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Mormugao Harbour
It is 34 Kms. from
Panaji and 4 Kms.
from Vasco-da-Gama.
It is one of the
fine natural
anchorages on the
West coast of India
and the hub of
intense maritime
activity. |
 Panaji
It was a small
fishing village with
lots of coconut
trees, creeks and
fields. For
centuries it
remained so and was
a neglected ward of
Taleigao village
with the only
massive structure,
the Adil Shah Fort
by the Mandovi
river. In 1632 the
then Viceroy, Count
de Linhares, Dom
Miguel de Noronha
built the 3.2km
causeway linking
Panjim with Ribandar
village.
It exists even today
and is known as the
"Pointe de Linhares"
and at the time it
was constructed, was
the longest bridge
in existence. Around
this time, against
the backdrop of the
decline of Old Goa,
the idea of Panjim
becoming the Capital
of Goa slowly gained
momentum. |
 Mapusa
Mapusa (pronounced
as Mapsa by the
locals) is Goa's
third largest town
and the capital of
the northern Bardez
taluka. It is mainly
a market town for
the surrounding
beach areas of
Calangute, Candolim,
Anjuna and Baga
among others. Even
its name is thought
to be derived from
the Konkani word for
a measure - "map"
and the phrase fill
up - "sa".
It is a fairly small
town with mostly
modern building
spread around the
slopes of a small
hillock called
Altinho. It lies
about 13 kms from
the capital city of
Panaji and on most
days there is hardly
anything to entice
the casual visitor
to its environs. |
 Margao
It is a typically
crowded Goan town,
with chaotic, noisy
traffic and quite a
few architectural
reminders of its
Portuguese past.
Margao is Goa's
second largest town
and a bustling
commercial centre.
Surrounded by
fertile farmland,
the town of Margao
was once a major
religious centre,
with dozens of
wealthy temples and
dharmshalas
(dormitories). In
fact the name Margao
is thought to be the
Portuguese
corruption of the
word Mathgram (from
Math - a Hindu
religious centre
that used to exist
there) However most
of these were
destroyed when the
Portuguese absorbed
the area into their
Novas Conquistas
during the 17th
century. |
|
Pilar
It is 11 kms. from
Panaji. It has
important religious
and educational
centre of Christian
Missionaries. The
Church, Seminary and
School atop hillock
command a
magnificent panorama
of the country side
around and a fine
view of Mormugao
Harbour & Zuari
river. |
 Ponda
Ponda can be
described as the
Hindu heart of Goa.
It is famous for the
five important
temples that are
situated around the
town, and also has
the largest mosque
in Goa. Most of
these temples look
relatively new as
they have been
restored after being
destroyed by the
Portuguese. That
explains why there
are no temples
around the coast,
which was the prime
territory of the
Portuguese. Ponda is
also an important
transport link.
The city of Ponda
lies about 28kms
south-east of Panaji
and 17kms north-east
of Margao and is
also the capital of
Ponda Taluka. |
 Vasco-da-Gama
The area came under
Portuguese rule
around 1543, and
within a few years,
it was transformed
into one of western
India's busiest
ports. The
Portuguese built a
fort at Sada, near
the tip of the land
jutting into the
Arabian sea. This
allowed them to
effectively control
the movement of
ships into the Zuari
river.
The fort had its
most glorious moment
in 1685, when Old
Goa came under
attack from King
Sambhaji of the
Marathas and the
Portuguese moved
women, children and
other non-combatants
here for safe
keeping. The fort
was abandoned soon
after, despite plans
to make Mormugao the
capital of the
Portuguese colony of
Goa, and today only
some remnants of the
ramparts can be
seen. |
