Rural Goa: Golden Goa

Satorem Village

A visit to the village Satorem (pronounced Satrem) was something very soulful. The Cool climate and the abundant forests brought about some inner peace in us. My fellow partner Mr Savio and myself were mesmerised by the simplicity of the atmosphere.

This village is situated about 10 km off Valpoi city along one of the Borders of Goa. The access to this village is either through a bridge or through the stream which cannot be crossed during the monsoons.

Now (October) During Monsoons

The drying up of the water from June to October really surprised us. Also, there was a deposition of some sort on the stones making them look whitish. The stones found on the stream-bed are rounded oval and quite slippery during the monsoons.

Below, we see that the impact of the flowing water has eroded the soil.

As Regards the bridge, Surprisingly, the ends of the bridge are not connected i.e. the bridge is in the center with the ends not directly constructed. Hence, the villagers have made a makeshift

connectors made of Bamboo.

I was a bit puzzled. I met a jovial man from the village, Mr Narayan Kelkar who gave me more insights about his village. It seems they do not have an NOC for the Bridge ends to be completed. and I believe the forest department's objection is valid since a proper bridge could lead to exploitation of the forest resources and give rise to illegal activities.

Further, Mr Kelkar says that there are about 25 families in this village. Their main town is Valpoi and all the education needs of their children are met at Valpoi.
Besides, most other activities like weekly shopping etc is done at the town. Transportation is a problem here. However, Kadamba plies its buses on these routes with fixed timings. With Narayan's help I managed to get a better snap of the mini-waterfalls.