BOOK-EXTRACT ----------------------------------------- Domnic Fernandes was Goanet's find. After he started writing his uber-interesting reminiscences of the Goa of the yesteryears in cyberspace through this network over a decade ago, many appreciated his work. After writing his first book in 2007 ('Domnic's Goa') and his second on Mapusa in 2012, Domnic's latest book called 'Village Anjuna' ISBN 978-93-80739-98-4 gets released on this weekend. The author invites every Goanetter and relatives back home for this function in Anjuna on coming Sunday evening. Details below. This text is an extract from his latest book. ---------------------------------------
In the middle of the last century, life in Goa was hard. It was not an easy task, but the people of those times had neither high aspirations nor did they work themselves to the bone to become wealthy, as is the case today. People lived for the day. They depended solely on Mother Nature for their daily requirements. RINTTE, THE INEDIBLE SOAP BERRIES They say: 'Cleanliness is next to godliness' and man has followed this adage. There were no power laundries around, but the few clothes owned were regularly washed. Detergents then were not as abundantly available. So, with what did he wash his clothes? He made use of a natural detergent, rintte (small, round, inedible soap-producing berries). Practically every ward in Anjuna then had a few rintteachim zhaddam (trees bearing inedible berries). Once the rintte were ripe and dried on the tree, they would fall to the ground, just like boram (sweet-sour local berries). Every morning, people, especially women, would gather under the trees and collect as many rintte as they needed for the day. They would sometimes gather extra rintte, dry and store them in a panttulo (basket made of bamboo), as a contingency stock. Here is how rintte were used: housewives would fill a bucket with water, place two handfuls of rintte in it and leave them to soak overnight for maximum soap extraction. Washing clothes was an early morning chores so that clothes could be put out to dry in the open when the sun rose. As soon as women woke up, they would stir water in the bucket with their hands in order to check the formation of lather, which was as good as that of any detergent today. They would keep the soiled clothes in the bucket for soaking until breakfast for the family was prepared. By then, washing the soaked clothes became much easier. Clothes were washed on a large rôp duvpachi fatorn (stone for washing of clothes), placed at a height on a pedestal of stones. Washing was done by pressing and rubbing clothes on a washing stone, but thick and heavily soiled clothes were either beaten with a solid, round tonnko (bludgeon) preferably of bamboo, or they would just swirl and hit the clothes on the washing stone, every swirl accompanied by a sound: Shh... Shhhh! Shh... Shhhh! Shh... Shhhh! In the case of obstinate stains, they would pick some rintte from the bucket and rub them into the spots, and the stains would completely disappear. We never used rintte at my home to wash our clothes, but I would collect and pass them on to those of my neighbours who could not afford to buy washing soap. Today, we have dozens of brands of detergents to wash clothes. Most middle class people use a washing machine. In Anjuna, there was a Christian professional mainato (Portuguese word) or moddvoll (washer man). He was quite short in stature and always wore a pair of white shorts and a short-sleeved white shirt. As we know, the collar of a shirt gathers more dirt than the rest of the shirt, and it was worse in those days with heavy dust flying in the air from muddy roads. Therefore, the washer man, like some people, placed a folded handkerchief under collar of his shirt to avoid dirt on the collar. He did the laundry of the affluent as well as of St. Michael's Church. Because of his long association with the church he was allotted a paddy field, which he cultivated with paddy. A Hindu woman from Baga also collected laundry around Anjuna. Fair in complexion, she would wear a blouse and sari that was folded into a kastto (a form of dressing of the sari used by fisher-women). She picked-up dirty clothes on a Saturday and returned them washed in a week. She would count the clothes and tie them together with one of the dirty clothes. She wrapped clothes in a bed sheet and carried the bundle on her head. As kids, we wondered how she never mixed up clothes among her clientele. The moddvoll washed clothes at a well, and these were then strung on a rope between two trees. Mid-20th century, it was a fashion to wear starched clothes, especially white shirts. Many post-Liberation politicians opted to wear white starched shirts. Washermen did the starching, but we also did it at home using kanji (gruel) paste! Apart from being used for washing clothes, rintte were also used to catch summer fish, especially the thigur (walking catfish). Villagers collected a panttlo-bhôr (basketful) of rintte and threw the whole lot in a pond of knee-deep or less water in summer when the water level goes down. It is otherwise not easy to catch the thigur which live immersed in chikol (silt). As soon as rintte get soaked, the chemical in them is released in the water and this affects the fish, especially their eyes. In an hour's time, the thigur come out of the silt and move about restlessly in the water. This is when the catchers cast their koblem (a round bamboo or metal ring fixed with a net) and net a sizeable catch. Probably nobody follows this method of fishing now. Even if we wished to, there are hardly any rintteachim zhaddam left. I did join the Gaumvaddi boys a few times in the late 1950s in their thigur-catching adventures. There is quite a big shallow pond in the late Dr. Floriano D'Souza's plot, just behind the present day Go Carting Track, known as Babuchem Voll (a thick jungle strip belonging to Babu -- a nickname for Dr. Floriano, the dentist). We discovered the pond through one of the boys from Dr. Floriano's ward, Ximer (at the Arpora border), and we carried out our fishing raid in the pond with that boy's assistance. This illustrates the saying, ghorcho bhedi, bhailo chor, or, one commits a theft with the help of an insider. Friends always offered me my share of thigur and other fish like khorvo, konkari and denkle, but they needed it more than me so I often gave it back. I tasted thigur only once in my lifetime. The present generation hardly ever gets into such adventures. There are no more dhaddeo baimieo vo ondde (abandoned dry wells or puddles), as these relics of the past are filled up by the new buyers of plots. A COCONUT SHELL-FIRED IRON Electricity had not yet reached Anjuna during our childhood. Ironing clothes was quite a difficult task; we had to use a kott'tteanchem ferr (coconut shell-based metal iron box). One of the day's tasks, besides washing clothes, was to iron clothes. If possible, we would collect clothes while a little damp (to facilitate ironing), and then gather sukheo kott'tteo (dry coconut shells) and set fire to them. We would sometimes place kott'tteo directly in the iron box. If burnt outside, we would collect the burnt shells with a chimtto (pincher) and place them in the iron box. We'd check if the iron box was hot by placing saliva on the middle finger and applying it to the base. If the saliva sizzled, the iron box was ready for use. The coal in the box would go cold after some time. We would then open the lid of the box and fan the coal with a notebook, cardboard, or ainno (manual fan), to reheat it. I learned to iron clothes as a child by watching someone do it once, and have since mastered the technique of ironing various types of clothes including suits! The first powered laundry in Anjuna was started by Dinu (Dinesh) Mayekar in Voilo Vaddo, Gaumvaddi in 1991 but he closed it down because of other commitments. The next powered laundry in Anjuna was Collin Zuzarte's City Power Laundry, which he also started at his home in Voilo Vaddo, Gaumvaddi in 1998. It caught fire in May 2015 and got completely gutted. Machinery has been ordered, and, at the time of writing, the laundry is expected to resume operations by October 2015. CLOVES FOR CAVITIES, LEAVES AS TOOTHBRUSHES Life in the 1950s and the 1960s was not a piece of cake; daily life involved much hardship. Even if some could afford to buy essentials, most depended on nature. Minus any man-made adulteration. Hygiene was not a top priority, but people lived a better life then. We brushed our teeth only once, in the morning. At night, we would just gargle with water, after a glass of milk, before retiring to bed. Today, people brush their teeth at least thrice daily, and yet they have innumerable dental problems. In the 1950s and the 1960s, whenever one had a toothache, one would place a clove in the cavity and the pain would gradually subside; clove oil was also used. Of course, if the pain persisted, the tooth was simply extracted. Anjunkars' nearest dentist was Dr. Floriano D'Souza in Arpora, on whose property the Haystack, Saturday Night Bazaar and Go-Carting are now located. There was also another dentist in Siolim. The best dentist in Mapusa town then was Dr. Peres da Costa, adjoining the Mapusa Municipal building compound. Ashok Sardessai from Candolim began his dentistry in the Sirsat Building in Mapusa in the late 1960s. When I grew up, most people did not use toothbrushes and paste. The only toothbrush-cum-paste that was easily and abundantly available was natural leaves. Long before chlorophyll was introduced in toothpastes, we used mango, cashew, guava leaves and neem tree twigs, which were rich in chlorophyll. Nowadays, three types of tooth brushes are available -- hard, medium and soft. We also had three corresponding types of leaves: hard brush -- mango tree leaf; medium brush -- cashew tree leaf; and soft brush -- guava tree leaf. Since my house is located at the foot of a hill, I was privileged to have all three types of brushes cum pastes in our compound, and I would make use of each one of them every alternate day. I would pluck one of the leaves from the tree, fold it in the middle, remove the stem, turn it into a roll and brush my teeth until the roll was worn out. I did not buy any toothbrush or paste until the age of 15 when I joined St. Anthony's High School in Monte de Guirim as a boarder. Do I regret it? Not at all! By the grace of God, all my 32 teeth are still intact, without a speck, thanks to the presence of chlorophyll in fresh leaves which helped people of my generation maintain their teeth without much problem. People in those days also used charcoal from the chul (tri-stone fire place) to brush their teeth. Post-Liberation, some people opted to clean their teeth (with a finger), using Monkey brand tooth powder in place of leaves and that too proved to be quite effective. Nowadays, whenever on an overnight visit to relatives or friends, one has to make sure to carry a toothbrush and paste. In the past, we did not have to worry about such a requirement, as most compounds in Goa have at least a mango or guava tree, and if a house is located by the hill side, one can also easily find cashew leaves there. Actually, brushing of teeth is more important at night than in the morning, but most people think that it is a must in the morning. Old habits die hard! -- 'Village Anjuna' is being released on October 4, 2015, at St John the Baptist Chapel, Gaumvaddi, Anjuna at 4.45 pm. The function is open to the public. The book will be available at major outlets in Goa (including Golden Heart Emporium, Margao) and via mail order from goa1...@gmail.com