HAPPY HALLOWEEN

PICTURESQUE GOA

BUILDING WITH A PAST

This is a picture of a building which was originally the summer palace of Goa's 16th century interim Muslim ruler. His name was Adil Shah. With the onset of Portuguese rule in Goa, the above building was converted into a rest house the Governors of Goa who were appointed from Lisbon. It was later used as the Secretariat/Legislature of the State of Goa, and now referred to simply as a non-functional 'Old Secretariat Building'.

THE DOVORNNEM

DOVORNEM

In front of the Chapel

of Our Lady of the Rosary

THE 'DOVORNEM'

"Take a load off Annie, take a load for free
Take a load of Annie, and you put the load right on me".

In the old days our Goan folks walked long distances from villages to the towns and vice versa. They also walked great distances to visit their relatives and friends. But some of the folks who grew vegetables, bananas and other produce, carried them to the market place in huge baskets placed upon their heads.

Very often these folks would be waiting at one of the structures called 'Dovornem' by the side of the road. These were constructed in laterite stone that enabled these hard-working folks to place the load they carried on their heads on these square-shaped structures and take a breather before proceeding on their journey either to or from the market.

By design, the height was intentionally finished off at an average person's height, so that there wasn't any need of another person either to lower or lift the load up back on their heads. What they merely had to do was slide the basket on the top flat surface of the 'Dovornem'.

Often, people also waited for others to join them at such spots, so that they would have company to travel in a group, thereby risking a lesser chance of getting themselves mugged or robbed of their jewelry or cash as they walked through lonely forests and hills.

When I was a young lad I have, on many occasions, accompanied my mother on such walking marathons, visiting my grandmother from Guirim to Siolim, and have comes across people who took some rest at such places, after from carrying the heavy load on their head for hours, so that they could give themselves a break or cool themselves off from the long walk and over-powering heat, especially in the summer. 

These trips were often scary, and the merchant and ordinary folks tried to hurry home through the hills before nightfall, specially through a slightly frightening, eerie and sinister area called 'Sonar Khett' well known in the old days for thieves hiding in the forests, and preying on lonely women making their journey through these hills.

In the old days these simple laterite structures perhaps beckoned the passerby to lessen his burden, but nowadays some of these structures lie abandoned and neglected, a few of them barely visible among the overgrowth of bushes along the sides of some roads.

These structures are found in many places along the Goan countryside roads. I wonder who constructed them long ago - was it the local 'comunidade' or government? It  is my opinion that the word 'dovornem' is derived from the Konkani word 'dovor' meaning 'to keep' - hence 'dovornem' - meaning: 'a place to keep'. I hope the panchayats will try to maintain these old 'masonry platforms' as a heritage artefacts. 

NOSTALGIA ON WHEELS AT FERNANDO'S NOSTALGIA

BULLOCK CART OF GOA

Just like in the days of yore.

http://tonferns.blogspot.ca/2009/03/bullock-cart-of-goa.html

This picture was taken on 8 Feb 2012. My family members (7 of them) had a scrumptious traditional Goan lunch -utterly delectable at Fernando's Nostalgia Restaurant.

While the food was getting ready I browsed through some wonderful memorabilia around the vast expanse of the place while sipping, strolling and enjoying a caju cocktail - and also took pictures with permission.
True to the apt name of this homely restaurant - I was overcome with pure 'Nostalgia'.
Surely, I'll be back!

FERNANDO'S NOSTALGIA
RAIA, near LOUTOLIM
SALCETTE - GOA

Dine in the confines of beautiful
surroundings - memorabilia,
artefacts, cooking utensils while 
reminiscing of the good old days.
You never be bored!
Cheers!

Gurguret

Copper Pots

Clay and brass pots

but the gurguret is my favourite.

Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam

Oh, give me a home

where the buffalo roam
and where the sun keeps shining all day...

Arpora, Bardez, Goa, India

PICTURESQUE GOA - AUTOMOBILES OF YESTERYEAR

PICTURESQUE GOA

- Automobile of Yesteryear -

'Wolseley 1500' by Austin of England (1960)

Duler, Mapusa, Bardez. March 2011

A GARLIC BOUQUET

FALL BY THE DON RIVER VALLEY, East Toronto, Ontario

AUTUMN SHADES BY THE DON RIVER

The Don River valley winds its way through Toronto parks and conservation areas and provides an interesting glimpse into the history of the City of Toronto. It is easy to feel disconnected from the hustle and bustle of city life as nature takes over in an urban area.  

The Don Valley stretches 32 km from the Oak Ridges Moraine in the North and south to Lake Ontario and is an important watershed for the city .

There are numerous trails that branch off the multi-use paved trail, taking cyclists to city street access points or other adjacent parks. The Waterfront trail connects trail users to the Don Valley from the lakeside, southern start point.

CHAPEL OF ST. GEORGE, Near Ball's Falls, Jordan, Ontario.

JORDAN, Ontario

The town was established as early as the 19th century by Jacob Ball. Jacob and his family were forced from their home and potash works in New York. In 1783, the Ball family was granted land in Niagara on account of their allegiance to the British Crown. Jacob’s sons, John and George, received 1200 acres of land in Niagara in 1807. On this land stood two waterfalls, which are trademarks of the grounds today. The Ball brothers wasted no time starting business; they built a grist mill, a saw mill and a woollen mill at the falls. The town began flourishing with business and soon a blacksmith, tailor, weaver and butcher lived on the land. By 1852 the population of the town, then Glen Elgin, grew to 19 locals. In the late 1850s, the Great Western Railway was created and many industries moved away from Glen Elgin and chose to reside closer to the railway. Glen Elgin, the settlement that once was, became a historical ghost town. In 1962 Manly Ball sold the land to the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Area and the town which is currently called Balls Falls is now a historical tourist attraction.

~ Wikipedia ~

Photo by Tony Fernandes

AUTUMN REFLECTIONS, Jordan, Ontario

Lower Falls, Jordan, Ontario

Experience adventure as you discover Ball’s Falls mid 19th century industrial hamlet atmosphere. Featuring the original Ball family home, an operating flour mill, a lime kiln, a church, black smith shop, carriage shed and more.

Incredibly breathtaking view of the majestic Twenty Mile Creek as it plummets over both the upper and lower falls.

As the falls tumble delightfully over high cliffs, they can be viewed at close proximity from above or below. The character of the falls changes dramatically with the seasons, ranging from a raging torrent in the spring to a thin veil in late summer, with access to the Bruce Trail.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

COLOURS OF THE FALL, Jordan, Ontario

ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI, Monte de Guirim

HAPPY FEAST DAY

of St. Francis of Assisi

http://tonferns.blogspot.ca/2010/10/chapel-of-st.html

PICTURESQUE GOA THROUGH THE ARCHES OF DEVOTION

PICTURESQUE GOA 

 ''Through the Arches of Devotion"

Church of St. Anne - Parra, Bardez, Goa.
“All architecture is shelter,

 all great architecture is the design

of space that contains,

 cuddles, exalts, or stimulates the persons

 in that space.” 

- Philip Johnson

EVENING SHADOWS

PICTURESQUE GOA
'Evening shadows make me blue'
View of the bridge over River Chapora
at sunset, from the "Mannos at Guddem, Siolim, Bardez, Goa

As is evident in the picture, the battered bicycle has formed a part of the the landscape. It belongs to the old fisherman who has cast his net at the 'mannos' (levee/lock) on the right. The box fitted to the bracket of the bicycle at the rear is meant for his evening catch. The 'pescador' has parked his prized possession as close to the Holy Cross as possible - and within his sight for obvious reasons and many intentions - so that he may be blessed with a good and sizable catch and also so that no one steals - neither his net, catch nor his bicycle.