The Slow Life At Vivenda dos Palhacos, South Goa

Vivenda dos Palhacos was an obvious choice. I chose South Goa over North Goa to stay away from crowded places. I’m not into beaches, beer or parties. I like quiet places. I like places that exude charm. I like heritage. No wonder Vivenda, a hundred-year-old Portuguese mansion in Majorda, made me book my tickets to Goa without any reluctance.

I have always been a slow traveler. Now when slow travel is the new normal, I am even more persuaded towards it. I have always chosen places thoughtfully – places that are experiential and a little offbeat. So yes, my travel choices have made me adjust to the new normal with quite an ease.

To my comfort, Vivenda dos Palhacos followed all the new safety protocols, such as luggage sanitization and temperature checks of the guests. The staff wore masks all the time. There were sanitizers placed in every area of the mansion to ensure hand hygiene of everybody.

Each and every corner of Vivenda is art personified. From the verandah, lounge, dining area to the rooms, it’s a place crafted with passion and it’s meant to be enjoyed with passion.

Each room has its own story to tell – Konnagar, where I stayed, was named after a city in West Bengal, while other rooms are named after places, such as Alipore, Ooty, Madras, Darjeeling and Ballygunge.  

The privilege of not doing anything is what you receive at Vivenda dos Palhacos, quite liberally. Interestingly, there are a few things that you might miss at Vivenda, such as tea making provision in your room – electric kettle, tea bags, sugar, etc. There is no phone in the room either. You got to walk out and reach out to appropriate staff for your needs.

Check out my complete guide to Slow Travel In South Goa.

But I guess, that’s fine. The hospitality is still very much in place. The staff is always at your service. They smile, greet and help you with whatever you may need.

I’d say Vivenda is a hotel with a difference.

The Slow Life At Vivenda dos Palhacos, South Goa

Breakfast in the balcony

My most favorite experience at Vivenda was the ‘breakfast in the balcony’ that I savored each morning with my mum. We would get up quite early, sometimes even before the sunrise, to be able to make the most of the beautiful morning hours in the balcony of our room.

We would be delighted to see the packet of fresh local pao (bread) hung on the gate. The village murmur around, the buffalos, roosters, pigs and dogs, the cute honking by the breadman, would paint a typical South Goan day for us.

We would be served breakfast in our balcony – fresh fruits, porridge, pao, eggs or whatever we wanted. And at my behest, they even served turmeric, lemon and honey for me to make my own immunity booster.

Well, travel during a pandemic has to come with quite a bit of immunity consciousness, right?

Also read: My Breakfast Stories From India

Afternoon lull and the books.

Our afternoons would trail off relaxing in our room. Doing nothing is the main business at Vivenda. They welcome their guests with the idea – ‘Eat, drink and sleep by appointment’, which is absolutely appropriate.  

There’s also a beautiful swimming pool in the backyard of the mansion. It’s a place to sunbathe, enjoy a drink or two, and soak in the nature’s bounty.      

Vivenda has quite a great collection of books, too. So, I laid my hands on some. My mum picked up some poetry books.

I love such hotels that allow you to slow down and not care about an activity.

Surprisingly, Vivenda was quite a full house during our stay. However, we hardly bumped into other guests much. Everybody maintained a safe distance. And the fact that there are so many spaces to chill out at Vivenda helped us do our own thing without any room for close contact with anybody.

Spontaneous walks around the mansion.

My mum and I went out for short walks around Vivenda. We explored the village, the beach and a couple of restaurants.

Majorda, which is known to be one of the nicest beaches in Goa, is barely a kilometer from Vivenda. We would go for morning walks along the beach.

Popular restaurants like Martin Corner and Pentagon are also quite close to the mansion. We enjoyed an open-air lunch at Pentagon on one of the afternoons during our stay.

Also read: My Offbeat Travel Experiences In Goa

Tea-time in the evening.

Besides breakfast, tea-time is something that I look forward to wherever I go. Vivenda is a place for such joys of life – tea or coffee served in a vintage fashion with some locally baked cookies. I simply love such experiences.

We would sit at the common lounge or at the dining table listening to some soothing music and would relish the evening.

Dinner on order – the meal of the day.

I loved the simple meals from Vivenda’s kitchen. The dinner used to be quite an affair, though. They would set the meal of the day right in the morning and would let you know about it.

My most memorable meal was the Pomfret served with lots of salad. It was delicious.

So yes, it was all about good food at Vivenda.  

The house, the dogs and the atmosphere.

Vivenda dos Palhacos is meant to make you forget the miseries of life. It’s a place to indulge in laziness, afternoon naps, tea, coffee, or wine and just being… Of course, you can take your own excursions to explore South Goa.

But I guess, it’s better to just immerse yourself into the slow life of South Goa, and the Portuguese heritage at Vivenda.

The dogs would hover around us once in a while. It was cute. Sadly, one of the dogs named Totty passed away on the day we checked out. She was old and weak. Sometimes, you can have such heartbreaking moments on your travels.

Note: My stay at Vivenda dos Palhacos was sponsored. However, all opinions and photographs, as always, are my own.

Have you stayed at an old Portuguese house in South Goa?

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