Thanks Francis. We are back in New York, but judging by lack of response, I guessed as much that this year's gathering was probably going to be as boring as dead men' requiem.
There could be several reasons for the waning enthusiam - Here are few that cross my mind: 1. People stay off the grid when on vacation. I did, so I know this very well. Didn't check my inbox for days on. 2. Every single day you get in Goa is very precious. So people do not have much time to hang out with other GoaNetters/strangers. 3. People in the South aren't going to spend half day travelling to the North, just to meet a bunch of GoaNetters. A place convenient for both sides would make sense. 4. It makes more sense to publish tentative meeting dates/place in advance - such as in the month of October or November so that folks get ample time to decide on where and when to meet. 5. The meeting ought to be more than just meeting and eating. There's too much food flowing in Goa in December and folks are bored to death eating Goan delicacies. Frankly, I don't visit someone just to meet and eat anymore - it's got to be more than that. For example, this time, we organized a picnic and had all my friends come and join us at the beach. This way, it saved me travel time and effort to go around meeting each of my friends individually. Other times, we had friends and family visit us at our place - booze, music, games and dancing ... all to be found in one place. Had a really fun time. While I am at it, I should point out that Goans have become more creative about entertainment. Some of the best entertainment is never advertised in local media nor the web. It's all about the word of mouth. Why the secrecy? I think Goans are done with having 'Ghanttis' spoiling their dances and parties. Unless you know the local party crowd or are familiar with the local entertainment scene, you will be left out of the action. For example, we learned of a nice Christmas eve dance but saw no advertisement in the media. My local contacts organized a bunch of tickets for us. The tickets weren't cheap and cost double as much for stags. We were pleasantly surprised to find awesome bands playing great music. But above all, the ALL GOAN crowd was FANTASTIC. Everybody was well heeled and absolutely no 'Ghanttis' - which is how good entertainment should be! I could go on and on ... but if you ever want to have great entertainment in Goa, get in touch with the local party goers. Let the Ghanttis spend their big bucks at the five star hotels - that crap ain't for us, Goans. Cheers .... and ... Happy New Year to all. Jim Fernandes Scarsdale, New York. On Mon, 2 Jan 2017 23:06:22 +0000, Francis Rodrigues <fcarodrig...@hotmail.com> wrote: > Hey All, > Rico did try, but it was a lost cause - too few takers, and nary a > suitable venue in sight, not to mention Rico's overloaded schedule! > > I had the distinct pleasure of being hosted by him at his residence in > Saligao last week, before we return to the UK and N. America this week. > ... ...
