[NPV]

St. Augustine tower

We walked back to the car and I was again looking at the printout and trying to recall the 2 must-see places away from the structures that we'd just visited (that my colleague had mentioned). We exited the parking lot and headed to the ruins of St. Augustine tower.

About the ruins of the Church of St.Augustine


Sketch on the glass when viewed with the single ruined tower in the background gives a virtual view of the front facade of this structure in it’s entirety


This ruined tower on one side of the church stands tall


Closer look at the ruined tower


Inside the church (ruins)




Another view of the ruined tower


Augustinian Convent next door to the ruins


The Main Altar. This church also had smaller rooms/chapels on the sides


Parting shot - The Towering Shadow of DM at the ruins!


We quickly drove around the ruins on a nice, quiet road that was an upmarket residential area with large bungalows.

Church Of Our Lady of the Mount

It was close to 3:30pm now and MW said we can have lunch en route, but I was not yet ready to start from Goa, because I had one last place to visit which was again suggested by my colleague - the Church Of Our Lady of the Mount. He had mentioned that this place hardly gets any visitors and the church is rarely open and many movies have been shot here.
The look on MW and DM’s faces told me that this must absolutely be the last place to visit today, else these guys will kick me!

We set off driving towards the church. Again, turned out to be a lovely place, we could not go inside as it was closed but surprise - there were a lot of people on the campus! Obviously this place has gotten more popular now. There were large signs put up by local police saying anti-social activities are not allowed, but there were some characters who looked shady. I don’t know why they simply did not install cameras there to ward off such elements.

The place has great views of the other structures and should not be missed.

First view of the Church of Our Lady of the Mount - from the road/parking lot. Seems to have been repainted recently


From the garden, the entire valley below is visible and one can see the Churches, the Mandovi River and even the Konkan Rail bridge on the other side!

View of the Church complex in the valley below (Se Cathedral and St.Francis of Assisi churches)


Closer view of the front facade of the church


View of the church from the garden - tower with a Cross facing the church


Another view from an interesting angle below the Arch type opening


Parting shot of the church from the parking lot


When we returned to the car, it was exactly 4pm and we all knew that our journey back to Bangalore cannot be delayed anymore. MW had been driving right from Day 2 of the trip and I had been doing the navigation duty. He suddenly sprang a surprise and handed over the keys to me. I took the wheel and we headed back towards Gandhi circle and then hit the NH 748 towards Ponda. MW explained the reason for asking me to drive - since we were starting at 4pm, definitely we would be driving through the night to reach Bangalore, so he wanted to get some rest and sleep and then take over driving duties from Hubli. We were not too hungry so just had some snacks that we were carrying. Traffic was quite heavy till Ponda and overtaking was difficult in some sections. Once we crossed Ponda and reached Mollem, it was a green forest section with superb roads, but it also started raining. The rain got heavier, so speeds came down.

This was a turning out to be a not so easy drive. We finally reached the Hubli-Dharwad bypass around 8:15pm and then stopped for a dinner break at Kamat, Varur on the outskirts of Hubli. Also tanked up Dizzy at the Reliance petrol pump in the same campus and by 10:15pm we started our journey towards Bangalore. MW was fresh as ever and took over driving duties. I was tired but not sleepy so preferred to take the front seat while DM took a nap on the rear bench.

MW being a regular on the Mumbai-Bangalore route, found it to be an easy drive. Around 1:15am we took a break at a roadside tea stall and reached DM’s home by 2:45am. I then dropped off MW at his home nearby and reached my home at 3:15am, exactly the same time I’d stared the journey 5 days ago!

Day 4 Route Map - Link
*Map Source:Google maps maps.google.co.in

[NPV]

Trip Statistics

Total Distance : ~1400 Km
Average FE : ~16 Km/l (Petrol)

Route & Road conditions in this earlier (Bangalore - Goa : Route Queries)post

Epilogue

• Search and Ye shall find! - If you’re not familiar with Goa or a first-timer, look up the Goa threads right here on Team BHP
• If you’re looking for a peaceful and less crowded time to visit (with nice, pleasant weather), consider traveling during October-November. October is beginning of the season, but if you look around you can find off-season rates
• Crowded beaches are Colva (almost central Goa), Calangute and Baga (North)
• Candolim is a good place to stay when visiting beaches in the North. Very clean place, lots of options for hotels and food
  ***** Plan your trip *****
• You can combine visits to South Goa beaches like Patnem, Agonda, Cabo De Rama along with Karwar too. Alternatively you can just go to the South Goa beaches and maybe Varca/Benaulim
• South Goa beaches are pristine and much less crowded (if you want to relax and don’t like maddening crowds)
• Don’t miss the forts if you haven’t seen them, try to include at least a couple of them in your itinerary
• Don’t miss visiting Old Goa if you haven’t been there - visit all the Churches/Ruins there, will be well worth it!
• Goa is such a lovely place and has so much to see, you will need multiple trips before you feel you’ve seen it all!
  **********************
• Keep yourself hydrated when traveling around - avoid soda based beverages. Juices, water and butter milk are better choices!
• Be prepared to walk. Sometimes even at what feels like a crowded beach, walking 200 meters away will take you to less crowded environs
• If driving, plan for fuel refills at reliable petrol pumps - you can find them listed on various threads on Team BHP
• Food - not a problem, even South Indians and Vegetarians will easily find options
• If traveling from Bangalore, you can consider visiting
  - Tibetan Monastery at Mundgod (exit Bangalore-Pune highway after Bankapur toll)
  - Magod falls, about 20Km from Yellapura (if taking the Karwar route)

Parting shot to end this travelogue - 3 explorers around the Death Hole @ Reis Magos Fort


Despite all the effects of Friday the 13th & Murphy's Laws that tried their best to jeopardize this trip, in the end it was a great and enjoyable one indeed!

*I took almost a month to decide if I should log this experience. Once I decided to write down the travelogue, owing to work and commitments, I took almost 3 weeks to compile it by when at least 3-4 other Goa travelogues have been posted on the forum!
Nevertheless, in the end this looks like a really long travelogue for a 4 day trip, hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Seasons Greetings and wishing all of you a Happy New Year 2018

[theMAG]

Mod's note: Moving thread from Assembly Line to Travelogues. Thanks for sharing!

[rascalangel]

Originally Posted by NPV

Day 2 (contd.)
No one seemed to know if there was a trail to trek up into the ruins of the fort and we did not spot any.

There isn’t. What you saw with the canon that is what is left of the fort. It wasn’t a big fort to begin with.

Originally Posted by NPV

Day 2 (contd.)
We saw that on the opposite bank was the Betul beach and the views were amazing from where we were.

That’s actually Mobor beach. There is no Betul beach. Although most maps show it.

Originally Posted by NPV

Day 2 (contd.)
Parting shot - Rusty chassis/hull of a boat

That is what remains of a ore loader. It’s not a hull. It was a ore conveyer used to load ore onto barges. Yes, barges used to be parked in that bay. If I’m not wrong few are at present rusting below water in the bay.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by rascalangel

There isn’t. What you saw with the canon that is what is left of the fort. It wasn’t a big fort to begin with.

In satellite mode, there is what seems like a rocky / ruined structure, but that is probably within the ONGC campus and not accessible.

That’s actually Mobor beach. There is no Betul beach. Although most maps show it.

Yes, maps show the southern portion of beach almost directly opposite the Fort as Betul beach and the remaining northern portion as Mobor beach.

That is what remains of a ore loader. It’s not a hull.

Thanks for pointing this out

[rascalangel]

Originally Posted by NPV

In satellite mode, there is what seems like a rocky / ruined structure, but that is probably within the ONGC campus and not accessible.

If you are referering to that, those are ore mounds

[avinashsg]

Thanks for the very detailed write up. Has come up in the right time when i was scouting for some information about South Goa. Will aid a lot in my Christmas trip to Goa.

[paragsachania]

Thanks for a very detailed Goan sojourn!

Very comprehensive Travelogue NPV and about time when most of the holiday crowd is looking forward to visit Goa during this month. You have managed to cover almost the entire list if POIs and you call this "mini" exploration .

The only thing missing is a pic of your Dizzy as always!

[mpksuhas]

Glad to see a Dizzy drive after a while.

Your trip reminds me of a college get together plan we had two weeks back, it was for ISL match at Cochin. In the end, dropped match plan and we all met at a service apartment near Cochin airport. Yours had a better setting.


Glad that you liked Green Peace homes, its a no frills but descent place near to beach. Though I am not able to make out why they went with that name for that place.


Remember you had mentioned issues as Bankapur toll during your trip. Seems that is resolved now as per latest updates.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by avinashsg

Will aid a lot in my Christmas trip to Goa.

Thanks Avinash.
Hope this travelogue helps in your trip planning.

Originally Posted by paragsachania

You have managed to cover almost the entire list if POIs and you call this "mini" exploration .

The only thing missing is a pic of your Dizzy as always!

Thanks Parag.
I think it's still a Mini exploration since there are so many more places to see, for example - South Goa beaches like Talpona, Canacona, beaches in central and north Goa like Bogmalo, Anjuna, the Teracol Fort/beach, Mangeshi temple, Tambdi Surla Mahadev temple (from an architecture/history perspective, not religious), Naval Aviation museum, 3 Kings Church, exploring areas around Dona Paula like Miramar, the Mandovi riverfront, and even the Sanaulim Dam, list could go on.

I don't think I'm ready for a trip to Goa just to relax, needs at least 1 or 2 more similar explorations.

Just had couple of pics of Dizzy that would't do justice since it looked like it really needed a wash!

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

Glad to see a Dizzy drive after a while.
...
Remember you had mentioned issues as Bankapur toll during your trip. Seems that is resolved now as per latest updates.

Thanks Suhas.
I'm not sure if Fastag lane at the Bankapur toll is always operational now, I thought it still has intermittent closures.