As I mentioned in my previous post, the bus ride from Bangalore to Goa is 14 hours long, that ended up being a slight over estimate as it only took us 13 hours to get there. It’s beginning to hit me how big this country really is… and how terrible their infrastructure is. Driving the same distance on an American freeway would only take about 6 hours. But, it was well worth it; Goa is incredible.
The guide book mentioned that in the 1960’s Goa became a hippie hotspot and that some of them stayed. I underestimated how true this statement really was and in turn was pleasantly surprised by how saturated the place was with hippies! Just for perspective, we were staying in Anjuna which is known for its hippies, but still.
Near our hostel a few of the locals had set up shop and were selling hippie clothes, beach wear, various trinkets and some basic drug paraphernalia. While I was perusing the shacks one of the shop keepers went over to a guy checking out a mini-bong across the small alley. She asked if he wanted it and he replied in the affirmative but added that he had no use for it because he was “dry.” Without missing a beat the hostel owner came over and asked the guy what he wanted. A few minutes and one, possibly two, drug deal(s) later everyone went on their merry way. Maybe 15 minutes after that when I was heading back to my room, my curiosity got the better of me. As I walked by the hostel owner I inquired as to what the drug laws were here. He very casually told me that all drugs are illegal and the penalties are very severe, but that for a couple hundred rupees a week to the police the whole legality issue could be avoided. He also added that there’s almost no drug related violence in the area and that makes things easy. Then he offered me drugs.
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