You Know You're In South Goa When...

THE world is a funny place, and it's only getting crazier by the minute. Gone are the days of hopping onto the family llama for a quick trip downtown (if ever there were days like that); as a species, we are now more comfortable with being strapped into giant metal cans and flung towards the opposite end of the earth than ever before and that means that the world of travel has changed dramatically in the last couple of decades.

- Trusha Ganesh

There is now a higher risk of not knowing which country you've just woken up in (this has been scientifically verified by singing along to songs such as "Waking Up In Vegas") but fear not, for I've just compiled a handy list of indicators that will help you realize, without a shadow of a doubt, that you've landed up in the balmy daydream that is my hometown, Goa...

The local business' lunch breaks are longer than their working hours

If you haven't ever set foot in Goa, you might think that I'm pulling your leg with this one but an afternoon here would be more than enough to assure you that I'm only slightly exaggerating - if at all. Goans are notorious for being aggressively protective of their "me time" and that still holds true in the numerous agricultural villages that dot the interior of the state.