Goa emerged on the world scene back in the 60's with the 'Hippie Movement' which brought the western world to the beaches of Anjuna. Composed mostly of white teenagers and young adults between the ages of 15 and 25 years old, hippies inherited a tradition of cultural dissent from bohemians and beatniks of the Beat Generation in the late 1950s. Stories of Freaks in Goa and a slowly building counter culture made some enthusiasts hop onto an overland Bus leaving for Goa all the way from Europe (Greece). Disillusioned, disenchanted preferring an altered state of consciousness to the collective illusion the world embraces as 'Reality', they found home under the palm trees of Goa.

Staying in Goa was extremely affordable then and to the Hippies, money was always just a means to an end. They stayed and stayed and stayed even longer ... the community doubled, tripled, increased exponentially in very little time. So began a long ongoing chapter in the history of the psychedelic culture spawning a whole new generation into an alternate reality, a different world where anything was possible and all boundaries dissolved.


This is just one of the many ways of telling the story of Goa, the Hippies, the Freaks and a generation of hipsters being exposed to a plethora of substances which dramatically alter ones perception of the world and the nature of reality. This is where it starts to get a little chaotic as in those days there was little or no drug awareness among the users. People began experimenting with all kinds of potentially damaging substances namely Heroin & Cocaine with little or no understanding of it's effect on the mind, the body and the soul ! To support their needs and addictions, some Hippies began smuggling Drugs all the way to Europe and America for a good price, enough to help them sustain their erratic lifestyles and keep moving back and forth till sanity stays alongside, watching closely what's going on ! Those days, Hippies could be seen walking along the beaches of Arambol, Anjuna or Vagator sporting their birthday suits, openly having sex with their respective lovers or indulging in orgies while the music played on in the background. The Freak capital had become a twisted saga of Sex, Drugs & Rock n Roll ... The BoOmers were on a crescendo !




Over the years, as capitalism and globalization began making in roads everywhere, the locals and the Goan Government started to become increasingly less tolerant toward the Hippie attitude as it conflicts with the ethics and lifestyles of modern day society. The authorities were now coming on strongly against Nudism, Drugs and Loud Music being played around residential areas late into the night. Some Hippies hence chose the path of reform and got back to the regular city lifestyle and a day job, some became Sadhus and Sanyasis and some stayed back and are still seen dancing around the shacks of South Anjuna, namely Curlies and Shiva Valley. If you ever get a chance to speak to some of these willing old timers, you would know they have a whole lot to talk about and for good reason. With the slow death of the "Hippie Era", Goa's reputation as the Freak Capital never diminished, but evolved into the Monsterattes we see on News Channels and read about in the newspapers. Irresponsible use of drugs and sexual predation are closely linked in the darkness of our present times and it's only we who can change this and turn things around in a new direction we collectively envision.



A place once known by some as paradise, Goa today is over crowded with people from almost everywhere on this planet ! Mostly from other Indian states making there annual pilgrimage to Baga & Calangute checking out the scantily clad women folk and drinking unimaginable quantities of easily affordable alcohol while dangerously gyrating to electronic music they have never heard of. With this ever increasing population of seasonal tourists pouring into Goa each year, the crowd has literally overflowed into the once peaceful sanctuaries of Morjem, Vagator and Anjuna. As a result what we have here is a Van full of tourists at the junction, right before you take the left for the Flea Market looking for directions to any place where a party is happening. When told about Curlies from where we'd just left a FULL ON scene, heading toward Bamboo Forest, the boys say, "There was some weird electronic music going on there dude" .... so we promptly pointed toward the road heading back to Baga / Calangute. Hopefully, they found a place to hang-out where they didn't feel as alienated ! :)


This was 2 years ago, when Bamboo Forest was still on. Thanks to the residents living close to the mystical Bamboo Forest who are 'deeply disturbed' by nonstop loud music playing for long hours. Hilltop & 9 Bar, UV Bar, Shiva Valley are one of the few places where you get to see some major parties happening. If you have seen "Last Hippie Standing" you would remember a local expressing his valued opinion on the psychedelic trance music scene of Anjuna ...



The essence of Goa lies in the outdoors and any party / gathering / event organized in the limited confines of a man made shelter remains limited. The elements of nature most of us seem withdrawn from (sitting cozily on our bean bags, slouching lazily in our arm chairs) need to be simply reconnected with ! We need to strengthen our eternal connection with all that is ! With a little expansion of our limited awareness and taking responsibility of ourselves we can begin to create a better Goa we will live to see. People keep talking about what Goa used to be and what it has become today and all this talking isn't quite moving the psychedelic bandwagon any forward but looping it endlessly much to the annoyance of the free thinker and the world which needs a breath of fresh air, a much awaited change in the monotony of routine and chaos. What can we do ? We can revisit the basics of P.L.U.R, truly understand what it means and be the change we wish to see in the world. Not be silent spectators to injustice and misdemeanor of any kind.






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The Christmas midnight mass at the Chapel was good ! The sandwiches, patties & the coffee were more than welcome post the sermons, short acts depicting virtuous living and high octave singing from the village ladies ! We woke up the next morning had an authentic Moira breakfast comprising of eggs, sausages, butter, cheese, the home delivered village bread and some left over Sorpotel which Taryn was primarily on while we were in Goa. I think this was the day after Christmas, please excuse my inability to recall timelines in Goa.


South Anjuna was as usual busy with party boppers moving in and out shuttling between various hangouts in and around Anjuna ! Shiva Valley, Curlies, 9 Bar, Prim Rose, Hilltop, Banyan Tree and Westend saw some big parties this season. The Psychedelic Goa Trance vibe was buzzing all around Anjuna !!! We caught some parties at Curlies and 9 Bar the first few days and then Shiva Valley happened on the 30th and then again on the 31st ! These guys at Shiva Valley got together some monster sound from Mapusa and some killer DJ's ... I think they were Karan, Sanjay Grover, Nigel ... The sound was nice and PHAT ! Dec 30th, 2006 Dolce Vita was one of the best times I've ever had in Goa ...


The grumpy old aunties at their Chai stalls were busy recycling tea leaves and threatening to hack anyone who steps on their mats inspite of repeated warnings. To be in their space means to keep them in business. Fair enough i guess, but the music does kinda get to the locals. Some get infuriated, some happily move along trying to get into the same effortless ecstasy they see everyone around in. The people started pouring in post midnight and the scene went from boom to supernova in a matter of minutes ! Twisted night time tunes from the likes of Kindzadza and Psykovsky thumped our audible consciousness till the first rays of the sun brought in some Full On Morning Magic ! The drunk vagabonds, the mentally flustered and the exhausted had long left for their cozy beds, now the colors began to show in my pristine Californian intervention !


The 1st of January, 2008 was beautiful and the Farmer's breakfast at Alcove ( Next to 9 Bar ) couldn't have tasted any better ! Vagator / Ozra were way less crowded a handful of old timers and some psychedelic happy people ! Some casual shopping from a bunch of well accented and persistent Indian hawker girls fetched us some nice bargains. The sea was nice and salty bringing in the occasional big wave throwing us off balance. A good hour in the water and the pangs of hunger got to us ! We satiated ourselves with some decent Prawn curry rice and crispy fried Kingfish washed down with some Banana Shake !


Our Goan getaway was a full on experience to recharge ourselves to face another eventful year whole heartedly ! All we are left with now are some good memories of the time we had and an uprising within to get back to Goa !

"I was born free and then the world put me in chains !" Somewhere in this beautiful material world that we've created setting a price for almost everything around, the system HAS failed and it's now when we can either ship up or shape out fighting each other like wild animals.

Here ensues a saga of rebellion in this fight for freedom.

Authority: A force to uphold peace and happiness through laying down laws among the working class to ensure uniformity in functioning of all processes. A laid down program which all follow like it's the only right way to go. Sooner or later, you realize you are becoming the very program that runs you ! People believe what the media has to show and most media is run by a nexus of the rich and powerful which alters facts and tweaks information to trigger a strong emotion normally of hate, sorrow, regret, unhappiness and a strong sense of fear towards anything that the world believes is unlawful and unwarranted.

The law of nature: A constant battle between the forces of good and evil (Creations of a very powerful entity, the human mind) almost unconsciously overseen by the ONE {Most know him as God, for me it's the ONE force better known as Energy in the scientific and the psychedelic world ;) } .


The myth is that this world is in constant grief, the truth is that your world is what you make of it (Wish we could alter our perception and come together as one massive). Fact: It's a beautiful world and if you're still oblivious to the forces of nature, it's just a mattera time until you figure out ! We don't need religion to divide us, we need a common line of ethical and moral conduct to walk on, not missing out on the fact that we are all barely mortal humans maybe with a characteristic super power for a greater good... HA ! We have successfully isolated each other based on certain notions we breed as to how different we are from each other... Reality Shock: We are not the only intelligent form of life that exists. The universe ain't a very friendly place either which means that our struggle to survive takes a whole new meaning. There are races like ours with similar intellectual abilities and possibly a more advanced reality. We should rather be putting our minds together to reach other alien life in our reachable universe, than trying to outdo the other in proving a point that won't last any longer than this moment, NOW !
Find your Bliss and make this world a better place !

Wish for the massive as you are ONE among them ! Get out there and have some FUN !

It's a couple of hours since the sunset and here we are somewhere in the middle of the 'Flea Market', closer to the beach following a distant rumble of thick basslines and alternating midi sequences. We get there and find an alien vibe with little or no calling, hence choose to chart maybe a different terror-tory in hope to have an experience to remember !

Swoosh and I are accompanied by our friend within, the Shiva Valley Samurai !

We drive down towards "Bamboo Forest" (Dolce Vita) and find ourselves slowly illuminating walking towards the entry. Euphoria catching up alongside ! We find our space ( We needed a lot of space that night, trust me :) )

An hour since we got in... Maybe less... Magic ( That's the best word i could think of, to describe the unknown mystified entity that merges with pure consciousness) takes over the self (ego) and unleashes a chain reaction which would not cease until sunrise. The sky lightens up in a purplish hue and stars dance in synchronous with the dark stomping beat on this mAd nIgHt At dOlCe viTa !!! I see white orbs of oscillating energy (some in the human form standing, some just flying) in the not so distant sky and a couple in close proximity ! Expression of the entity and perception of the human mind at it's best !