Maria's restaurant serves the most delicious food at the back of her quaint old Portuguese-Goana sytled house. Before, her now late husband used to run the place. Maria is the patron of yore. She'll come to your table personally no matter how crowded the place is, and ask if everything is alright. Although I never knew she was a descendant of Vasca da Gama, it's easy to see, she is a mestico.
We go there often, more for the nostalgia than the food. Why do we Catholic Goans need this nostalgia? Because for 4 centuries, one way or another the lives of Catholic Goans have been entwined with that of the Portuguese. To pretend otherwise is ridiculous. And while I do understand that the history of Hindu Goans has been divergent, and we have to mindful of that, they too should be mindful of our sentiments. This constant harping against the Portuguese, is nothing but a sublimated sore. When I look at the politics behind it, it is nothing more than anger directed at Catholic Goans in disguise. Best, Selma ________________________________