goenkar anik goenkarpon

   Thunder, rainbows and chasing frogs  First published on March 30, 2008   As we reach the end of the rainy season, it is time to look at life during this period: the rains which we loved as kids and the things we did in the season. The things we miss, as we are away from the falling rains in a faraway land.   The rainy season starts in June and ends in October. Rains, starting in the last week of May, bring with them a respite from the summer heat. May is the period when the school holidays end and it is back again to school for the children.   The rainy season is on its last leg as we approach October. It is time to say goodbye to the rains as we head towards the middle of the month. It is time for the Goan farmers to collect the paddy from the fields. Paddy fields which turned green at the start of the rainy season in June have now turned golden.   The rainy season blesses Mother Nature with an abundance of water and the greenery in the rainy season is worth going miles to see. The

   The Goa Whistle Blower Note: The article was first published in March 30, 2008 The mango and cashew trees have just started to flower. We are in the mist of mid-winter — a winter far and wide as the ocean and sea that we experience back in Holland. The accompanying dew is everywhere to be seen as the sun sets at 6 p.m. in the picture-perfect setting on one of the Goa’s numerous beaches dotting its 105-km coastline. The real attraction on this evening is not the weather but my travels on an overcrowded, private-owned but public, transport bus, which will be of intense interest. The whistle blower, or conductor in local terms, is the main character in my short trip from the coastal village in Cavelossim to Margao, the commercial center of Goa. Margao is a good 17-km drive away. The outside of the bus was painted in multiple colors, similar to the multitude of colors the women wear as dress every day. Fortunately, there was only one color on the inside and its sitting capacity hovered