Goa

We are couchsurfing here in Panjim, Goa. Our host is very accomadating and kind. We have been staying at his riverside house with a couple of other girls who are travelling. We have our own room and private bathroom. Its been much more than we expected! Daniel, our host is also a mango biodiversity conservationist. He has grafted several varieties of mangos from the Goa region onto his trees on his property, and intends to increase his collection. He also has a large variety of fruit and nut trees on the property.
We have tried to see the city today, but haven't been very succesful, maybe this evening. Tomorrow we are going to check out an organic Spice Plantation nearby. Hopefully get to interview and chat with the owners. We've planned our trip around visits to organic plantations and farms, and hope to get a larger, wider perspective of what Organic Farming and food sovereignty is like in India and be able to combine that with what we have seen with Navdanya.
Some things still need to be planned, and we are squeezing in visits to the beach and to the temples, etc. as well.
Yesterday we spent the afternoon on a beach in North Goa, where we "hiked" to a fresh water swimming hole and mini waterfall. The night we arrived we went to a beautiful beach right near Panjim, and cooked a fish that Daniel and the girls had caught earlier that day. We stepped into the water just a bit. Goa has been a sigh and gulp of fresh air for us in terms of no-stress travel. Nobody harasses us or even approaches us while walking or travelling. People are very helpful and calm. Even the streets are calmer and quieter! We can't tell if this is from the beach or just a Goan trend. Whatever it is, we like it!
Our stopover in Delhi went fantastically with friends of Hannah's from UPeace. They showed us the city, took very good care of us, and let us in on some Delhi secrets. We plan to meet back up with them just before I fly home. We didnt make it to Agra, because our day that we planned it, Friday, it isnt open to public...silly us, so we will have to get there just before I leave.
Amritsar was amazing! The golden temple was just gorgeous and so peaceful! The history in Amritsar is so rich and really made it feel special to be there. We went to the Wagha Border ceremony and that was interesting. I dont think I would go again...it is a lot of men yelling and showing their testosterone is running, but it was an experience. Such a change to be in the south!
We are trying to plan and book the rest of our time in India to make sure we see and do everthing we want and need to; get to farms, organizations, interview people, visit offices, see the sights, meet up with friends and have fun!
I hope to be able to visit an SOS Children's village in the north after Diwali. I will spend Diwali with Meera and we should be able to solidify our arrangement. I also hope to be able to hold some sort of workshop for the children while we are there. We hope to be able to go to Rajastan with Abhyudai as well, but we will see how that pans out. Our next 2 months will be super busy, but I think everything will work.