Diveagar 2

Here it is. Diveagar 2. It's been almost a week since we have returned. No blog yet? Not fair.

There were many firsts in this trip. It was the first time I was going to Konkan. We set out at 6in the morning...just imagine!!! For the first time localites were accompanying us on a holiday and for the first time they were not there usual bore selves and thank god for that.

Our driver had no clue whatsoever about the roads that led to Diveagar. He still looked and talked as if he had mapped the entire western Maharashtra region. Thanks to him we travelled an extra hundred kilometres. Now I feel, thank god! we lost our way. We got to saw Wai - village where some of the most interesting scenes of Swades were shot. Picturesque! Then we went to Panchagani. There we saw the location where Taare Zamin Par was shot. Breathtaking!

Finally we got on track. We reached Diveagar after spiralling our way through the Sahyadris for nearly two hours. No points for guessing - the place rocks! We quickly finished our lunch and in no time we were on the beach. We got into the water straightaway. Swimming never was on our minds. Just getting in there and splashing a lot of water, getting carried away by the strong tides, throwing the ball far away in the sea and waiting for it to come back... left us tired but satisfied. We got back, took a quick shower and bang! At the seaside again.

The sun had just set. The lighting was at its magical best. God is a painter, they say, now I know for sure. The hues splashed across the sky and the crescent moon complemented each other. Darkness was setting in and the moon had begun to steal the show from the colours of heaven. Lost in the wanderings of our minds we were the last ones to leave the shore. The pitch black darkness blanketing us and the sound of the waves gushing in did give us the jitters. But that was that. We came back, had dinner, chatted for a long time and then finally fell asleep. We had plans for early morning the next day.

“ Chalo utho! ” Shouted one of the guys. It was 7. Plans washed out in the deep slumber! Breakfast. After that we went to the temple. The story goes that a woman found the golden Ganesh idol while she was working in her ‘wadi’ or orchard (?) or farm (?). And thus, the ‘Suvarna Ganesh Mandir’ came into being. It is thronged by the tourists who come to Diveagar – soul-searching. We left Diveagar after that and proceeded to Sreevardhan and Harihareshwar.

On our way to Sreevardhan we travelled by the sea-side, literally. The small villages on the way where fishermen resided were quite clean to everyone’s surprise. Sreevardhan was the village of the Peshwas. I don’t know from when to when, but it was. It was a big let-down. There is nothing worth seeing there and can be conveniently skipped if you need to hurry.

Harihareshwar. The place derives its name from the famous ‘Siva’ temple here. We offered our prayers and set out for the beach again. The ‘pedas’ brought on the way were really yummy. We reached the MTDC resort in search of food and were pleasantly surprised to know that the MTDC restaurant existed. We ordered sea food. Ok, don’t think much of it as what we ordered basically was not lobsters or crabs. It was fish. Surmayee. Tastes great.

We took a boat-ride then. It was awesome. Right in the middle of the sea. (This I can claim safely as I couldn’t see land anywhere.) Harihareshwar was the most scenic place of all the places we visited. The sea here is extremely deceptive. It is extremely beautiful. But, at the same time, it is extremely dangerous too. The water washes the sand under your feet with the expertise of a, I don’t know what... So, be careful there.

All in all, Konkan rocks.

Smile on...Game on...!