Think rotisserie chicken, shawarma, Thai green curry, pepper steak sandwiches, thin crust Sicilian pizza and dim-sum and what usually comes to mind is a food court in Singapore or a street in lower Manhattan. Surprisingly you don’t need to travel that far to taste all this and more—they are served piping hot and fresh right here in the Goa flea markets. Come October, and Goa’s beach shacks start to spruce up, the streets begin to fill up with tourists zipping around on rented scooters and prices start their annual upward trajectory. The festivity of the flea and night markets kicks in soon after and shifts into high gear as visitor numbers start swelling. The Anjuna beach flea market on Wednesdays is usually one of the first to open its doors followed by the Saturday night markets near Baga and in Arpora.
While Goa has no dearth of bargains being sought by bargain hunters at the regular bazaars and beach shacks, the massive collection of artefacts, spices, crafts, jewellery, trinkets, clothes, linen, carvings, musical instruments and collectibles at these markets creates an irresistible one stop shopping experience.
I have been visiting Goa for many years and lately come here two or three times a year – ever since I discovered this was my home away from home. I typically love to visit around Christmas and New Years’ as this is when the markets can be seen at their resplendent best. It’s unfair to even characterize these as the winter months as the only time I see anyone sporting a warm outer layer is in the early morning or late evening, riding two-wheelers around town.
The Anjuna market opens its doors at 9am and starts to wind down around 6pm. The mid-hours get decidedly hot and the shops with fully covered passageways draw the biggest number of shoppers. Needless to say, stalls selling anything cold—from a frosty soda to a chilled beer—are brimming with thirsty souls. In the midst of the maze of colourful meandering, I am always drawn towards the live bands performing at the two of the most popular watering holes: Sea Breeze and Looda’s. While the former is in the midst of the hustle and bustle, Looda’s offers spectacular ocean views with mouth-watering sizzlers and seafood. Each season, different bands sign up to play a variety of music genres ranging from classic rock to meditational trance. Getting a table to sit can be a challenge at Looda’s but hanging out at the bar is always an option. When all else fails I grab a drink and walk down to the beach to watch and listen to the band from a sand-side view.
The parking lots have recently been significantly expanded and this has addressed some of the traffic backup issues that come with these markets given the sheer number of people that descend on them.
Saturdays spoil for choice. There is Ingos night market at Arpora and Mackeys near Baga. The Ingos market has become so popular over the years that it’s causing serious heartburn to anyone trying to just drive past Arpora on Saturday nights and posing a huge challenge for the local traffic police. Many a times it can take those parked within the market lots nearly 2 hours just to get to the main street. A popular nightclub nearby, Club Cabana, also adds to the traffic mess. The best way to get in and out is to altogether and rent scooters instead. Once inside the market, the atmosphere is electric. The shops are neatly laid out in rows meandering up to the foothills.
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Lights and lamps festoon every nook and alley and create a kaleidoscope of colours and hues blend into the thick green foliage of the evergreens. Right in the middle of it all is the centre stage where musicians, jugglers and gyrating flame dancers take turns to entertain. Stay long enough and you may hear alternative Rock in the evening followed by and Slavic percussion ensembles soon after. Right behind the stage is a veritable food extravaganza. However, it can be a long wait to grab a slice of the mouth-watering Sicilian pizza or a serving of the warm chocolate waffles. There are several bars all over this market from the mundane stone top counters near the entry gates to exclusive spaciousness at moodily lit locations at the very top of the hill trails, playing house music and inviting the foot tappers with psychedelic floors to stomp on.
The riverside location of Mackey’s market looks quite enticing from a distance however the long snarl of traffic leading up to it from all directions can discourage all but the most intrepid shopaholics. Yet people wait hours in crawling vehicles or simply walk the last mile or two to get to this location on Saturday nights. The very popular Baga beach with plenty of shopping, nightclubs and water sports activities is nearby and just about everyone who has come to visit the area appears to be headed to the night market thereafter. This market offers nothing that the other markets don’t and its narrow passage feels crowded and somewhat claustrophobic after the spaciousness of Anjuna and Arpora. I usually visit it once and then give it a skip for the rest of the season.
Another highlight of the flea markets is the wide selection of handmade products and wares by foreigners who are either recent or long-term residents of Goa. While not as inexpensive as the local fare, these do offer a tasteful selection of leather accessories, jewellery, hats, swimwear, hammocks and other eclectic selections. Many of the foreign sellers model their own creations and adorn themselves in eye catching tattoos and hairdos. While one may be offering a world selection of mouth harps, another displays riveting photos of life in India etched on canvases, and yet another: authentic sauerkraut. While walking through their displays I hear a constant stream of French, German, Spanish, and Italian interspersed with a smattering of Konkani and Hindi. The local vendors on the other hand have mastered the art of recognizing their clients’ nationality and switch their sales pitch from fluent Russian to Yiddish in a heartbeat.
Several other local markets are equally enticing as the flea markets, especially the Mapusa Friday Market and the fish market in Siolim. However, they are predominantly local in flavour.
Goa offers innumerable opportunities to forget you are still in India and flea markets with their heady mix of music, food and shopping never let me forget that I am still in the land of incomparable susegad and serendipity.
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