Refreshingly Konkan – Part II – Diveagar

The Mandar flower
Idlimbu

Sunset at Diveagar beach

Continuing on road trip, we went to Diveagar after visiting Kude caves. The route we took was Kude – Mandad – Mhasala – Vadavali Phata – Borli Panchayatan – Diveagar. Diveagar is a place where you can get a holistic rural experience and a taste of the typical Maharashtrian food and living. It would be a pity to try to spoil it by expecting too much out of your hotel or resort. There are functional but decent resorts – MTDC Exotica, Ambiance Cottages, Pinakin Resort, Prathamesh Holiday Homes – and plenty of good home-stay places – Kelkar, Bhatkar – which you can try out. Most of the places are not actually 'on' the beach – but at a distance of about 5 min walking distance.

The best thing to do in Diveagar is to hit the beach at every opportunity you get and just sit and marvel the bounties of nature. Diveagar is managed by a conscious and aware Gram Panchayat which works to keep the beach clean. There are a few rules put up on boards at all entry points to the beach, such as – don't wear scanty clothing on the beach, don't litter around, etc. Reasonable ones, I'd say.

Another great aspect of this place is the food. Albeit, you need to plan out your stay and inform the eateries in advance (ideally 3-4 hours before the meal) to ensure:

1. That you get a meal. There isn't exactly a restaurant system and food is made to order.
2. That you get a meal of your choice. You can 'add-on' to your thali by ordering ukdiche modak, ambolis, solkadhi, fish, chicken, etc as the case may be – be sure to ask your host about the menu for the meal and what else they can provide, when you place the order. They are unlikely to 'market' their services and you might regret not asking earlier when you see others around gorging on modaks or fish that you so wanted to try.

A lot of the vegetarian eateries are owned by Kokonastha Bramhins – so also expect some highly practical talk (read straight talk) and don't get upset by it! The food that you get to savor beats it all! The non-vegetarian eateries serve fresh fish, prawns and chicken. We really liked the food at Suvarnaganesh Khanawal.

There is no major sight-seeing possibility in Diveagar apart from the Ganesh temple with a recently discovered 1000-year old Ganesh idol. I obviously did not visit the temple so don't ask me about it! However there are few places in a one-hour radius – Kuda caves, Janjira Fort, Harihareshwar, etc.

We had some rare insights into stuff from everyday life – I actually saw a Jayphal (nutmeg) fruit for the first time in life. We even visited a Poha (puffed rice) mill. Poha is made out of husked/ unpolished rice that is soaked for 24 hours, roasted along with sand and then pressed. What a revelation! We also saw a 'Mandar' flower for the first time and an 'Id-limbu' (very big lemon) tree.

My verdict: If you even vaguely enjoy road travel and beaches, do not miss out on this beautiful getaway. However, roads in Konkan leave much to be desired, so it is better to add an hour or two to your most pessimistic travel time expectations.

Some phone numbers for the eateries: Kelkar's eatery; Suhas Bapat's eatery 09423837967, 09271127337; Suvarnaganesh Khanawal (Mr. Parkar) 02147-225045.