Lighthouses are the new beacons of coastal tourism in India according to the Union Ministry for Shipping, which wants to convert lighthouses, which have been sentinels of safety for passing ships for decades and in some cases more than a century, into tourism hubs.
Goa, being a coastal state, has its share of lighthouses, but the lighthouse at Aguada, is one of the most stunning spectacles, especially if you manage to reach there on a rainy, thundering night. The rhythmic swinging of the light beam against the dark of the night is an absolutely hypnotic spectacle.
Built by the Portuguese colonists, who were also master seafarers, in 1864, the lighthouse is regarded as the oldest in Asia. It is now housed in the Fort Aguada, which was once used as a water depot (capable of holding millons of litres of water) for travelling ships and was then used as a prison both by the British and the Indian authorities.
Just climb up the stairs to take the entire expanse of the beach stretch from Sinquerim beach to Baga beach as well as the unending azure waters of the Arabian sea.
Sailors were an extremely superstitious as well an adventurous tribe. Right alongside the light house and the fort, is a small chapel dedicated to ‘Our Lady of Good Voyage’, to which they paid their respects to before leaving on a long voyage.
The Lighthouse at Fort Aguada
Siquerim
