Diu is a small ex-Portuguese island which lies at the southernmost tip of Gujarat and was a Portuguese colony before it was taken over by Indian government in 1961. Diu is not a part of Gujarat and is governed by Delhi which makes it an isolating place.
Beaches, forts, churches, cheap booze, simple people and laid back life defines Diu well.
Nagoa beach is the most popular beach in Diu, and luckily the beach was right outside our resort. Best time to visit this fairly crowded beach is during sunrise when you can avoid noisy and crazy crowd.
We used to go for early morning walks on the beach with children and enjoyed the serenity and silence there.
The stretch of beach right outside the resort is loitered heavily and is completely commercialized with vendors and small eateries.
There are many tourists who flock Diu for wrong reasons...
Waking along the beach...listening to the music of waves....
You can enjoy many water sports such as para sailing, water skiing or wind surfing at Nagoa beach. Son and hubby riding a speed boat.
There are about 6 beaches in Diu, but having spent a fair amount of time on the beaches of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, beaches of Diu looked dry and lifeless.
The church of St. Paul is imposing, a perfect European marvel. I could not stop gazing at the intricately carved woodwork.
We headed to a cave temple which is partially submerged in Arabian sea called Gangeshwar temple. The temple has five Shiv lings or idols which are washed by sea water.
With every high tide these tiny crabs come inside the cave temple and cling to the walls.
INS Kukri is a memorial erected on a hillock overlooking Chakrateerth beach. There is a large ship enclosed in a glass and a long list of sailors who sacrificed their life while the naval vessel sank during the Indo-Pak war f 1971.
A place from where you can watch both sunrise and sunset standing at the same point.
Diu Fort must have been a complete city with churches, palaces, prisons built in the same complex. It has three bastions overlooking the Arabian sea. With scattered stone carved monuments and dozens of canon balls lying on the ground, the fort look deserted.
Prison walls are impregnated with roots which tell sad story of that era...
First hand experience of handling the real weapons used in war was thrilling for children.
I brought this unusual looking fruit at home from Nagoa beach in Diu. This fruit also called as Hoka fruit is found only in Diu and Katiawad region of Gujarat. The Hoka fruit comes from a palm tree which branches out from one main trunk and was brought to Diu by Portuguese.
I tried my best to remove the hard woody peel and look out for some flesh inside...phew..tough cookie... lost patience.
Our Diu trip ended on third day and we were all set to start the next phase of our trip to Sasan.
Connectivity is still a major problem in many remote parts of Gujarat. You either hire a taxi to reach to Sasan or need to go to a small city called Una from where there are many connecting buses run by Gujarat government.
Continued....Part -3
This post is an entry to 'The perfect road trip' on Indi Blogger,
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