Tag: #travelmore

#AllycaralFeature 👒, #TravelwithAllycaral 👒

St. Cajetan Church – The Real Pearl of Goa

allycaralgoa

Hello My Allys,

Hope you all are doing well… The previous month has been one of a hectic kind. I was on my toes continuously doing several things and Thank God! Everything went perfect. And here I am not that I am complaining but yes all but grateful for the work I did and opportunities I received. Indeed, so here I am back this Friday to feature my Favourite Travel Place. Despite everything here I am! I know delayed but hey! It’s always better to respond then to avoid the response at all. ( My friends would know this way better than anyone)

Oops. I know I speak a lot but hey! I am here so here’s my favourite travel feature for the week.

Very well aptly selected title for this beauty. Away from the regular traffic and the noisy environment, is the beautiful place of Old Goa. A place, where we find a lot of historical monuments, be it The Basilica of Bom Jesus or The Archaeological Museum. In the shadow of the other churches, the St. Cajetan Church is situated in Old Goa. A whole lot of people say “Peace of mind is attained in silence” Truly said, when one visits this particular place, one just gets carried away, with serenity and the beautiful infrastructure of this place. Just like I did, when I dropped in this place, not expecting what I would discover, the more I read, the more I fell in love with this place for the facts are outstanding.

A lil walk towards the history

St. Cajetan Church was completed way back in 1661 by the Italian friars of the order of Theatines. This church was built in lines of the Basilica of St. Peter’s in Rome. Hence, this church has a quiet different and appealing foreign touch to it. And it stands out among all the other churches in Old Goa.

How did it Get it’s name?

The church has been dedicated to Our Lady of Divine Providence, it’s name however finds it’s origin after the founder of Theatines, (St. Cajetan). One of the unique feature about the church is that, this is the only surviving domed church in Goa. The exterior of the church has a Corinthian style of architecture while the interiors are a blend of Mosaic – Corinthian architecture. It has a spectacular rectangular tower on the either sides, atop the façade to serve as belfry the niches below have statues of the apostles.

Another striking feature is the stunning altars in Golden and is decorated with lovely carvings in the Baroque style. The church has altogether three altars, on the either sides of the main altars. Towards the left, there’s an altar dedicated to the Holy Family, Our Lady of Piety and St. Clare, while towards the right, there’s an altar dedicated to St. John, St. Cajetan and St. Agnes. The Altar dedicated to St. Cajetan is the largest in the church. A wooden platform emerges from one of the docks and is beautifully adorned and decorated.

Did You Know?

Surprisingly, beneath the main altar, there’s a well, which may have belonged to an earlier Hindu structure. The water, in the well reflects light. Some say it’s the reflection of light from the dome, which is exactly parallel to the well. The presence of well in the church signifies that the church was constructed on a site where initially there was a Hindu temple.

The Hindu temple must have been destroyed during the time of invasion, while several others believe that the well was deliberately built in order to provide stability to the structure. St Cajetan Church has failed to gain the status of a full-fledged church, and thus, the church conducts mass only once a year. However, mass on special request are also entertained.

The architectural style of the church is mesmerising, this helped it gain immense popularity world-wide. It is generally visited regularly by several tourists, almost every year. And thus, it is truly called the real pearl of Goa.

How to Get There?

The road is simple. And when you have Google What’s the fear. Here are the map location.

Photos Will be up Shortly.

Till then, you can share your photos on the comment section below or simple share it on your social networking using #TravelwithAllycaral or #BeingAllycaral. I would love to see all those pictures coming up! Thank You. And have a wonderful weekend!

#AllycaralMonday Shots👒

Boa Fest of Milagres Saibin, Pray for us!

allycaralgoa

Happy Feast Of Our Lady of Milagres, Mapusa Goa
#AllycaralTuesdaytips 👒

Happy Holidays!🏖

allycaralgoa

Hello my Lovelies! Hope you all are doing well… #BeingAllycaral is back this Tuesday with #BeingAllycaralTuesdayTips. Well, summer is almost here and with this scorching heat, the unseasonable spell of monsoon is the only source of relief for us. Most of us would prefer to stay in doors to avoid this heat, while the others would get to destination like the beach getaways.

Well, keeping all of this in mind here are a few tips how one can have a memorable trip. So dher kis baat ki, (what’s the delay for?) let’s get started!

1. Use Public Transportation – Whenever you plan your holiday to a new place or a public destination always try to use the public transportation or the public mode of commuting in this area. This helps a lot especially to put yourself in to the shoes of the locals in that area.

2. Maintain a Travel Diary – Yes! A Diary that documents every moment of your trip. You don’t have to write down everyday or every moment but hey try to note down important stuff like about the facts about the place you are visiting or for that matter about the restaurants that you visit. Always make sure to try food in a restaurant that is suggested by a local from that place. They can be your best guide.

3. Learn the Language – Everyone should try this one! It is lot more fun than you think, especially when you interact with the person who already is familiar with the language. The amount of happiness you feel that you accomplished something different and Hatke is something which is priceless.

4. Explore the Place on your own – This could be a challenging task but hey! You should give a try to such things, you never know what you might have in store for yourself. I always believe the experiences that you encounter in your day to day life or for that matter the circumstances or situations that you come across, everything happens for a reason. And when such a thing happens you either win gracefully or you learn tactically. So go ahead, give it a try! If you are scared, you should first experiment this in your own neighborhood, try it out in your own city itself and see the difference. Your confidence levels up. Then slowly try a new state and then a whole different country. Another important thing, while exploring do not forget to buy yourself a momento of the place you visited. It could be a simple souvenir that you could keep along. Buying such things not only adds to your showcase but also every time you see this place, it brings back the memories of that particular day!

5. Document the moment – Record every moment on your trip but at the same time enjoy the moment! Once someone told me, “Leave the phone aside, not everything can be captured through the phone. Sometimes it’s best to see through your own eyes!” Well true, in every possible way! But clicking pictures too keep the memories intact. So now what I do is, when I visit a new place, first I admire the place through the naked eye and then click pictures. Because in case memory gets weak then phones help them to remember those moments once again!

Certainly, live every moment, capture memories good and bad because good makes you happy while bad teaches you to appreciate all the good memories. So yes! Life is too short to hold a grudge against eachother. Meet people, friends, acquaintances share ideas, appreciate one another for their good deeds at work, help one another and uplift to glory.

And Hey! You yes you reading my article. Thank you for taking time out and reading it. Means a alot… Have a fantastic week ahead.

#AllycaralFeature 👒

Come, Make a Wish at The Fountainhas Wishing Well

allycaralgoa

Hello Beautiful People!

Hope you all doing fine, this week I didn’t have a place in mind to feature, but as it is said by a wise man that if you conspire something with all your heart, you receive it. To all my beautiful people reading this post, your messages through emails, direct messages on twitter motivates me to bring before you every week a new feature. As I have introduced self care too on my blog in my recent post. Have you read it? Okay! Maybe read this one and then you can head to there.

So, as I told you that I was going through places to feature! It all happened of sudden, when my college mate surprised me by turning up at my office all of sudden and then so decided to catch up to take some time of and sit back and relax. We thought about some good places to visit but we didnt want to go that far. So, as my office is near this beautiful place of “Fountainhas” (Which I will feature soon) We thought of going back to those places in Fountainhas which we visited when we were interning together at a newspaper firm. It was during that particular time that I learnt a lot about the Panjim City and the commuting modes and most importantly being independent. As back then, we didn’t have a bike or vehicle and neither of us knew riding too. So that was an important journey shaping me and to get my things done with least of luxuries. I still remember it was during the internship, I had to do a story on Fountainhas – a beautiful place situated in the city of Panjim. It still has a great Portuguese influence which can be felt the moment you step inside this mesmerizing place. The colorful building, the ancestral houses or be it with the people! Several people in the place still speak Portuguese which is very much interesting! (Voces Fala O Portuguese?) Yes. Do you speak Portuguese? This was suppose to be a quick visit as we both were working on that day!

The first thought which came to our mind was let’s explore the ‘Wishing Well’ Believe it or not, Fountainhas has an age old wishing well, which is believed that anything that you wish by flipping a coin into the well, your wish comes true. We don’t have any clue, how far the same is true but the ambience makes you feel like you entered a fairy tale. Interesting as it sounds, the well was quite well maintained as compared to the last time we visited it. Okay! I interned about 5 years back. The place has transformed and beautification work is still in progress in this particular place. Shortly, will be featuring them all. By the way all of us are aware that we are in the  season of IPL – The Indian Premier League, runs and wickets are always ‘umeed we dugana’ ( more than you expect.) So near the wishing well, if you move towards your right, you see a beautiful staircase painted in the colours of the rainbow. A beautiful site to watch and admire. And most importantly, it gives you a picture perfect stop. So click as many pictures as you want and share it on your social networking using #beingallycaral or as you’ll email and DM me too I will be more than happy to see your moments of joy! Exploring the places that I suggest you’ll.

HOW TO GET THERE?

I know, coming to the most important question is – How to Get there? Well, the location is simple, head towards the St. Sebastian Church, in Fountainhas and then take the right till you find the the red bricked wishing well with roosters mounted on the top of the either sides of the well.

TIP OF THE DAY:

  • Try to visit the place on foot rather than bikes.
  • The best time to visit this place is during the early evenings to enjoy the local people playing the guitar and violin at their windows. Thus, setting the mood for your pictures.
  • If you plan to visit this place in the afternoons, don’t forget to carry a hat along with you and water and the most important apply sunscreen to protect you from the sun!

#BEINGALLYCARAL at the Fountainhas Wishing Well