Men are back for St Estevam's season of cheer
Andrew Pereira, TNN | Dec 27, 2009, 05.42AM IST
PANAJI: From the serene silence that is St Estevam's hallmark, the island village has burst into a riot of colours, laughter and unbridled joy since Christmas.
"This is one time during the year when I see most of my parishioners," says a smiling Fr Olavo D'Souza, parish priest of St Estevam. At other times, the 1961 hit Where have all the flowers gone? could well have been written for the village.
The St Estevam men haven't, however, gone to war as the song's men have, but have boarded ships and dropped anchor in the sea-faring profession to bring home the bacon. Saturday was the feast of the village patron—St Stephen—and the missing men were home for it.
This year, the feast celebrations are on a grander scale. The present church was built in 1759 by the village comunidade with local support and the islanders is commemorating its 250th anniversary.
"It's three days of joy on the island: Christmas, followed by the feasts of St Stephen on Saturday and Christ the King on Sunday," says social activist and artiste Jackson Dias.
Atop a hillock is the statue of Christ the King, standing besides a fort built around September 1668 and named after St Francis Xavier. The view from here is majestic, with the gaze falling as far as the twin bridges across the river Mandovi in Panaji and the houses atop the capital city's Altinho hillock.
It isn't for nothing that the island is called "Ilha de Verde" (Green island). Legends about this emerald estuarine beauty of narrow winding lanes with houses on either side and known for its lady fingers abound. "Land is limited on the island and the best way to save space is to have common walls between our properties," says Jackson Dias, who has composed the song Honrad Ami Zunvenkar (Proud to be islanders).
The island, which has produced some illustrious Goans, is currently having a love affair with the economic benefits and financial security that a salary aboard a ship can bring.
"It is true that most of our boys favour employment aboard cruise liners. Though this trend started almost 150 years ago, it caught on during the last two decades," says resident Emidio Monteiro.
It is now not uncommon to see a young seafarer drive a brand new car around the village after a couple of voyages.
At a place called tinvatteo in Foro, a meeting point of three roads leading to the three main wards, Sanywol Dias, 33, said, "I've been on a ship since I was 21. It was a craze. I saw the boys older than me doing well for themselves and I decided to opt for it too."
"The influence comes at an early age when young boys see others just a few years older driving in their own cars. During the '70s while I was growing up, we used to have enough youngsters to field three football teams. Now, you hardly find any youth here. They complete class XII, do a course in food and nutrition and go abroad," adds Monteiro.
"Boys are giving up further education and opting for short-term courses in hotel management which can land them a job aboard a ship. They choose this path as salaries are better than what they would get had they to complete their studies and find employment here," says villager Assuncao Ribeiro.
"It is mostly the girls who are opting for higher education," he admits, standing outside the Casa do Povo, a community hall for the villagers built in September 1961 and inaugurated by the last Portuguese governor general Vassalo da Silva, whose visit the older generation still recalls.
Not long back, St Estevam, Sto Estevao or Jua—as the locals refer to their island village—was known as "Sakichem Zunvem" (island of vegetables) or "Benddecarachem Zunvem" (island of lady finger growers), for the quality of lady fingers (benddes) which were grown by the residents.
"Even though the villagers went to sea, Zuvekars continued their traditional agricultural pursuits and were famous for the quality of lady fingers," says Monteiro. Today growing lady fingers is no longer the main occupation of the villagers.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Men-are-back-for-St-Estevams-season-of-cheer/articleshow/5383318.cms
PANAJI: From the serene silence that is St Estevam's hallmark, the island village has burst into a riot of colours, laughter and unbridled joy since Christmas.
"This is one time during the year when I see most of my parishioners," says a smiling Fr Olavo D'Souza, parish priest of St Estevam. At other times, the 1961 hit Where have all the flowers gone? could well have been written for the village.
The St Estevam men haven't, however, gone to war as the song's men have, but have boarded ships and dropped anchor in the sea-faring profession to bring home the bacon. Saturday was the feast of the village patron—St Stephen—and the missing men were home for it.
This year, the feast celebrations are on a grander scale. The present church was built in 1759 by the village comunidade with local support and the islanders is commemorating its 250th anniversary.
"It's three days of joy on the island: Christmas, followed by the feasts of St Stephen on Saturday and Christ the King on Sunday," says social activist and artiste Jackson Dias.
Atop a hillock is the statue of Christ the King, standing besides a fort built around September 1668 and named after St Francis Xavier. The view from here is majestic, with the gaze falling as far as the twin bridges across the river Mandovi in Panaji and the houses atop the capital city's Altinho hillock.
It isn't for nothing that the island is called "Ilha de Verde" (Green island). Legends about this emerald estuarine beauty of narrow winding lanes with houses on either side and known for its lady fingers abound. "Land is limited on the island and the best way to save space is to have common walls between our properties," says Jackson Dias, who has composed the song Honrad Ami Zunvenkar (Proud to be islanders).
The island, which has produced some illustrious Goans, is currently having a love affair with the economic benefits and financial security that a salary aboard a ship can bring.
"It is true that most of our boys favour employment aboard cruise liners. Though this trend started almost 150 years ago, it caught on during the last two decades," says resident Emidio Monteiro.
It is now not uncommon to see a young seafarer drive a brand new car around the village after a couple of voyages.
At a place called tinvatteo in Foro, a meeting point of three roads leading to the three main wards, Sanywol Dias, 33, said, "I've been on a ship since I was 21. It was a craze. I saw the boys older than me doing well for themselves and I decided to opt for it too."
"The influence comes at an early age when young boys see others just a few years older driving in their own cars. During the '70s while I was growing up, we used to have enough youngsters to field three football teams. Now, you hardly find any youth here. They complete class XII, do a course in food and nutrition and go abroad," adds Monteiro.
"Boys are giving up further education and opting for short-term courses in hotel management which can land them a job aboard a ship. They choose this path as salaries are better than what they would get had they to complete their studies and find employment here," says villager Assuncao Ribeiro.
"It is mostly the girls who are opting for higher education," he admits, standing outside the Casa do Povo, a community hall for the villagers built in September 1961 and inaugurated by the last Portuguese governor general Vassalo da Silva, whose visit the older generation still recalls.
Not long back, St Estevam, Sto Estevao or Jua—as the locals refer to their island village—was known as "Sakichem Zunvem" (island of vegetables) or "Benddecarachem Zunvem" (island of lady finger growers), for the quality of lady fingers (benddes) which were grown by the residents.
"Even though the villagers went to sea, Zuvekars continued their traditional agricultural pursuits and were famous for the quality of lady fingers," says Monteiro. Today growing lady fingers is no longer the main occupation of the villagers.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Men-are-back-for-St-Estevams-season-of-cheer/articleshow/5383318.cms
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