Goa's monsoon feasts in a nutshell

HEY, JUNE!

June is here, and that means that the Southwest monsoons are right around the corner.

FEASTING IN GOA

When it comes to Goa, there is always a reason to celebrate. Today, let's go through the various feasts that are in store for the rainy season of Goa.

FEAST OF ST ANTHONY

Celebrated annually on June 13, the feast of St Anthony is observed with much fervour and devotion in several Goan villages.

FEAST OF SÃO JOÃO 

Celebrated on June 24, São João is the feast of St John the Baptist. In Goa, the celebrations include wearing headgear (known as, copel) and people jumping into wells and other water bodies to re-enact the biblical story of St John the Baptist.

BONDERAM

Bonderam is celebrated on the Goan island of Divar in the month of August. With costumes, floats and merriment, this festival is nothing short of a mini Carnival.

TOUXEACHEM FEST

The Konkani word, touxeache refers to 'cucumbers', thus giving us an idea of what this particular feast is about. Every year, the village of Talaulim, in Tiswadi, celebrates this feast wherein people make offerings of cucumbers to St Anne as they pray for the gift of a child.

KONSACHEM FEST

Konsachem fest commemorates the celebration of the new harvest. Harvest festivals are celebrated all across Goa in places such as Raia, Salvador do Mundo and Taleigao in the month of August.

SANGODD

Known to be the feast of St Peter and St Paul, who were fishermen by profession, the festival of Sangodd marks the beginning of the local fishing season, and thus, witnesses the priest blessing the Goan seas.

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