Agonda - Roadside hotel – 82 km
Feeling significantly better and in good spirits, I was up and over the hills like a hot
knife through butter. Then, finally, my path left the tiny state of Goa and crossed the
border into Karnataka.
On leaving Goa, the landscape resembled Kerala's backwaters, although nowhere near
Kerala. The ride was a lovely one through the countryside and past rice paddies. I
even tried to take a selfie, but I’m horrible at selfies, even though I vowed to take at
least one in every country. It must surely be the most monotonous thing one could do
and after one shot, I gave up - maybe another day.
Unsure whether to detour to famous Om beach, I settled for a roadside hotel. In
India, prices are printed on all items, but at this place, the fee charged was virtually
double. Maybe the hotel only overcharged foreigners, as they imagined they could get
away with doing so. I subsequently discovered the Varadara Hotel was where
backpackers caught the bus. Suddenly, it all made sense.
Roadside Hotel – Murdeshwar - 90 km
The time was shortly before 9.30 a.m. when I got underway. The day offered
enjoyable riding, and I met another cyclist for the first time since arriving in India.
Unfortunately, I lost her as I assumed Murdeshwar was still a few kilometres away.
In any event, I wasn’t sure I wanted to turn off to the temple town of Murdeshwar,
but eventually decided to explore this temple town one more time.
Murdeshwar is an alternative name for Shiva and, as can be expected, a colossal
statue of Shiva dominated the town. The statue is 37 metres high and is said the
second tallest in the world. In addition to the statue, the town sported a massive 20-
story temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The town is thus extremely popular amongst
devotees of Shiva. The place was packed with barefoot and bare-chested men in black
wraparounds, as men can only enter the temple bare-chested.