanted to do: vacation in the island town of Diu. I spent 48 hours with lonely beaches, white sands, magical sunsets & the cool blue sea. Now I sound like a cheesy travel guide (much like the one we found in our hotel room in Diu - "bujet acomodation in Deev for turists; the clear sea beacons you "). Diu is paradise - no touts, no sidey crowd, no pollution & yes, no prohibition.

For the hungry travelers: Diu is a union territory on the western coast of Gujarat, about 400 km from Ahmedabad. There's a tiny airport, where a half-empty Jet Airways flight from Mumbai lands every afternoon. The best way to get to Diu is by bus from Ahmedabad or Mumbai. Or you could take the train like we did. Somnath Express - an abnormally dirty train leaves takes to a place called Veraval - about 80 km from Diu. How you get to your hotel from there depends on a mean mixture of fate, common-sense & the whims of the Gujju private transport owners.

We stayed at a quaint, pretty place called The Resort Hoka at Nagoa Beach, about 8km from Diu town. The resort is lovely - an old villa with stucco walls and stone flooring converted into cozy rooms. Highly recommended by generations of MICAns, Hoka didn't disappoint. The brunch menu is amazing - especially the egg-pie. The service was fab too. Cheers to Aditya for running an extermely professional & homey set up.

Diu has been blessed by the divine hands of Bacchus - every second store is a wine shop/bar/pub/daru ka dukan. And every local has at least one bartender & one drunken uncle in the family.

Highlights of the trip:

• Explored forts, churches, piers and Diu town & the amazing views of the ocean.
• Rented out a Scooty and went for long rides along the coast
• Discovered lonely beaches
• Sat on the beach late at night, drinking wine & talking for hours
• Climbed rocky hillocks just to get a view of the seafront
• Saw a strange gay couple: an old blind firang guy & a young Indian wannabe kid
• Getting away from it all, not thinking about placement week - even if it was just for a few hours

If I ever write a book, the story will be set in Diu.

***********

Came back for the last show of Sankalp. It was kinda dull and artsy for me, though there were some good individual performances. The dances were really funny, though they weren't meant to be.