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WEEKEND UPDATES

Jan 31- Feb 06, 2026, WEEKEND UPDATES January 30, 2026 , by

CARNIVAL 2026

Carnival 2026 will flag off on February 14, 2026 with King Momo’s parade in Panjim. This year however there will be a preview of the carnival parade in Porvorim on Feb13. The carnival this time coincides with Valentine’s Day which traditionally falls on Feb14. So much so there is a double reason to celebrate, if not for locals at least for tourists.

The carnival which is held over four days from Saturday to Tuesday is being heavily promoted on electronic and social media. Traditionally, the carnival, which is the only one of its kind in India, attracts a large number of domestic tourists.

The carnival was brought to Goa by the Portuguese who in turn got it from Brazil. In Brazil, the Rio carnival is a spectacular event dominated by samba dancing. We recall a visit to samba schools in Brazil which train young people to be samba dancers for the mega carnival. Other famous carnivals are the Mardi Gras carnival held in New York.


MONTE HILL MUSIC FESTIVAL

IF music makes your world turn don’t miss the Fundacao Oriente India organized Festival de Musica Do Monte or simply Monte Music Festival 2026 which will kick off in the courtyard of the Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount on Jan30. This 24th edition of the festival is a three day musical treat concluding on Feb1.  The music performances stress on fusion between Indian and Western musical traditions and the highlights this time include fado queen Sonia Sirsat and her band presenting a fado concert on the last day. For the first time there will be the Ao Naga Choir presenting “Changing Horizons” celebrating the living traditions of the Northeast. Established in 2009 the choir originally consisted of musicians comprising of working professionals and students of the Naga community. Monte Hill in old Goa is a wondrous setting overlooking the river Mandovi in the distance and ideal for a musical evening.  Not to be missed.

THE `MANDOVI RIVEIRA’ RETURNS

A BENGALURU-based hospitality company  MRG has resurrected the long dormant Mandovi Riviera, originally owned by the Keni family. With the closure of the iconic Mandovi Hotel down the Campal promenade in capital city Panjim, opposite by the riverside is located the Mandovi Riviera and it continued to function as a popular venue for weddings and social events for a while, but it shut down too. Now it’s back with the MRG group doing the honors of upgrading the lovely venue with a seating capacity for a 1,000 people.

Significantly, the group has also built a jetty on the Mandovi river side for exclusive excess to their party venue. Though MRG claims to have parking space this will be enough only for 55 cars and the newly refurbished property will be yet another cause contributing to the traffic jams this side of Panjim city. After all capital city has only one main thoroughfare which everyone wants to use at peak time.

It may be noted that quite a few questionable jetties have been mushrooming along the Mandovi river side here to service the growing number of casino boats on the river. The main Panjim jetty is the Captain of Ports jetty and it was renovated some time ago at a cost of over Rs100 crore. It is not widely known that besides the  casinos which do not float but are anchored to the river bed, the many luxury  cruise vessels also operate from the many so called private jetties. There is one particular cruise operator who offers a dinner cruise for Rs999.

Speedboats also operate on the river Mandovi, these are rented out by Roshan Khaute, brother of Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte and the boats a favorite of Bollywood visitors. But there is bad news for the National Green Tribunal has ordered the immediate demolition and sealing of five private jetties on the Panjim side of the river Mandovi.  

BOOK FESTIVAL PHOTO CONTEST

A GOA-themed photo contest is part of the Mega Book Exhibition which is being organized from Feb 4 to 8 at the Bandodkar grounds in Panjim.  The special photography competition is organized by the Lokmanya Cultural Foundation for young photographers from Goa and the competition theme is – Goa, Festivals and Culture. And estimated over 200 photographs are to be displayed. Aspiring photographers may submit their prizewinning photos on or before Feb2 at the Gomantak Seva Mandal office room at the Institute Menezes Braganza downtown Panjim.

NOW BOOK YOUR GMC APPOINTMENTS!

LISTEN up GMC patients. Life is no longer going to be the same any more if you want to say hello to your doctor at the Out-Door Patients departments or OPDs. Now you may book your appointment online. In order to facilitate ease of booking of appointments for OPD services in Goa Medical College & Hospital an online booking of slots has commences from February  4, 2026.

This system hopes to put an end to the traditional queues for OPD services. Initially, on trial basis online booking is available for general public for 100 OPD slots each for General Medicine, General Surgery, ENT, Orthopedic and Dermatology (Skin) departments. Members of the public in need of health services may avail of this online OPD booking facility by visiting the website https:www.gmcgoa.edu.in

Patients may register through a mobile based OTP system and fill in basic details  or alternately get their details fetched from ABHA card database o DDSSY card database for completing registration process. New patients  will have to pay a onetime fee of Rs100 (for Indian National and Rs250 (for foreign nationals) which will be valid for a two year duration.

Upon successful booking of your appointment a confirmations slip will be generated and patients may show this at the concerned OPDs. Online booking is available for immediate next seven days and booking for subsequent days will close on the preceding day at 5pm. For example, a patient on Feb4 will be able to book any of the slots for the next seven days. However, for appointment on Feb5 the slots will close post-5pm on Feb4 itself. The online appointment link comes alive from February 4 on the GMC website. Let us know how it goes!    

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