Summer Edition 2016 The Voice of the Goan Diaspora Worldwide

São João - 24th June St.Peter & St. Paul (Sangodd) - 29th June Naga Panchami - 7th August Assumption/Independence Day - 15th August World Goa Day - 20th August Novidade/ Konsachem Fest - 24th August Raksha Bandhan - 18th August Bonderam - 4th Saturday of August

Newsletter of the Alliance Of Goan Associations Editor & Creatives: Kenelm Santana Lopes

As a young man growing up in Goa, I was enthused with that energy to change everything. I wished that every corrupt politician was shot dead, every project destroying the environment to be fined millions of dollars, our education to be world’s best, our agriculture the most rewarding, etc. I have gotten wiser since then. There is more likelihood of success if we approach a problem after breaking it down into little individual-ly achievable tasks rather than getting frustrated at how we cannot change everything in an instant ! There is no quick fix to many issues plaguing our homeland today but luckily for Goans, there are many who are busying themselves with being the change. In a previous editorial I wrote of social entrepre-neurship, treating social projects as one would treat an enterprise. I came across a wonderful example of this in the work Vincent Toscano and his associates are doing to increase the level of ‘relevant’ IT penetration in village schools, thus offering rural students the knowledge and opportunity linked to the Software industry. Many of the individuals in the same group are also tirelessly working towards ensuring the right ecosystem for software startups. A few weeks back at the Ketevan Music Festival at Old Goa, I attended the performance of the Bombay Chamber Orchestra with the Goa University Choir. I observed that many of the musicians who per-formed were diaspora Goans performing with local Goans. Similarly, many of the artists who performed during the festival were either Goan or of Goan origin. The musical genius that expressed itself in musical giants like Noel Flores in Austria and Antho-ny Prabhu Gonsalves in Bombay/USA was now find-ing a way to return home to inspire many Goans in Goa to music. A simpler example in the field of photography comes to mind. A Kuwait Goan, Cajetan Baretto, used drones to capture some fantastic aerial views

of Goa. Suddenly, Goa went crazy. They saw their beloved motherland from a new vantage point and his collection of pictures was extremely popular on social media. Suddenly, there was a spurt in ama-teur photographers rushing to capture Goa through

their lens, some even investing in drones. On a per-sonal note I was so enchanted, that I had Cecil Pinto give me an aerial view of the Pilar monastery to sneak into my wedding album. Fashion thathitherto had little to do with Goa sud-denly saw Kunbi inspired prints and fabrics being showcased on the world fashion stage. And yes, it was an originally a Bombay based Goan now settled in Goa who made this happen, our much lauded Wendell Rodricks. He goes beyond this though, by his initiatives of Vera Moda, a fashion museum at Siolim and the interest he has revived in the exquis-ite ‘Pano Bhaju’, a garment that expresses a fantas-tic merging of Indian and Western traditions. The Food, Drink and Culture industry too has seen so many Goans coming back home after enriching their experiences in foreign lands. A whole string of names comes to mind, Hansel Vaz of Cazulo Feni, Vandani Naique of Bodega, Daegal Godinho of Car-pedium to name a few of many. There is a good living to be made back home is the message, if you have the talent, skill and perseverance. In the face of much disillusionment on the political front, such stories are very inspiring and in sharing them it is our interest to assure every Goan that help and hope will come to those who ask for it! This ‘E-mag’ too is a similar exercise. Egged on and inspired by Rene Baretto, we have had an unprece-dented response that required us to put aside some contributions for future issues ! Thank you very much and we hope to continue to

Photograph: Cecil Pinto

Kenelm Santana Lopes Editor, Global Goenkar, Bangalore Summer Edition 2016

KETEVAN MUSIC FESTIVAL

Project GEIT – Modern technology for Goemkarponn to flourish in Goa!

THE VISION Restore the pride of our innovative, creative, enterprising and hardworking ancestors’ heritage by empowering Goans to prosper within Goa. THE STRATEGY Starting with schools, a people’s movement con-ceptualized, planned, funded, organized, sup-ported and monitored by Goans for their eco-nomic self-empowerment using clean, green IT and related technologies to create modern enter-prises and high-end intellectual employment in Goa leveraging the global Goan community and goodwill. THE PROGRESS

GEIT started in 3 Goan village schools this academic year i.e. Gokuldem (Quepem), Neura and Chorao.

Monthly demonstration sessions organized for latest global Science & Technology expo-sure.

Cost effective Raspberry Pi2 kits and old donated hardware from individuals and companies used to fix 70% non-working PCs in school Computer Labs.

Non-existent broadband connectivity ad-dressed on need basis through community funded arrangements.

9-day Diwali2015 vacation camp on MIT’s (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA) child-friendly SCRATCH computer pro-gramming platform.

Children shifting from consumer to the crea-tor side of technology by learning logical thinking, graphics, animation, gaming, sounds and simple mobile apps.

GEIT widely reported in Goan media. Search “GEIT” on Facebook for details.

GEIT team has met Goa Chief Minister Lax-mikant Parsekar and Minister for Science & Technology, Alina Saldanha, to fix school infrastructure issues and modernize the Goan education system.

THE PLAN

Sustain monthly Science & Technology demonstration sessions and the SCRATCH

learning process.

Summer2016 camp on advanced SCRATCH, Hour of Code (code.org), Robotics, Movie-making, etc, culminating in a state level SCRATCH coding contest.

Start work on the online library of learning/teaching material to make regular subjects interesting.

Enable and pressurize Goa government to restore Computer Labs with Raspberry Pi2 kits (total cost just Rs.1.58 crores, proposal submitted) and fix broadband connectivity in all schools.

Revamp current school-level Computers syllabus from clerical to highly creative and use free OpenSource software to reduce costs.

Live online interactions between students and accomplished Goans/experts across the world.

Simplified template to organize SCRATCH sessions in any village school and spread GEIT across Goa.

THE TEAM A couple of a dozen self-driven ad-hoc volunteers spanning an unexpected spectrum of the local society from Tech start-ups, academia, freelanc-ers, professionals to even Secondary students from city schools. This small but expanding team has sparked a positive movement to safeguard our treasured Goemkarponn for posterity. THE LEADERS

Sangeeta Naik, a daughter of Di-var island, brings to GEIT her vast experience in education & an ex-tensive network of invaluable local contributors besides plenty of time sacrificed from her family business.

Vincent Toscano (Also the author of this writeup) a son of Chorao island presently on a year-long sabbatical from work, brings to GEIT his vast IT industry experience, meticulous organiza-

tion skills and high energy levels to execute things at the ground level.

The Sanskrit word for coconut narikera (or narikela) is of Austric origin, and the use of coconuts in Hindu ceremonies is believed to derive from prehistoric Austric practice. Coconut is used in literally hundreds of Hindu ceremonies. In the simplest form a coconut is broken before an image and offered to the deity. Instead of uncorking a champagne bottle in Western style, ships are now cere-monially launched by breaking a coconut on the bows. In Goa, pieces of raw coconut along with jag-gery are served to the guests on the occasion of laying a foundation stone for building a new structure. Also on the sixth day of the birth of a child, grams mixed with coconut cubes are distributed to the relatives and friends. The Hindus will break a coconut at the time of taking the Ganesh idol for immersion, which will be distributed to those present. Coconuts offered for pujas are meant for the temple priests. However, if desired, a part of it can be asked for distribution as Prasad.

The coconut has a special significance for the Hindus. It provides both food and drink. It is a symbol of fertility and a magnified bindu or drop is put on it, and is kept in shrines for presentation to women who desire to become mothers. According to legend, it was created by the magic of Visviamitra, and is believed to be a substitute for the human head, the buck (the tuft of fibre at the end) representing scalp lock. The coconut is therefore offered in place of the human head as a bloodless sacri-fice, yet having the potency of blood. If the tuft is missing its likeness is destroyed and it is useless for sacrificial purposes. Many Hindus will not eat any part of a coconut from which this tuft has been cut off for fear that it might have been removed in the name of some God or spirit other than their sectarian deity. A coconut is never broken in the presence of a pregnant woman in order to prevent a similar occurrence to the head of her child. It is further believed that the coconut has a face resembling a man’s, and its surface is divided into three parts representing Brahma, Visnu and Shiva, that the flesh is formed grad-ually as human flesh is formed, and that un-like other fruit it contains no seed. The coconut is closely associated with Shiva, since its three eyes symbolize the three-eyed God. In some religious rites Shiva is represent-ed by a pot of rice and a coconut; in another representation of Shiva, a figure is made of a vessel filled with myrrh, spices, coins, flowers, rice and grass, topped by a coconut. The fig-ure is garlanded and worshipped. As a child I was told a folk story by my grand-mother. When St. Joseph and Mary were flee-ing from the soldiers of King Herod, they came to seek shelter under a banana tree. It re-fused, by raising its leaves. Next, they rushed to a coconut tree, and it spread its leaves hid-ing the family. In gratitude, Our Lady blessed the coconut tree to give fruit throughout the year and that all its parts would not go to waste. The coconut kernel is consumed as a fruit or as oil, the leaves are used to shelter or protect and its veins to make brooms, the stem for timber and the husk and all the parts of the coconut tree are a good source of fuel and can also be converted into vermicompost. The coconut coir is used to make ropes, bags,etc, and its shell for making utensils. The poor use it to collect alms and it also serves the dual purpose of a plate to eat their meal. On the other hand, the banana tree was curs-ed to bear fruit only once and die thereafter. The coconut is a common ingredient in day to day cooking all over India and specially in Goa.

This penchant for coconut may be because of its abundant availability in the Konkan and the Western coast of India. Big orchards were cultivated in Goa and the sale of coconuts was an important source of income to the owners and also a source of revenue to the Portu-guese government as coconuts, copra and oil are exported to the neighbouring Territories of Union of India. It is the base ingredient in the famous Goan curries, be it plain daily fish-curry or the elaborate special xacuti and it is also used while preparing a number of dishes. The Goans will not cook vegetables without adding coconut, if health permits. The Hindus use coconut in most of the dishes, especially in the preparations like ros, tonnak, ghanti, khatkhatem, etc. Ros is a curry prepared with boiled dal to which ground coconut and garam masala, a seasoning of mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves are added. Tonnak is cooked as an accompaniment to the rice and curry, and normally prepared with beans or grams. In this case the coconut is fried and ground and garam masala added to the previ-ously boiled pulses. If desired, curry leaves and onions may be added while cooking. Moogacheoganthi and khatkhatem are nor-mally prepared during festive occasions and specially during the festival of Ganesh Cha-turthi. The first one is prepared with sprouted moog and the second with assorted vegeta-bles and green peas. In both cases fine ground coconut is used for cooking. Sweet dishes served as savouries at teatime or as desserts are also prepared with coconut. Sweet savouries served at teatime are mostly coconut based. For example a variety of god-chem like onna, moogachemgodchem, fou-achemgodchem are prepared using the coco-nut milk or coconut directly mixed with cooked beans, dal or sprinkled on rice cakes or stuffed in a pancake. The godchem is sweetened with jiggery, normally palm jag-gery by the Catholics and cane sugar by the Hindus. Desiccated coconut goes into the manufac-ture of cakes , pastries and chocolates. A co-conut can also be eaten raw and a tender co-conut with its soft and jelly like kernel is a favourite delicacy. The juice is used as a re-freshing and soothing beverage especially in summer and also to prepare cocktails like pina colada. Copra the dry kernel is used to extract oil, which is used for different purposes as medici-nal or cooking and for cosmetics. Food cooked in coconut oil has a very distinct flavour and taste.

Maria de Lourdes Bravo da Costa Rodrigues

Columnist, Culinary enthusiast and

acclaimed author of seven books on

various diverse topics

The Unparalleled Coconut

Warm greetings from Casa de Goa in Lisboa! In this brief write-up we wish to signal the importance of the contribution of 2nd and 3rd generation Goans to the dissemi-

nation of what Goan culture means to them. In all modern multicultural societies, in these days of globalization and migration, people hold multiple cultural affiliations. We benefit from our own life experience as migrants to describe ourselves as a community that has appropriated customs and traditions of our reception country (Portugal) but has intentionally retained our

own specific cultural traditions, norms and ref-erences. One of the objectives of Casa de Goa is to pro-vide 2nd and 3rd generation Goans with space and opportunities for them to become more sensitive to their Goan heritage and hopefully find in this heritage some cultural traits that can help them better reflect their own identity, the culture of origin of their forefathers and other affiliations. We would like them to celebrate their Goan osmithay, the konknni word for iden-

tity, in whatever ways they wish to. We have chosen to privilege two areas - pro-moting participation and promoting music. In terms of participation, our Momentos 4P (Moments 4P) initiative is essentially dedicated to people between 20 and 45. The 4P stands for 4 objectives – participar (participation); partil-har (sharing); progredir (progress); and promov-er (promotion). It happens 4 times a year and each session lasts for 4 hours. In the musical field, Casa de Goa’s EKVAT group that celebrated 25 years of existence in 2015 has a young group of dancers as one of its most admired features, because of the visual stage element, no doubt, but also because of their widely recognized enthusiasm and dedication. Not only have they been involved in a collective learning process, since we are all amateurs without any formal background in choreogra-phy, but they have also made attempts to con-tribute to new pieces based on their own con-temporary understanding of traditional music and dance thereby contributing to what we would like to consider as a “culture in the mak-ing” process. Another musical group at Casa de Goa, GAMAT, is an intergenerational group where the main artists are young violinists, all of them music students, supported by older musicians. They play (and at times sing) different kinds of music, with a special focus on Goan music. Young people are among those most likely to think that cultural diversity is an asset in their

own growing up process. The idea, therefore, is to retain the interest of the young Gamat musi-cians in the music of the world, while increasing their awareness of the importance of Goan mu-sic as a cultural objective, and, hopefully, as an element of cohesion and an instrument for cul-tural dissemination in the Portuguese society. We, the older generations, can only plant the seed and hope that the flowers and the fruit will blossom in due time. Of the results we cannot be sure because we cannot see today what only the future will reveal.

Virginia Bras Gomes EKVATT

Casa de Goa A bit of Goa …..in Lisboa

There was a time when Goa was known as the

Rome of the East. Her religious splendour rivalled

that of Rome herself. Much of that monumental

splendour has fallen to decay. There remains

however, very ancient rites and observances that

have been preserved till the present day. The

best time to observe this is during the season of

Lent.

One of the rarest of these is the Procession of All

Saints at Goa Velha (not to be confused with Old

Goa) , which occurs on the 5th Monday of Lent at

the Church of St. Andrews. This tradition, was

started in the 17th Century by the Franciscans to

encourage people to emulate the lives of the

Holy Saints. By the 18th Century, there were 65

life sized statues of Saints, richly dressed and

carried in procession in palanquins. When the

procession was stopped for a few years during

the suppression of the religious orders in Portu-

gal ,more than half of these were destroyed by

neglect. With a few statues along with that of

Joseph Vaz being added, the total number of

palanquins now stands at 31. It is a humbling

sight to see ,these statues with their cloth robes

moving in the wind carried on the shoulders of

the Confraria, with devotes passing under the

palanquin in their belief that this act will bless

them.

The Santos Passos is another procession that is

still seen in almost every Goan Church. This hap-

ens on different Sunday’s in different parishes. A

massive statue of Christ carrying the cross and

another one of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows is

carried from the Church through the streets, with

people in mourning colours walking along and

praying fervently.

On Good Friday most Churches have the lower-

ing of the image of Christ from the Cross by the

Confraria, which is then placed on a bier and

carried in procession. However, in the Se Cathe-

dral at OId Goa, a very ancient ceremony takes

place, presided over by the Archbishop. The im-

age of Christ is carried in procession around the

vast Cathedral. The Canons in the Capa Magna

(Capes) lead the procession.

At the end of the route via the many chapels in

the Cathedral, the image is then brought to the

Chapel of the Miraculous Cross, where it is

placed in the Sepulchre with the Archbishop and

Canons reciting ancient prayers in Latin.

To really experience the rich solemnity of these

ancient customs, one must participate in them in

person, in Goa.

Lent in Goa A ncient Traditions

Ancestral Goa - the “Ethnicity” and the celebration of our past

The very concept upon which the ideology of the

landscaped open-air museum; Ancestral Goa is

based upon is a celebration of the ethnic roots of

the Goan society. The very initial stages, the

amalgamation of the cultural identity and the

colonial imposition and finally the essence of a

serious and potent mix of Goanness is what this

tiny land, so beloved, is all about.

In his day, Luis Vas de Camoes had a very strange

abhorrence for this place and he referred to it in

the most derogatory terms possible in his letter

back home. He had been sent to Goa in disgrace

and incidentally that worked to his advantage

whereby Portugal got its greatest hymn to fame

with the “Lusiadas”. A recent disavowal of sorts is

in a blog that denounces the changing face of the

ethnicity that is essentially Goan which begins

with the statement that “Goa was in the History

of Portugal…..” Essentially the diatribe is against

the infusion of pseudo-nationalistic trends that

have brought about a change to the social face of

what was once considered a “Pearl of Culture” in

the upward trend of westernization that came

about because of the colonialism.

“……Almost 5 centuries of influence, and of

course we are different...” says an article that

enhances the differences, social definitions and

moreover the very spirit of the people of Goa, a

state that fiercely fought for its own identity and

gained it. The tragedy though lies in the very

heart of its populace who, “incidentally” says the

afore mentioned article, is less Goan and more

cosmopolitan. The changes that have wrought

havoc have been induced to accommodate the

“others”! It is a very tongue-in-cheek tirade and

though it hits closer to home than is easy to han-

dle it is a humorous picture of the mindset of

what many of the “Diaspora” feel about their

land, close to their hearts and far from their

mind’s eye.

And we, at “Ancestral Goa”, understood the sen-

timent and decided to get to the very heart of

the matter by defining for the present generation

of “Goans” what their land was all about. Besides

the evolutionary architectural listing of struc-

tures, the social and cultural lifestyles and above

all the trades, we decided to enhance the whole

with an aspect of “Difference”. Like one visitor

said, “My heart stuttered at the scent, the feel

and the emotions evoked with my very first step

onto the land of Parashurama.

Museums are generally an elaborate virtual list of

things, artistic and ethnic, cultural and ethereal,

etc, preserved for posterity. What we wanted

was to be different and therein lay the challenge.

We wanted to give the visitor a glimpse and feel

of what Goa, was and in many instances, still is.

Detailing and categorizing the various aspects is

not what this open-air museum is all about. The

“much more” that was a dare was conquered

with the tracing back in time of what was beyond

the mere structural evolution, it lay in the cul-

ture; dance, music, festivals, food and activities,

pre and post conversion. The norms had to be

carefully studied and then highlighted. Care had

to be taken not to create a furor in the difference

of opinion and hurt the sentiments; religious,

social and intellectual. This land had a brilliantly

hued past that over the period of time had

evolved and translated itself to suit the passage

of everything; time, change, rule, society and

colonialism.

We began with “Carnaval” and the rural tradi-

tions practiced; Khell tiatr, Moné and even the

disguise and mascaradas. Every year, Ancestral

Goa celebrates this aspect of the festival with the

adherence to tradition so as to showcase every

factual aspect.

Holi, Raksha Bandhan and Friendship Day; “make

a tree a friend for life”, are all celebrated for the

infusion of “National Integration”, for the benefit

of the various ethnic groups who live and work at

the premises. They also work to promote the

ongoing “protection and preservation of the envi-

ronment and eco-systems programs” at Ancestral

Goa.

Sant Khuris on the 3rd of May is held at the

“Divlleancho Khuris”.

Santo Antonio, on the 13th of June is venerated,

with the prolonged litany of prayers and requests

is celebrated at the cross and boiled gram, pieces

of coconut jaggery and pieces of the coconut

kernel are served.

São João on the 24th of June is held with all the

fanfare of the Brass band, coconut and jaggery

sweets, kanjee (a rice broth) and salt fish and

chepnim (salt water mango pickle). A recently

inaugurated installation highlights the various

traditional practices for the visitor.

The Khajekar, selling local sweets made from

sugar, coconut, jaggery and gram flour, the tem-

ple dances, the performers of the Mando, Fugddi

and the various other festival cultural show piec-

es are displayed in various installations. These

come alive at the optimum festival celebration

times.

The “Ladainha” with the procession of singers,

candles and devout and “Ganesh mahotsav” are

also a part of the ethnic display features.

The festival of traditional games enters its 3rd

year and has been a great success with the local

and urban schools.

World Goa day on the 20th of August is a high-

light of all this and more.

On a singularly enhanced platter of richly hued

colors we offer every visitor a “Feast for the

senses”.

Ancestral Goa - a center for preservation of

Art, Culture and Environment created by

Maendra Jocelino Araujo Alvares, situated at

Bigfoot, Loutolim

Communicare Trust Teaching local and foreign languages in Goa One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way - Frank Smith A group of young students and few adults gather at Communicare Trust regularly for their lan-guage classes. Most of these participants speak three languages— English, Konkani and either their mother tongue or Hindi. They have come to Communicare Trust to learn a fourth lan-guage, precisely a foreign one—Portuguese, French, German, Spanish. For the students learning a foreign language, it is not a fad or a means to show off. They know 'English is not enough' and learning a foreign language will only increase their advantage in the job mar-ket. Even Shakespeare's great comedy "Twelfth Night" has a gentleman being praised, "He plays the viol-de-gamboys, speaks 3 or 4 languages and hath all the good gifts of nature." This brings to the fore the importance of learn-ing another language apart from English. The English language has only 26 letters, whereas German, Portuguese and Spanish have a number of accents that give rise to new sounds. Mind you, we are not saying that English is not need-ed. But, every language is special and worth learning in its own right. Knowing multiple lan-guages is always good for diversity, as it has a number of psychological benefits when taught from a tender age. The power that other lan-guages have in their form makes English as a language appear weak. Even the HRD ministry while drafting the new education policy, under the head of “Promotion

of Languages”, sought views from various states on teaching foreign languages in schools. A news report in one of the national dailies stated that, "In what could compel the drafting committee of the new education policy to take a stand in fa-vour of teaching foreign languages in schools, 11 States and Union Territories (UTs) have come out in support of students learning French, Ger-man and Mandarin, among others, for better employment opportunities." Teaching foreign languages is now one of the key discussion points for the new education policy, which was expected to be unveiled on February 29. But then one can ask, why should one learn a foreign language? After all, the whole world speaks English! To begin with speaking more than one language helps one in multi-tasking. It also helps one educationally, economically, de-velops one's personality and culture—it gives us access to a whole new culture, where our lives can take on a whole new dimension. The Ger-man poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in 1827 said, "Whoever is not acquainted with foreign languages knows nothing of his own." At Communicare Trust when we teach students a foreign language we not only take texts from that language, but we focus and walk students through that particular region where the lan-guage has originated. Students learn about the rich social, political and cultural history associat-ed with that particular language. In short we get into the heart of the language. Learning a language can be compared to a jour-ney of discovery—exciting and enriching for our minds. However, this journey can only take

place when it is done with dedication and pa-tience. February 21 is celebrated as Internation-al Mother Tongue Day. Sarah Caldwell said, "Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can; there will always come a time when you will be grateful you did." While the primary pride will continue to remain with English, it is time we each begin a love affair with languages. To know more about Communicare Trust log on to: Official website of Communicare Trust teaching local and foreign languages in Goa.

Nalini Elvino de Sousa Manager Communicare Trust

Viva Carnaval ! Update 2016 Carnival in Goa has evolved from it’s early days. From its humble origins of being played amongst friends in the streets with ‘cocotes’ to the big jamboree it is today, King Momo has become the reigning crown of four days of fun, frolic and much merriment. The much awaited cultural festival in the calen-dar sees tourists flock from across India and the world. Dates are booked in advance and this year the Indian railways introduced a special train to carry visitors across the border into Goa. That’s not all. The 2016 edition turned the spot-light on the Destination Carnival project. Dept of Tourism recently tied up with UK based Brouha-ha International that linked the cultures of South Africa, UK and India through dance. The exchange program seeks to create a interconti-nental mingling of arts and talent. The four from Goa-Milroy Quadros, Seby Gaun-car, Agnelo D’Souza and Raul Singh of Dance Illusions joined 11 of their counterparts from the other two countries and put on a splendid cross cultural act that saw a combination of

African moves, contemporary with Latin. They were the star acts after the lead float that had King Momo and his smiling queen Nachom ia Kumpasar lead actress Palomi Ghosh, who en-

thralled audiences with a Lorna number. In Panjim the parade wound it’s way through the usual route in the city and had it’s share of traditional elements and modernity. There were depictions of Goa’s rural life, the usual clowns, sponsored floats and some added an interesting

eco-friendly touch to their floats. One shaped old plastic bottles into a fish, while another re-used cold drink bottles to make a huge minion. There were plenty of after parties around as visitors could choose from the Samba Square and the Grapescapade. In the South, the carnival took on a different turn with city planners diverting the float pa-rade to the Ravindra Bhavan-Fatorda stadium route. The throngs gathered along the roads, climbing on buildings, walls to catch a glimpse of the floats. The entertainment program ensured the party continued for three days. The merri-ment continued for the four days, before it was time to bid King Momo adieu for the moment, only to return next year.

Nicole Suares Journalist and Photography Enthusiast

Photo: JoeGoaUK

Grace, power and pace. Drama and excitement. This is football, the incredible game which has captivated hearts of players and fans all over the world. Football loving Goans in the Gulf are not immune to the fever either. Throughout the year, one can see players and teams playing their hearts out as they try to better their game with renewed interest and tactics. The summer heat and winter chill does not deter the spirits of foot-ball fans and players in the Gulf. The Kuwait India Football Federation (KIFF), an umbrella of the Indian expat football clubs is dominated by a large number of Goan football teams. KIFF, the only one of its kind in the Gulf conducts an annual 11-a-side football league. Several other one-day tournaments are also held under its patronage. The majority of the league titles and tournament championships are won by the Goan clubs. United Goans, Goan Overseas Association (Goa Maroons), Santos Football Club, CRC Chinchinim, AVC, Curtorcars United, Colva United Centre and Navelim Youth Centre are among the top Goan clubs that have carved a niche in Kuwait expat football. Bahrain is considered as family-friendly nation of the Gulf. Bahrain has much more relaxed rules and customs compared to other Gulf States. This

environment has been very favourable to

Goans, who organise a large number of social activities on this island. However, football re-mains regular sports throughout the year that brings a pretty good number of Goans together. ‘Bahrain Goans’, a group of handful of die-hard football loving fans have been at the forefront of organising football in Bahrain for over 2 decades with their slogan ‘promoting friendship through sports’. Bahrain Goans are also indebted or or-ganising several football tournaments for Gulf Goans in Bahrain. The Young Goans Club, the only registered institution of Goans in Bahrain,

that was at the top in expat football in yester-years, is now finding hard to field a strong team of its own with good players donning colours of other Goan outfits. Salcette United, Assagao Sporting, Panjim Footballers and Canacona are formidable teams that play quality football in Bahrain. Dubai is another major hub of Goan football activity. The inter-village football league of Goan Cultural Society played regularly for over 25 years attracts as many as 20 teams. Such is the football fever among Goans in Dubai. Vanxim Divar, FC Bardez, ABC Benaulim, Varca, Panjim, Vasco, Raia, Morjim and AVC are some of the popular teams that fight out for the top spot in this competition. There are sporting headlines of Goans uniting under football in Oman and Qatar as well. The Goan Community of Oman and the Goan Welfare Association Doha help promote football among Goans in their respective Gulf States. Football among Goans in Gulf fulfils its function to divert one's mind from work whilst bringing the Goans together on off days and holidays. The coming together of Goans on football fields in the Gulf also turns out as a meeting place, where they talk and discuss a wide range of topics on Goa over a match of football.

Football Bringing Goans Together…….in the Gulf GR Crasto Editor—Xitt Koddi Newsletter ,Bahrain Goans

Di Taka...

Shigmo 2016 Through the lens

Cecil Pinto Ethnographer, Photographer & Event Manager, Aldona

with Goans looking very chic in their white cottons, linens and casuals for the white themed event. The MC Lloyd Sequeira rolled off festivities with the games session including ‘stampin the tail’..(Get a crepe paper tail and are required to pull it out with legs; one partner had to protect it and the other tried to remove), balancing the balls(a mushy affair involved couples balanc-ing plastic balls between the nose, forehead and lips) and loads of others with interesting Goa related quiz ques-tions being thrown to the crowd for prizes. Our president Louella made a speech though her effervescence said far more than her few lines as she gushed with happiness at the beaming crowd and the huge contingent of young Goans who were so enthusiastically attending and participating for the first time in KGA history. A few dances were in order of course and the long time KGA members led the way to the dance floor. It was obvi-ous at this stage that the event was a runaway success to be celebrated with the mouth watering starters that were being sent across by the courteous Opus staff faster than we could eat them. All pretensions of diet and gluttony being a sin were abandoned as we sunk our teeth into the chouris

GOAN GROUPS ACROSS THE WORLD ARUSHA INSTITUTE-Tanzania, East Africa CASA DE GOA -Lisbon, Portugal CULTURAL SOCIETY-GOA DAMAN & DIU -MACAU EDMONTON GOAN ASSOCIATION-Edmonton,Canada FENNY FEVER - UK G.N.A.T.- Canada G.O.A. Kuwait, UAE GLOBAL GOANS - Dubai, UAE GOA HERITAGE ACTION GROUP, Goa-India GOAN ASSOCIATION CALGARY, Alberta-Canada GOAN ASSOCIATION OF DC, USA GOAN ASSOCIATION OF FLORIDA-USA GOAN ASSOCIATION OF HUDSON, USA GOAN ASSOCIATION OF NEW JERSEY-USA GOAN COMMUNITY OF OMAN-Oman GOAN INSTITUTE KAMPALA -UGANDA GOAN INSTITUTE SAN FRANCISCO-USA GOAN OVERSEAS ASSOCIATION -GERMANY GOAN OVERSEAS ASSOCIATION -NSW - Sydney, Australia GOAN OVERSEAS ASSOCIATION -TORONTO - CANADA GOAN OVERSEAS ASSOCIATION-Vancouver,Canada GOAN SHUTTERBUGS GOAN VOICE UK GOAN WELFARE ASSOCIATION-Doha, Quatar GOANS IN BANGALORE-India GOANS in HOUSTON -USA GOANS in NETHERLANDS GOANS INTERNATIONAL GOANS Of America ,LA-USA GOANS of MOZAMBIQUE GOANS of PAKISTAN GOANS of UGANDA GOANS WORLDWIDE GOENKARANCHO EKVOTT- Delhi, India KARACHI GOAN ASSOCIATION - KARACHI KARNATAKA GOAN ASSOCIATION - Bangalore, India KONKANI ROCKS & HERITAGE JAZZ - Panjim, Goa MUMBAI GOA ASSOCIATION-Mumbai, India QUEBEC GOAN ASSOCIATION - Quebec, Canada SERULA ARTS AND CULTURE ACADEMY ST XAVIERS SOCIETY - Dar es Salaam, Tanzania THE CANORIENT CHRIST ASSOCIATION OF METROPOLITAN TORONTO-Canada YOUNG LONDON GOAN SOCIETY- UK

We thank all our contributors. Please ensure that your contributions are sent well ahead of time for future editions. Due to the tremendous response, we might not have the space to include it at the last minute. Any errors/omissions are unintentional. Presidents of Goan Associations/Groups enrolled with us are requested to update information/logos with Mr. Rene Barreto The content and details of the contributors are published as received. Any differences over details may be settled with individuals directly for redressal if any. We welcome you to contribute enthusiastically to upcoming editions. E-Mail: goanint@yahoo.co.uk, globalgoenkar@gmail.com

Someone envisaged bringing as many Goan’s onto one common platform and what better way than to celebrate a day together all over the world, as one entity. And this gave rise to the WORLD GOA DAY CELEBRATIONS which has now taken root and gained momentum in most parts of the world where we GOANS come to-gether, on one designated day, each in our own country/region, to each celebrate in our own way, the beauty of having originated from this special land GOA! And so once again, we now want to transcend all remaining barriers, in order to bring all of our GOAN COMMUNITIES, ASSOCIATIONS and GROUPS.. TOGETHER, onto one common platform to UNITE and PROJECT ourselves, our language, our culture and our being, for the entire world to see. To be able to speak out with one voice, on issues that plague us as Goans, or even to simply be able to express ourselves clearly to those who hold authority over us wherever we may be or to just share of ourselves, our thoughts and our talents for the good of society and mankind and thus be able

to tap into the vast potential of our existence. Our current groups, associations and communi-ties will continue their individual existence but we shall be one force to reckon with, when we also partake of being A GLOBAL GOAN COMMU-NITY. Lets imagine a scenario where a particular Goan group has some problem and inspite of best efforts is unable to find a solution and say it sadly lacks good sound lega advice. Now at the very same time, there exists in our other groups elsewhere in the world, this much needed ex-pertise, which problem therefore if not placed and discussed in such common forum or platform like the Global Goan Community, the ailing group would end up being the loser for not being able to tap into the existing potential of our very own people, our very own Goans. This is but one such example. The talent of our experienced elders, our budding youth, our hard working members of our entire Global Community could thus be showcased here on this one common platform. Oh well, this mostly seems to be my understanding of wanting to have Global Goan Unity. However for this to happen, we would need to put aside our personal agendas, our personal issues and reach out wanting to be ONE, we would need most of all to WORK TOGETHER, to share our ideas together, to freely give of our time and our talents, not for commercial gain or for fame

but simply to show the world… WE ARE GOAN AND ARE PROUD TO BE SO! Would you agree or do you think that there probably are so many more reasons why we must unite and present one common front glob-ally. Tell us then what you think.. tell us how we can achieve this, tell us the ways we can com-mence and get this beautiful idea off the ground, tell us what are the other reasons we must unite and speak out in one forum and on one common platform, as one voice. Today, we have Goans living all over the world, on differ-ent continents, in different countries and re-gions, amongst diverse and multi cultures, so don’t you think that we need to be able to ex-press ourselves to the rest of the world, to be visible to others and share with others, the rich-ness of our origin, our land, our language, our music, our sport, our dance and who we truly are. If you agree, if your association so deems it fit, if your Goan community wherever you are thinks along these lines, or even if as individuals, you feel you have so much more to give, then come along and join the band wagon, we have floated the GLOBAL GOAN COMMUNITY, but we NEED EACH OF YOU TO HOP ON!!

Maria Romano Fernandes Arusha, Tanzania &

P.O. Box 28717, Kampala, Uganda.

GLOBAL GOAN UNITY