Saligao Serenade

by Mel D’Souza

When I was a lad growing up in the village of Saligao in Goa, the first monsoon rains in June were always welcome. They flooded the paddy fields and topped up the village wells that had dropped to a low water level in the preceding dry months. Trees would be cleansed of all the dust accumulated on their leaves, and they would sparkle in their green glory.

Although the term “monsoon” conjures images of incessant rainfall, the rainy season actually had breaks of light drizzles and a fair share of sunny days. However, there would be the odd heavy thunderstorm that would have the village awash in water. This is when the runoff from higher ground would gush into narrow lanes and drain into culverts connected to open storm-water sewers that discharged into the Arabian Sea. The open wells would be full to almost ground level and, if this happened to coincide with the feast day of São João (St. John the Baptist) on June 24th, it would be time for some of the young men in the village to venerate the saint with a big splash! Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

As the FIFA World Cup 2010 gets underway later today (June 11), excitement must be rising to fever pitch among the myriad fans of football in Saligao and all over Goa.

In fact, football has always been a highly popular sport in Goa and among Goans worldwide. In Saligao, the Mater Dei Institution had a full-length football ground with goalposts, nets and boundary markings all according to the established international standards for the game. At the time I was schooling there, the institution had a provision for boarders, and they were required to report at the ground every day at 5:00 pm for a game of football. Anacleto Lobo, the Principal of the school, was a strict disciplinarian, but adhered to the dictum All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

While youngsters today have many appealing new professions to choose from, in days gone by people in the villages of Goa also earned their daily bread in myriad interesting ways and some of the professions were rather quaint and fascinating.

I will never forget the colourful basket-weavers who came to Saligao all the way from Bairo Alto to make beautiful household articles from matted bamboo strips. The range of products was quite extensive and included elegant baskets (pantli); multipurpose containers (vorli) used, among other things, to ripen fruit and extract coconut juice for the preparation of traditional sweets; brooms (sarun); bamboo matting sieves (kurponnem) to drain water from cooked rice; bamboo mats (dalli); the small barn to store rice (koddo); bamboo fencing (virlem) around the coconut tree sapling to protect it from cattle); boxes of bamboo cane-work (pettaro) ; handheld fans (aino); and, small trinkets and toys. Read the rest of this entry »