The foreigners and the domestic tourists have come, they will continue to come and will keep coming and through time, the topping on the tourism cake will change and so will the taste.
Like all businesses, tourism too is changing – old markets are closing, new ones are opening, and, it is how the stakeholders adjust to change that will ultimately determine the quotient of good feeling.
The industry was on a high, one that seemed to be on a perpetual upward spiral, and then came the lull.
Developers rode piggyback on apartment rentback facility; prices began to plummet. This would have been the time when the first hiccups were noticed, or perhaps, they were overlooked.
In the beginning, beef steaks, pork chops, chicken cafreal and assorted fish curry rice were the much-sought after dishes sampled and appreciated by our guests. Cheap booze was a bonus.
In the beginning, beef steaks, pork chops, chicken cafreal and assorted fish curry rice were the much-sought after dishes sampled and appreciated by our guests. Cheap booze was a bonus.
During that period, apart from the guests, the locals, too, were happy because they did not have to walk the extra mile to learn how to cook, for preparing a good meal is part of the DNA of most Goans, and hence the question of 'who made the best of what was passed down' never arose. Costs were minimal.
In time, the market opened up or was discovered by our own brothers and sisters from different parts of the country for whom Goa was a paradise – so near and yet so far.
And, they came, slowly at first for a taste of not just feni, but the sight of Western culture.
When the rich Indian discovered Goa, they saw a lot of their clan, too, and deliberately decided to keep a distance. They came, stayed in luxury, spent big time and quietly returned, all along keeping their indulgences private.
Today, with a decline in charters, the many rentback apartments have had to be remodeled as homestays and prices of accommodation have crashed, thus opening the market for middle class tourists – foreign and Indian.
Today, with a decline in charters, the many rentback apartments have had to be remodeled as homestays and prices of accommodation have crashed, thus opening the market for middle class tourists – foreign and Indian.
And from rent-a-flat, the spear moved to rent-a-bike, rent-a-car and rent-a-premises for business. Owners, who rented out apartments, pay domestic electric rates and outsiders have started filling vacancies with the economy bearing the brunt.
We began to feel the pinch, but never really complained because many were still on the high or yet to realise the nouveau-riche blues.
As foreigners began to opt for other destinations and Indian tourists zeroed in on Goa, we locals still did not get the drift of change.
Taste is inherent. We adapt when it comes to trying out new things, but as humans, we cannot keep trying always.
There comes a time when we want to recoil and get back to the basics. This is a truth that holds good in every sphere of life.
An Indian tourist likes his masala dosa in the morning, he prefers his tea instead of coffee, his roadside food instead of an a la carte meal. He will seldom eat beef or pork – or may never try these – but, may try a chicken cafreal. Even the way we cook our fish will not meet their taste.
There comes a time when we want to recoil and get back to the basics. This is a truth that holds good in every sphere of life.
Goa is attracting tourists from all over the country after the Pandemic. But, it appears from afar that the stakeholders of tourism are not, or are yet to, adapt to this change.
We welcome guests by not just opening our doors, but by keeping their door open too and by that, we meet their culinary needs that make them feel comfortable.
We did it when the foreigners first came. They wanted to roam nude on the beach, we kept quiet without looking the other way. When they wanted to have parties, we agreed.
At some point, there was little that could separate the two.
It is time to take today’s tourism on the same or similar keel as we did before. We need to change, and that would mean accepting our own, the way we accepted others.
We need to tweak to understand how best to welcome and what to then expect from the tourism that we are seeing today.
And, it starts not just with ourselves, but with the way the government starts looking at the industry. They erred before and we did not understand. Let bygones be bygones.