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Diu
comes as a surprise. It lies just a couple of miles from the Gujarat
coast, has only about 200 Christian families and just 10% of the
40,000 people living on the island speak any Portuguese. Yet the
laidback atmosphere, the clean beaches, the wide and tidy roads, the
architecture, they could well be on any island in the Mediterranean.
You are sure to enjoy Diu!
With
an appetite for the sea, we trundle out excitedly from the train at
Veraval and head happily for the Clock Tower taxi stand. Veraval is
not exactly a beautiful town today but relics remain of a time when
it must have been a major port for the Nawabs of Junagadh. The Nawab
built a beach palace here, in true European style with
Venetian-Gothic arches facing the sea and a salt-water swimming pool
fed by the tide forward towards the rear. After all, royalty could
hardly be seen frolicking in the sea by their lesser subjects! The
beach itself is a popular spot for locals, tourists and pilgrims
visiting the Somnath temple along with business visitors to the Birla
factories and the fishing industries.
“Landscaping
is in progress. Hopefully it will be a resort soon,” says our
taxi driver, Ramchand, speaking in Hindi. “There is no sense of
history here. In my childhood days I remember there used to be old
fort walls. Now they have been pulled down.” He did, however,
show us one of the gates which is still there — the Prabhas
Patan gate embellished in detail with intricate sculpture. “To
the north is another similar gate, the Junagadh gate,” he says
proudly. “That one has some good carvings too.”
But
for us, the most picturesque sight in Veraval was the fishing dock
where we saw hundreds of fishing boats, dhows and trawlers unloading
their catch. Master artisans could be seen at work, building dhows
using hereditary skills and the simplest of tools — hammer,
punch, chisel and measuring tape! No modern machinery, electrical,
electronic or mechanical is used in the making of the piles of
rafters into perfectly proportioned ocean worthy 50 foot boats. “The
one you see there has been sold for Rs 22 lakh,” says one of the
dhow builders in Gujarati. “The reforms have been a big blow to
us. Foreign ships are taking away the best catches.”
Do
not leave Veraval without spending at least some time at Somnath. It
is one of the holiest spots for Hindu pilgrimage. In the Shiva
Purana and Nandi Upapurana, Shiva is quoted to have said:
“I am omnipresent, but specially in 12 forms and places,”
one of which is Somnath. The Somnath temple is believed to have been
founded in gold by Lord Somnath, the Moon God, to show his gratitude
to Lord Shiva who cured him of the effects of poison. It was extended
in silver by Ravi (believed to be Ravana by some, the Sun God by
others), renovated in wood by Lord Krishna and in stone by Bhimdeva.
Waves
of destruction engulfed Somnath as tales of the temple’s riches
spread. The most infamous of them all was Mahmud of Ghazni who
plundered Somnath repeatedly. Yet all his entire caravans could not
take back the wealth of the temple. Even the gates were removed by
him in 1024 AD. The temple was destroyed by successive Islamic
invasions and each time was reconstructed with a religious passion at
the same site.
The
final construction activity was in 1950 when independent India’s
first Home Minister, Sardar Patel, had the temple restored. The
colours selected for the temple even today give it the golden effect
at sunset which is in keeping with the prophesies of the legends.
Within walking distance from Somnath is the Prabhas Patah museum with
architectural fragments of the original temples of Somnath.
Do
not miss some — of the other sights — the Triveni Tirth
where three rivers meet the sea. It is a picturesque pilgrim spot.
The Surya Mandir is representative of the typical Sun temple
architecture of the Chalukyan period. The 17th century Ahilya temple
commissioned by a Holkar queen has a great sea view and the Shiva
lingas on the shore are washed by the waves. We picked up local
snacks by the sea at Somnath and took a stroll on the lovely beach
where tourists were enjoying a wade in the water. Children took camel
and pony rides and shacks did brisk business selling coconuts and
soft drinks.
After
a couple of hours of driving west from Somnath, we arrived at the
Ahmedpur Mandvi beach at the Gujarat-Diu border. We checked in at the
Magico Do Mar, a cluster of cottages within groves of the endemic
branching palms. Small pleasant lawns lead to a white sand beach,
which offers great views across the sea towards the island of Diu.
Following a superb fish lunch and a siesta in our air-conditioned
room, we went down to the beach. There was an array of water sports —
para sailing, speed boats, motor scooters, skiing and wind surfing.
Beside the beach is Ghogla village, a fishing hamlet in Diu Union
Territory.
Nothing
we had heard or read about Diu quite prepared us for the treasure
trove of European colonial architecture which we encountered the next
morning as we crossed the bridge to the island. Everywhere we went
there were superb Baroque facades, truss timber and rafter roofed
pastel shaded bungalows, mansions with trellised terraces, Gothic
arches and Portuguese statutory. The oldest of the Portuguese
buildings is the huge battlemented 16th century fortress. Enclosing
an area of over 5 square kilometres, the fortress is one of the
largest on the Indian coast with imposing gateways, high walls,
bastions and dual moats, one of them tidal. The canon guarded
ramparts have gaps in the wall through which the sea looks
spectacular.
Today
the relaxed pace of Diu does not suggest that it was once a fiercely
contested seat of power in medieval times. The island was an
important trade post for the Rajput rulers of Junagadh in the 12th
century, subsequently conquered by Muhammad Tuqlaq in the 13th
century and then ruled by the Sultan of Gujarat along with his
Ottoman allies. The Portuguese coveted the island to such an extent
that they were ready to murder for it: they invited the Sultan on
board one of their ships and had him killed treacherously. The
Portuguese rulers thus became lord and masters of trade in this
region with Diu becoming an important ship building centre.
The
St. Paul’s church (1610 AD) is one of the most important
landmarks in Diu. It has an impressive white marble facade surmounted
by a cross. The interiors are done up in beautiful wood carving, blue
and white walls with dark altars. St Thomas church is now the Diu
museum with a fabulous collection of statutory. There is also a 16th
century tombstone, a four-hundred-year-old silver table and finds
from Hindu and Jain excavations. One of Diu’s greatest surprises
for us was the old quarter of Panchwati where havelies of the Hindu
Baniya businessmen were not in the provincial Gujarati style, but
European architecture with broad balconies, galleries, arches and
porticoes in a style resembling a Mediterranean mansion.
After
all this, it is not surprising to find that the walls of the town
have high arches — Christian devotional sculpture in the
Portuguese tradition. Just outside the town gates in the Bucharwada
hamlet every woman seems to have a husband, brother or son in Lisbon.
Old people talk of receiving news from their sons in Portugal and
children play with toys sent by relatives in Europe.
But
it is the beaches that make Diu a popular destination today. Nagoa is
the most popular and rightfully so. It is a beautiful crescent-shaped
white sand beach with rolling sand dunes, palm groves and protected
waters on the horseshoe cove perfect for swimming. Nagoa is a popular
spot for water sports. Gahirmata is a virgin beach which is being
landscaped as a resort. Vanakbara has a church, a fishing pier and a
fort. Jalandar is a very quiet beach very near the town. Chakratirth
is another fine beach and has a sunset point, auditorium and summer
bungalow. Nearby is Gangeshwar temple with a Shiva linga washed by
the tide. Simmer is a newly developed beach being promoted for
fishing, birdwatching, camping and water sports. Ahmedpur Mandvi in
Gujarat, adjoining Ghogla village in Diu, offers good walks and
recreation spots. Do not miss Malala with its spectacular views of
the limestone cliffs, the musical fountains at Kevdi or the Diu bird
sanctuary with a watch tower providing views of the conglomerations
of coastal birds.
Whether
you are looking for a place to get away from it all, or looking for a
bit of India’s colonial past, Diu is a destination that has
something for everyone.
Information
Top
end (Rs 1000 onwards): Magico Do Mar, Suzlon Beach Hotel and Sea View
are the best beach hotels. Hotel Kohinoor is the best hotel in Diu
but it does not face a beach.
Middle
end (Rs 450-900): Central, Triveni, Ankur, Alishan, Samrat, Hemal
Garden Guest House and Ganga Sagar.
Budget
hotels — Apna, Prince, Jayshankar, Harekrishna, PWD Rest House,
Premalaya, Sanman. Dorm beds are available at Fudam and in the budget
hotels.
Beach
cottages/tents: Pelican resort, Jallandar (a/c cottages); a/c bunk
cabins at Chakratirth; tourist camp at Nagoa beach; tent camp at
Simmer.
Places
to Eat
Apana
for sea food platters, Orignath (Jayshankar) for Goan and Continental
sea food, Island Bar & Restaurant for multi-cuisine, Depee cafe
for North Indian food, Saraswati for South Indian cuisine, Sarovar
for Gujarati and Ram Vijay for icecream. The hotels also have good
restaurants. For traditional Portuguese meals ask for Martha D’Souza
near the Jesuit school or Karmine D’Souza beside the museum.
They will cook an authentic Portuguese lunch for you on prior notice.
Transport
Taxis
and auto-rickshaws are available in Diu for local running.
Motorcycles, scooters, mopeds and cycles can be hired in the market
place. Cruises from the town jetty to Nagoa beach operate from time
to time. A 40 seater launch can be chartered for parties.
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