Ku, Morjim, Goa - Empty your mind

If you're looking for a very different side to Goa, here's the absolute gem.

We'd previously written about the top 10 things to do in Goa. And there is all that and more that you can pack into your travel to Goa. But there is another side to Goa that you must experience as well. The slow side. The really slow side. The side that gives you a whole different perspective to not just Goa, but life itself. This is about that side.Ku. A Chinese word that means emptiness or void. But it did quite the opposite for us. It filled a void. The need for quiet, for indulgence, for peace and bliss. At Ku Goa, a boutique hotel on Morjim beach, North Goa, we experienced Goa in a way we'd never imagined before.

After a long drive from the airport through the bare dusty roads of Goa, passing fields of nothingness. We were there. Just a stone's throw from the beach, we could hear the quiet roar of the waves on the shore. A small black door opened into utopia. A secret space of peace and calm, wonder and mystique, beauty and rejuvenation hidden from the rest of the world. I felt an instant need to keep it a secret forever. But then, our experience there, made us realise, the feeling was too beautiful to keep to ourselves.

As you walk through, the cool shade envelopes you, the silent hush embraces you. And you hear nothing but the occasional tiny splash of water, as the frisky fish prance around in their home, a lovely little pond that runs right through the center of Ku, dividing the two rooms that are more like traditional Japanese cottages on either side as soon as you enter. Past the first cottage to the left, (we'll come back to those later) we see our names on the chalkboard, with our confirmation dates scribbled in French, by our host. The owner, Maria, was sadly away on holiday, but she left us in the very able hands of Guillaume. This is the low seating, open air dining area. Behind the chalkboard is the small kitchen from which later emerged some of the best dishes I have ever eaten.

Right across, on the other side of the stream were the dining/ reading tables. Or the sitting around and doing nothing tables. The hanging around tables. The entire area is green. Bamboos and other trees, complete the forest

Our cottage had Shoji - the traditional Japanese bamboo screens for doors, and it felt like we were a couple of writers, living on a tropical island- paradise. Two levels, with a small outhouse of a toilet, which was a little scary at first, with its open to the elements feel, but very cleverly constructed, when we realised, nobody can actually look through.C'mon in.

Gasp. A tropical bathroom, right in the middle of our room. Gasp. A tree, right in the middle of our bathroom. Isn't it gorgeous? The bed. Oh the bed. A gorgeous canopied little piece of heaven. I loved how it diffused the glow of the lovely evening lights. In the evenings, the place just looked so magical. After some conversation and wine at the hangout table, Guillaume disappeared into the kitchen to cook up a Moroccan storm. He served up a gazpacho (cold soup), carpaccio, and mussels and some of the freshest seafood we've ever eaten, all caught by him on his swim early that very morning. We both enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

Ku, is what used to be the private residence of Maria Perez and her family, which they have now converted into a boutique hotel, that may be extremely integrated with nature, but inside the rooms, offer the comfort of any modern hotel sans (with natural air conditioning). Their affordable room rates vary through the year, so do email them (contact details below) for your reservation queries.Staying at Ku Goa is just what the soul doctor ordered, so go there, with books to read, each other to talk to, yoga to practice, a palate for experimentation, attire for the beach, and most importantly, a desire to do nothing, yet feel everything.

Ku - Morjim, Goa no longer exists.

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