Seek palm-fringed benefits

The village of Gorai is home to 65,000 sq ft of meditation space inside the Global Vipassana Pagoda. Whether you are looking for peace, a buzzing beach or fresh fish on your plate, it's all a 15-minute ferry ride away

Remember Gorai? Decades ago, this distant, palm-fringed suburb was a must-visit weekend getaway for the Mumbaikar keen for sun, sand and a relaxed ambience, all within an hour's ride away.

Soon the rosy picture deteriorated, with ceaseless commercialisation, crime and not-so-pleasant elements taking over this retreat.



It's a pity that the discerning Mumbai traveller has given up on this gorgeous, quaint village to feed his weekend retreat plans.

To break free of the negative buzz, The Trip hopped on the ferry to this northwestern suburb to rediscover four cool things that you can do here, with a faint notion that you are well within city limits, you still get a green carpet welcome.

Seek Nirvana Inside a Towering Pagoda

The newest addition to Gorai is the Global Vipassana Pagoda, a 325-feet majestic monument that made the kids on our ferry go goggle-eyed and pointy-fingered well before we docked nearby.

From the pier, a road leads to the entrance to the amusement parks while the other, quieter one takes you to the world's largest stone dome built without any supporting pillars.

An entry fee of Rs 17 brought us to a tree-lined road that led to the massive golden tower standing at 325 feet and honouring both, the non-sectarian Vipassana Meditation and the faith of Gautam Buddha.
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We circumambulated the Pagoda to enter via a small side door.

Sadly, visitors have access to only a tiny viewing gallery that pretty much provide with the view of the entire structure from the inside, albeit without letting you get to the centre of it.
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That privilege is reserved for those who have completed the ten-day Vipassana course.

The tourist-y hoarding here told us that the 24-spoked Ashoka Chakra in the middle of the dome contains Buddha's bones relics.

It's a pity that there is absolutely no guidebook available at the entrance that can reveal the spectacular statistics (it took 11 years to finish the structure, the Pagoda is made of 250 lakh tonnes of stone or that the meditation hall inside can accommodate 8,000 people).

The smiling volunteer at the entrance will part with the little knowledge, while cajoling you to donate cash towards the Pagoda's upkeep. Our suggestion? Look up www.globalpagoda.org before you make the trip.

A small media room next to the Pagoda delivers SN Goenka's (the principal teacher of Vipassana) speeches, but it's the art gallery displaying the life of Buddha through massive watercolours that is more charming.
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We picked up a few souvenirs from the tiny shop (fridge magnet: Rs 30, bookmark: Rs 4) to remind us of that one spot in the city where life slows down and peace engulfs you.

Life is a beach

As we walked towards the other side of the beach, a couple trying to snatch their moment behind the girl's translucent dupatta made it difficult for us to hold back our smiles.

Small, cute homes dot the fringe of the beach, inviting you to stop by for a day. We wouldn't say that the beach has crystal clear water and the finest sands, but it was clean and we were definitely not complaining.
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There are few things that can beat a game of volleyball on the beach

Youngsters playing ball, couples stationed on rocks with their backs to the world, Bollywood item songs blaring from a caru00a0 too close to the water, the golawallahs and the coconut sellers: this was a cleaner, better version of a typical Mumbai beach.
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The sun started to drift towards the horizon as we made our way back to the bus stand. As the golawallah tinkled the sherbet bottles with an opener, a burst of pink and orange swept through the twilight sky. We smiled and promised we'd be back on another day soon.

Indulge in some Fishy Business

A plump aunty in a polka-dotted dress was only too happy to stop frying bhajiyas to accompany us to the Holy Magi Church, when we asked for directions to this landmark.
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"This is where the village congregates for important functions," she told us in impeccable English. Originally inhabited by people from the North East, the bustling village has statues of Mother Mary and Jesus around every corner.


The Holy Magi Church has witnessed the place grow from a tiny fishing community to a bustling village

It was a pity that the Church was shut when we got there (you get there by 11 am), but meandering through the village bylanes brought us face-to-face with shy but smiling villagers who were only too eager to sell us their catch. The local market is housed inside a gloomy, decrepit building.
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Fruits and vegetables on the left, fish on the right. Our photographer was eager to pick up a few Tiger Prawns, but you need to be too careful with the bag to ensure its damp contents don't spill out.

The smell of the sea overpowers everything here and if you aren't quite all right withu00a0 lifeless, limp fish staring back at you, we suggest you head to the other end of the beach.
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The lanes led us to the far right side of the beach, where fishermen were busy drying and segregating fish, cleaning out their nets and bargaining with the guy who bought their haul.
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The women turned coy as soon as they noticed our camera focus on them but the supposed village pramukh (headman) emerged and patiently showed us around.

"Luckily, none of us have been affected by the oil spill," he told us. "We are simple, happy people, who worship the sea. Be nice to us and we will be nice to you." Point taken.

Get your 360-degree fix

Some of our earliest memories include being tossed around like the ingredients in a salad in one of EsselWorld's maniacal rides. We emerged with tousled hair and distinctly remember a cousin throwing up soon after.



But if you enjoy sitting in a tapering boat that gives you a 360-degree view of the world or getting drenched to the bone in a water slide, you can find joy at EsselWorld and Water Kingdom, your neighbourhood theme parks.
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Located on 64 acres of green, the parks have an ice-skating rink, bowling alley, dance floors and wave pool, apart from rides that will leave you hoarse-voiced, but happy.

Getting There

At Borivali Station come out on the west exit gate and board a BEST bus number 294 or an auto rickshaw (fare will be about Rs 25) to Gorai Bus Depot, that is near the Gorai Jetty. From there, catch a ferry to the entrance of EsselWorld and the Pagoda.


Waiting in the queue to get on to the ferry

Take Bus No 4 from the parking lot of EsselWorld to go to the village and the beach. If you have a bike, we suggest you bring it along.

There is nothing quite like riding through the lovely bylanes of Gorai, without having to rely on the erratic buses. The ferry takes on bikes too.