How destiny brought two friends together in Goa
The chance meeting that made my final days unforgettable
It’s March 2013, and after a transformative month in Goa, India, I’m ready to spend my last few days here alone before I fly to the next country on my list. Little did I know, I'm about to bump into a familiar face in the most unlikely of places.
I woke to the sound of laughter and chatter drifting through the thin walls of my ground floor guesthouse room. Glancing at my phone, the glowing screen revealed it was 2am.
Must be the silent disco I’d seen signs for yesterday. Pulling on some clothes, I wasn’t going to miss this party, even if I was nervous to go alone.
The silent disco
As I got closer, I could hear people shout-singing 'Sex on Fire' by Kings of Leon. Clearly, the party wasn't that silent.
In the early hours of the morning, Goa's vivid colours had faded to black. Flashing disco lights briefly lit up the bar, the DJ booth and the small crowd.
When an attendant handed me headphones, I discovered two DJ feeds: house music and indie songs. I chose indie to join in with the singers.
Between songs, friendly strangers chatted with me at the bar, making me glad I'd come.
Then, among the lights and shadows, I saw a familiar face.
Could it be? It was Sarah!
An unexpected message
The previous day, Sarah had messaged to say she'd just landed in India’s largest city - Mumbai.
We'd met at a workshop in London last summer, where we discovered we'd both booked round-the-world trips with overlapping travel dates.
I'd replied that I was in Palolem, but with the patchy WiFi, I didn't know if she'd received it. I had no idea she'd hop on a quick flight down to Goa on the off-chance of finding me.
Now, hugging her in the early hours at this silent disco felt like destiny. We'd found each other in person without the power of electronic messaging.
Having another solo traveller from home here was so comforting. We danced, we talked, we laughed until late. To Sarah, flying 300 miles on a whim was just part of the adventure and I loved that about her.
After a fun night, I returned to bed, elated. Despite this, something was stirring in my consciousness. A sensation I'd now learned to trust.
