New Year At The Cross

I could not have imagined a more glorious way of welcoming the new year.

The five of us stood on a desolate cliff that overlooked the ocean. At a place called The Cross. And indeed, a pale white cross does stand out from the overgrown heather covering the hilltop. Known only to the locals, The Cross is the favourite haunt of couples. No wonder, Goa police keep patrolling the area.

We shivered in the wintry breeze. Nonetheless, we were glad to be away from the noisy carousing and come to this quiet spot that afforded such a breathtaking view. It’s a sheer drop from the cliff. There are rocks below, and then an endless stretch of the sea. Only faintly can you make out the horizon, the sky and the sea seem to merge. Like someone remarked, the night sky really looked like a blanket of stars.

And in the distance, were the lights of Dona Paul, then there was Vasco up left and a tiny row of lights lining the private beach at Cidade de Goa on the right. The landmass before us spreadout like an arc, and hundreds of fireworks erupted along that semi-circle.

Oh, the fireworks! I have never seen a more spectacular display! One after another, rockets burst into the dark midnight sky shimmering brightly in all the colours of the rainbow. Some glowed silver and golden for many seconds together. The sky became a riot of colours. Every time a rocket appeared, it would be like daylight. Some rockets flew high up and shone brilliantly before dying out, while others were not so luminous. And with each firework that exploded, we could hear a loud crackle up above.

If one rocket went off at the far right, another would appear in the centre and more would go off towards the left. Our heads turned and our faces shone in the light every time a firework hit the sky.

This went on for a full ten minutes. Afterwards, as everything turnded peaceful again, it was the sea that appeared to glow. A deep mysterious orange colour started to spread on the dark waters near our cliff. Actually, the water was reflecting the lights from the shoreline.

We sat down carefully and tried to dangle our feet over the edges of the cliff. The wind was bitingly cold. Now, we could only hear the waves. And even they seemed serene.