Goa, a tiny emerald land of 3,702 Sq.Kms on the west coast of India situated between the borders of Maharastra and Karnataka, is better known to the world at large as the former Portuguese enclave on the Indian soil.

With its natural scenic beauty, attractive beaches, churches and temples, famous for it's architecture, feasts and festivals and above all hospitable people with a rich cultural milieu, has an ideal tourist profile.

Goan food is essentially the food that Goan Catholics cook and consume. It is very largely influenced by the Portuguese who, in turn, brought ingredients from Brazil, Mozambique, Macau, Java, Mexico and the Amazons, where they also had colonies. Added to these were the regional Konkani traditions that made abundant use of seafood, coconut and rice. The Goan today inherits an amazing gastronomic tradition that is unfortunately fast being replaced by what is quick, easy and electric.

Goan Hindus, no doubt, have a cuisine they are justly proud of. But that cuisine is almost entirely the cuisine of the Konkan, although generally embellished with a few classic, local touches. If 19th century Hindu temples of Goa incorporate elements of Portuguese architecture, how could the Hindu cuisine of Goa remain insensitive to the good features of alien gastronomy?

Statistically, it is true that the Catholics constitute only 30 percent of the population. But it is equally true that Goa, the territory as we know it today, was carved out by the Portuguese, through conquest and more rarely, diplomacy, over a substantial period of 450 years. There was no Goa before the Portuguese.

Thanks to tourism and hotels that in the last few decades have added Goan cuisine to their repertoire, 'sorpotel' by now has cast its magic spell on those who do not hail from Goa but miss no opportunity to visit it and savour its ethnic delights. Those of us who were taught the finer points of Portuguese lexicography and orthography might resent that such a splendid Indo-Portuguese speciality like 'sarapatel' should be so frequently mispelt 'sorpotel', 'sarpatel', 'sharpatel' and other equally crude variations. For indeed, 'sarapatel' epitomises the history of Goan food.

Goa, where towering palms welcome the sea breeze with passive nods. Where sussegad or 'easy living' sums up the languid pace of everyday life. It's such a leisurely existence that the Taj has captured at its three hotels in North Goa.

Goa beckons you with its beautiful beaches with white sand and its brightness. It is blessed with some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

By an exclusive arrangement with Taj Group of Hotels