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Ponda can be described as the Hindu heart of Goa. Ponda is famous for culture, music, drama and poetry. It is also known as Antruz Mahal.
There are five important temples they are of Lord Mangesh (Shiva), Lord Nagesh, Lord Ganapati, Lord Ramnath and the Goddesses Mahalasa and Shantdurga. From Ponda, 2km west on the Panjim road you can go to Safa Masjid (Mosque), which was built in 1560 by the Bijapuri ruler Ibrahim Adil Shah. This is the largest mosque in Goa with its whitewashed walls and pointed terra-cotta tile roof, is renowned less for its run-of-the-mill architecture than for being one of only two Islamic shrines in Goa to survive the excesses of the Portuguese Inquisition. The mosque has a beautiful backdrop of wooded low hills that rise in the background.
Ponda is also an important transport link. |