CELEBRATING 20 YEARS

foreigners can cook??????

By the mid 90’s Goa had been welcoming tourists for quite a number of years. First came the hippies and then the 2 week charter brigade. When we floated the idea that maybe some holiday makers might like to stay in houses (villas) it raised a number of quizzical eyebrows. One of the main concerns was who would cook their breakfast? We said they would have a cooker, microwave and toaster so they would do it themselves. WHAT? Foreigners can cook?

There are many people over the last 20 years who we owe a big debt to for their unstinting support and advice but none more so than the three visionaries I met next.  My mission was to source suitable houses of which there were many but I soon realised that wasn’t going to be the problem – the problem was finding a landlord who was happy to let two mad English women have a loose rein with their properties and also believed foreigners could actually make their own tea and toast.

A big thanks has to go to David Gonsalves, who’s charming Gonsalves House in Arpora, was the very first Lazydays property, David totally understood us and threw himself into the project with almost as much enthusiasm as we did.

Next there were the D’Costa’s of Parra. Isadore D’Costa still lived in part of this rambling old house whilst we took over the rest of it and he was to be a great source of pleasure to our early guests with his old stories and twinkle in his eye when he shared a bottle of Honeybee.

And finally Gordon Epps. Gordon had just completed the renovation of Saligao House which, of the three properties, was the closest to being “guest ready”.  Gordon was to become a firm friend and staunch supporter of Lazydays over the years to follow.

A big thank you to David, Gordon and the D’costa Family as without you there would be no Lazydays.

It was already May and time was an issue, I had to get both Gonsalves and D’Costa Houses as ready as possible before the rains hit in June making a photo shoot impossible. Meanwhile Linda was sitting, pen poised, ready to start the brochure………………….