The Portuguese Delight - Daman

The love for Travel takes you to varied places in search of contemporary sights, or a new generation illustration of cultures. India is blessed with the most varied setups of edifying civilization. Here, you can find not only the ethnic Indian cultures, but also foreign cultures who visited India like the Parsis, Dutch, French and Portuguese. All these cultures intermingled with each other forming blends of cultures with their unique characteristics. The west coast of India was has a prolonged history of Portuguese reign and many settlements are recorded. These places offers the visitors a complete different outlook of culture, landscaping and people. In this journey, I will be taking you to the most famed destination from Indo-Portuguese history.

Daman, the administrative capital of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (DNHDD), a famed destination on the western coast of India washed by Arabian Sea, lying 171 km from Mumbai, India. The place receives heavy tourists during weekends from Maharashtra and Gujarat. Daman was under Portuguese rule for around 400 years. It was added into Independent India in December, 1961. During these years, the place was converted into a mini Portugal and had seen great cultural mix-up. In present political context, Daman has two administrative territory, Moti-Daman and Nani-Daman, divided by the Daman Ganga River. The Darotha River acts as the southern border, and River Kolak acts the northern border with Gujarat. People born before 20 December, 1961 can apply for citizenship of Portugal, but they need to leave Indian Citizenship. 

Places to Explore

Devka Beach:  

The beach side of Nani-Daman area, mostly known for its landscaping with pebbles and blackish sand. During low tide time, the water recedes quite a good distance. It is commercially developed with beach sports, beach shacks, and beach-side resorts. With rapidly increasing tourism, degradation of Beach has been witnessed.

 

Jampore Beach:  

The beach side of Moti-Daman area. It has golden sandy touch to the beach. The beach is also developed commercially with most beach activities. It seemed more clean compared to Devka. Stay options are less but food stalls are abundant.

Rocky patch of Jampore Beach

St. Jerome Fort:  

The fort located near riverside of Daman Ganga River in Nani Daman area, which is standing tall from Portuguese times. The construction of this fort was initiated by Dom Jeronimo de Azevado, the 12th Portuguese Viceroy of India in 1614, and it was completed during Dom Franciso de Gama in 1672. The entry gate of the fort has a beautiful and nicely intact idol of St. Jerome. The most intact building inside the fort is Church Of Our Lady Of Sea.  

 

Entrance Gate of St. Jerome Fort

Moti Daman Fort: 

The fort has a large area cover of around 30000 sq.m. and is a part of Moti-Daman area. The fort is known for big bastions, two massive entry gates and it houses many canons. Many important landmarks of Daman is encircled inside this fort. You can drive through inside the fort.   

 

Daman Lighthouse: 

It is housed inside the Moti Daman Fort, near the banks of Daman Ganga river and Arabian sea confluence. There you can see the old lighthouse, which is closed and a new lighthouse is constructed which is operational and in use.

 

The Old and New Lighthouses

Dominican Monastery:

The place is presently in ruins and lies inside Moti-daman fort, but is an old church construction dedicated to Saint Dominic and was erected in year 1567. It was an important place of worship in Daman. The place is a classic spot of photography lovers. 

 

Ruins of Convent of the Dominican

The Collector Office: 

The constructions of Moti Daman Fort are well intact and presently, these building are used as the Administrative buildings. Being the capital of DNHDD Union Territory, the place is a busy government office area. The Secretariat and Collector Office are important office buildings.  

 

The Secretariat Building inside Moti Daman Fort

Cathedral of Bom Jesus:  

An old church in Moti daman fort area constructed in 1603. The outer structure is pretty basic, but internally the central area resembles the Old Goa Church. 

 

Church Entrance and Sign Board for Tourists

Mirasol Lake Garden

The Mirasol Lake garden is an artificial setup developed for the entertainment of kids, with facilities like Toy train that circles the lake area, Paddle Boating option for families and food stalls. The basic entry fee is Rs 10, but inside all activities are separately charged. 

 

 

 

Jetty Garden:  

The city garden area built and maintained by the local muncipality. The place offers a beautiful escape beside the river. The view of the bridge is amazing at night. A selfie point is also made for "I love Daman"

 

Captioned at the river side

Confluence of Daman Ganga with Arabian Sea:

The place is near St. Jerome fort. The area is basically a fisherman jetty. But the view is marked by the merging of silent Daman Ganga River with the rapidity of Arabian Sea. It gives a beautiful scene especially early morning. 

 

Daman Ganga merges with Arabian Sea

Mini-Punjab Experience in Daman

Veera da Dhaba is a grand restaurant in Daman, which is externally themed like a fort, and internally it has a well designed setup that resembles Punjab and its culture. The food is good enough. I highly recommend a visit to this place, not for the taste but for the Punjabi ambience. 

Veera da Dhaba

How to Reach:

Daman is well connected with all modes of transport. The nearest railway station is Vapi, which is around 12km from the place and is an important stoppage for most trains running on the west coast line. The roads are pretty good and is nicely connected to Mumbai (180km), Silvassa (27km) and Surat (124Km). Daman itself has an airbase with limited flights. Airport at Mumbai and Surat provides good connectivity to Daman.

Where to Stay:

There are many options for your stay depending on your pocket size. Beach resorts are costly like the Golden Beach Resort, near Devka Beach that can cost you around Rs 5000/- per room. The place has a nice dining area with great food options. The cheaper option that i opted for is Hotel Gurukripa on Seaface road which can cost you around Rs2000/- and its dining area, The Daman Delite is a very satisfying place to eat in an optimum cost. If you are here for weekend relaxation, select Devka Beach area for beach fun, party and good beach stay options.   

 

Hotel Gurukripa

How Many Days:

A visit to Daman can be easily completed in 2 days, one day for Nani Daman and other for Moti Daman.

 

The city of Daman offers an amazing beach experience for the visitors to get a chill feel around every niche of the city. The beaches are well equipped for experiencing everything like beach activities, water sports, and dine on beach shacks. The town offers a laid back atmosphere with colonial time buildings that holds history within it. Many of the construction of Portuguese age are still intact and gives us an idea of their architectural instincts.  The only downside is the massive scale of visitors have led to excessive pollution of the beaches with wine bottles, plastic deposits damaging the aesthetics of the beautiful coasts. Anyone who is reading this, please spread the message of keeping our country's natural beauties intact and safe. Enjoy barrels of drinks, have carton full of chips, booze around with beer but at the end just deposit those things at appropriate garbage cans. This will make your next visit as beautiful as your present. 

 

Happy Traveling and Keep the Beauties Clean !

A Portuguese Jewel - The Island of Diu

Remains of Portuguese History - Pani Kotha (Island Jail)

In India, it is said that with every next city, cultures get changed, food taste changes and you see a different way of living. This phenomenon is unique to Indian and we Indians are very proud of this multi-lingual, multi-cultural cocktail setup. History has witnessed invasions by many foreign cultures but the few noted once includes the English, Mughals, Parsis, French, and Portuguese. The impact of these cultures were so strong and long lasting that they are alive even today. These places provides the visitors with a unique travel experience showcasing different architecture, different food style and a different culture. 

The Island of Diu, belongs to the union territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu. Many confuses Daman and Diu as close twin cities, but it is not. Daman is near Mumbai, whereas Diu is at the far west in Kathiwar peninsula, near Somnath, Gujarat. Historically, Diu was under control by Portuguese settlement from 1535 to 1961. On 19 December, 1961, military of independent India captured Diu island. As a tourist destination, Diu offers a wonderful colonial architectural experience, tit bits from colonial history and lovely coastal food. Diu has a uniqueness of lacking high rise buildings giving a beautiful equi-level city landscape and smooth skyline.

 

Places to See

War Memorials:

 

1. Diu Fort:  

Diu fort is one of the most prominent Portuguese construction at the eastern coastal end of Diu island. It was constructed 1535 under Treaty of Bassein with ruler of Gujarat area. It is a beautiful construction. Bronze canons are still available as museum antique and Iron canon balls can be seen lying around the area. A black lighthouse can be seen at one edge of fort. 

 

Diu Fort

 

2. Fortim-do-Mar or Pani Kotha

The place is a small island fort which can be accessed only by boat. The fort was used as a jail by the Portuguese. The shape of the construction resembles a ship to confuse invaders. 

 

3. INS Khukri Memorial

During the Indo-Pak war in 1971, the ship sank 40 nautical miles off the coast of Diu taking down with her a crew of 18 officers and 176 sailors ,when hit by 3 torpedo. This memorial marks to honor the souls lost in war.It has beautiful ship model and a sea facing amphitheater.

INS Khukri Model

 

Religious  Places

 

1.  St. Paul's Church

The church constructed completed in 1610, dedicated to Our lady of Immaculate Conceptions, and is still used by locals as a place of worship and the construction is still as it was in 1610. A beautiful colonial look gives this place a significant historical significance. 

 

2. Church of St. Francis of Assisi

It is oldest constructed church of Diu which is dated to 1593. The building was utilized as a hospital. The exterior is reconstructed and repaired to give its original colonial look.

 

3. Gangeshwar Mahadev Temple

The beauty of the location is glorified by the fact that the Shivalings are placed at a cave type rock formation below sea level and are washed by sea waves continuously. It gives a beautiful outlook to the temple area. Visitors can walk down the shrine to witness this beauty. It is believed that the shivlings are placed by Pandavas from Mahabharat.

 

4.  Gomtimata Temple

A recent construction over an old temple placed on the western coast of Diu. The area around is basically a fisherman area. 

 

Gangeshwar Mahadev Temple

Beaches:

 

1. Nagao Beach

The most famed beach of Diu, which is commercially developed with all amenities. It is one of the most preferred evening spots for tourists. Its a more of a blackish white sand beach. 

2. Chakratirth Beach

A white sandy stretch of beach which is kept natural with less development. But there are signs of upcoming constructions around the area. 

3. Jalandhar Beach

A mixed rocky sandy beach and is a small stretch of area. The visit is preferred by photography lovers.

Nagoa Beach

Other Significant Locations:

1. Naida Caves

These are natural formation of rock, which has openings for sunlight to enter in giving an orange colored lookout. The place is a photographers hot spot. 

 

Naida Caves

 

2. Dinosaur Park

A children park developed for relaxation zone. The place has huge models of Dinosaur species, crabs, shrimps good for photography.

3. Snap with the Hokka Tree or Doum Palm

A unique palm tree seen only in Diu and surrounding areas, as far as in India. The pictures snapped with them in background looks pretty cool.

Hokka Trees or Doum Palms

The best thing about Diu is that most tourist spots are open free to public and maintained quite nicely. The typical opening time is 8am to 6pm.

 

How to Reach

The most preferred way to reach Diu is by railways. You can reach Somnath from anywhere in India via Ahmadabad. Diu can be reached by a small drive of 84km. The roads around the area is good. If you are a flight freak, then you can reach directly to Diu Airport from Mumbai only.

 

Where to Stay

A traveler can opt for stay options on coastal locations for a beautiful evening. A few resorts of fame are Radhika Beach Resort, Hotel Kohinoor etc. Another option is you can stay at nearby town of Somnath, and pay a day visit to this place as opted by me. A good place to have lunch is Apana Foodland, near fort area. It has great taste with good coastal scenes.

Who should Visit

Anyone can visit. It has happy spots for everyone.

 

 

No. of Days: 1 Day visit is sufficient

A colonial time fortified town entrance

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During your travel in India, you will come across many places that are small, not so famed but yet they will impress you with their calmness and pristine escape out places. Diu is one such location which has potentials of a great tourist spot, but I fear, if this place is developed as a famed tourist spot, then the place might loose the peaceful and colonial charm, which is presently the trademark of the town.

Happy Traveling !