sorry don't know much about panjim, but your are correct about mapusa!! best NOT to go there on a friday. because its the local market day and is very busy. its still very vibrant on the other days.
BOB

Hello Pete, nice to see ya around again. We are also in the Sunset, stayed there last year and thought it a well run,clean hotel in a great position, and yes opposite the Whispering Palms. Nice Bistro adjacent to it as well, been in a few times and well worth it.
Spike.
Panjim - if you go by local bus and get off at Betim, take the free ferry across. When you get off, walk up the jetty turn right and about 50 yards opposite is the market. As for other shops, limited to decent stuff at the usual Reeboks etc.. (if they have anything in ),you just need to browse up and down all the streets to find the hidden ones - depends what you are after.

Hiya Spike/Bob

Cheers for the info, yeah the hotel looks nice from the pictures and if my memory serves me correctly should be a stones throw to the stone house

Stonehouse - top of whispering palms road,turn right and walk 20 yards, not had that many decent comments about it, and not one I would rush back too (tooooooo slowwwww).
Quite a few new ones have sprung up since your last visit, and a good one is Flambe, a bit further down than the Stonehouse and on the same side. Another further on than this is called the Curry House - massive portions and v good price.
I must say, we never used to venture down Fort Aguada/Sinquerim road much and always stuck to the Beach Road, but after last year found some great places down here, music/drinks etc..
As I mentioned before the Bistro at the Sunset is top notch cooking, and bookings were needed for the 2 nights we ate there, seems more popular than the Mermaid on the other side, and went in there once for old times sake. Passing it every night it was never empty, so still high on peoples lists.
When you come out of the Sunset you are a 3/4 min walk to the Beach, Ganesh shack is diagonally to your left, and to your right about 5 mins walk is your old haunt Bobbys shack (hope you can get your bearings back in time !!).
Aguada and of the beach is appalling - rough monsoons have really battered it, with lots of shacks on stilts or with sand bag barricades.
Anything else you want to know about the area around the Sunset, fire away.
Spike.

Friday is by far the best day to go to Mapusa, provided you go early before it gets too hot. Yes it is very busy but the atmosphere is wonderful. I cannot stand Anjuna market and am not too keen on Ingos, but just love Mapusa. As for Panjim, just follow my wife around she knows where all the good shops are. Well she calls them good, I call them expensive. Get a good taxi driver and they will tell you the best places to go, although there are some places in Panjim where they get commission which puts the price up.

Can someone tell me is Mapusa market on every day of the week and will all the same stalls be there that would be there on a friday ...colleen

Hi Irishcolleen,
alot more stalls on a friday and better bargains to be found and as said on a previous post, get there early before it gets too hot and to avoid the crowds. Market on everyday but I am not sure about sunday.

I'm not sure about sunday either. i still say though, its best not to go there on friday!!!! it is extremly busy because it is local market day. there is so much to see and buy on the other days, and you will be able to get around the market much easier.
YOU WILL NOT BE DISSAPOINTED, WHICHEVER DAY YOU GO ON!!!!!!
BOB

I think we will go on the Friday it sounds like more fun I love going into the little upstairs cafe and watching the world go by

cheers for that spike