Ganpati Bappa Moraya: Part Four

Day Two: Cousin Day Out (20.09.2023)

We woke up early morning and got ready for the day to explore Ratnagiri. Yesterday the Tata Sumo was booked for us to have a fun-filled day. Well, we have Ganpati Bappa at home and still we were given the freedom to have a picnic. So, we did our morning puja, boarded the vehicle and set off at 6:45am from home. There were nine of us, my siblings Pooja and Pritesh, cousins Sandesh, Aakash, Aadesh, Sarvesh, Shubham, Atharva and the driver. It was raining on and off. 

Ratnagiri is a port city on the Arabian Sea coast in the southwestern part of Maharashtra. The district is a part of Konkan division of Maharashtra.

Mahakali Temple, Aadivare

We reached Aadivare at 7am to visit the temple, good start for the journey. We worshipped the Mahakali, Mahalaxmi and Mahasaraswati and then Ganpati Bappa, Aadivarecha Maharaja.

We drove ahead passing through the coastal boundaries, bridges, etc. to Ganpatipule and parked the vehicle at 8:45am. Post that started our search for the washroom. Done with the washroom break, we headed towards the Ganpati darshan.

Ganpatipule Temple and Beach

There was absolutely no queue. Having seen the temple in the Marathi movie Navra Mazha Navsacha, I got the opportunity in worshipping the same today. The temple has Swayambhu murti. We sat there for some time and then my cousins started with the photos and selfies. We watched the beach from the temple gate. 

Post that we bought some sweets, prasad modak, etc and then drove ahead for breakfast at 10am. 

We had poha, misal pav, idli breakfast at 10:15am. Done with a stomach-full breakfast, we started with the beach trails.

Aare Ware Beach

These are two less crowded twin beaches near the villages Aare and Ware and that has given the peculiar, combined name 'Aareware beach'. A ridge of a mountain entering the Arabian sea divides this twin beach. These beaches are lying on the two sides of the same mountain, and this mountain top gives a stunning view of the beaches on both sides. We stopped at Ware beach at 10:45am and played with the sea waves. 

We had a pitstop at 11:20am and coconut drink break at the edge of the road to view Aare beach. 

We drove ahead to the fort and reached there at noon.

Ratnadurg

In 1670 Maratha King Shivaji won the fort from the hands of Adil Shah of Bijapur. The Citadel defense was improved by Maratha naval admiral Kanhoji Angre. 

We walked up the entry stairs. The entrance gate has two mavlas (Maratha soldiers) on elephants as gatekeepers. There is a Ganpati murti and Hanuman murti embedded on the walls. We walked up to the Bhagvati Mandir and worshipped the goddess at 12:15pm. 

Post that we had a walking tour of the fort. The fort is in three parts, the upper part is called the Balekilla, the middle part is called the Peth fort, and the third part is the Parkot which now houses the Lighthouse. Here is the map:

We walked through the upper part, watching the coastal line and passed by the bastions named Rede Buruj and Baskya Buruj. 

We completed the fort walk and got into our vehicle at 1pm.

We drove ahead and had a vegetarian lunch in Hotel Sea Fans -- Harsha restaurant. We took the driver along with us, this guy was my younger cousin's age and was in the learning phase of driving. But the way he drove us from home till here, without breaking any rules, was impressive. The starters included masala papad, veg crispy, paneer chilly while the main course had Veg Konkani Handi and some paneer sabzi with roti and butter naan. I had sticked to Veg Schezwan Noodles. We also had French fries. Post lunch everyone except me, had buttermilk or lassi. We wrapped up lunch at 2:30pm.

Mandavi Beach

The hotel was opposite this beach. It is also known as the Gateway of Ratnagiri or the Black Sea. It is known for its black sand, blue water, palm trees, and fishing boats that offer a colorful and lively view. We walked on the wooden bridge which forks into two sections and has the benches and the end. We sat on the benches watching the sea waves crash on the black rocks. Since it suddenly started raining on our way back to the vehicle, we had to wait at the benches for the rain to stop. We drove further on the beach trails.

Bhatye Beach

This beach, also known as the Bhatyachi Khadi or the Bhatye Creek, is a long and wide beach that is located at the outskirts of the Ratnagiri town. It is known for its golden sand, clear water, coconut trees, and casuarina groves that offer a picturesque view and a relaxing atmosphere. We reached here at 3:30pm and walked on the sand, played with the waves, watched a few Ganpati visarjan (of one and half day idols). 

We walked till the Zari Vinayak temple and reached there at 4pm, took blessings of Ganpati Bappa, watched the tortoise in the adjacent pond, drove our way to Kasheli village. Kasheli is my cousin aunt's home. We visited her home at 5pm, had tea, washroom-break, etc. and then headed to the next beach trail and sunset point at 5:45pm. We took our cousin Shreyas alongwith us.

Devghali Beach

It’s the most beautiful beach and offers excellent views, clean water and soft sand. One has to climb down a small hillock to reach the sand. There are stairway created so no problem in getting down and climbing up. There’s a small sundeck created center where one can go and have a mesmerizing view of the ocean. The sea was a bit rough today and it's better to avoid the ground during rainy season. But the sundeck view was awe-inspiring and instagrammable. 

We had a bad luck on the sunset due to clouds, but we did witness a rainbow. 

Done with the beach and saying goodbye to the setting sun, we got back into our vehicle at 6:30pm. We picked up cousin Shruti and dropped her at Aadivare and drove ahead to our village and reached home at 7pm.

Though I was tired, I noted the key points of today and I did had the strength to read the book Think like a monk by Jay Shetty. My cousin had bought this to read. Thank God, I am not the only book reader in family. Once the common aarati was done, we had dinner and went to sleep. The day was full of surprises and we had no itinerary planned, we just went with the flow. And it turned out to be really good.

Read next: Ganpati Bappa Moraya: Part Five