It is well known that cows are sacred in India. What I hadn’t known before we went to Goa was that they love the beach. We spent a couple of nights at Agonda beach in the southern part of Goa and both mornings I got up early to enjoy the cool of the beach before the sun came up. So did the cows. They meandered along in a herd and then plonked themselves down in the sand near the waters edge, quietly chewing the cud and gazing into the distance. They are such peaceful animals. The only drawback is that when they eventually take themselves off, there are piles of dung all over the sand. We enjoyed a couple of days’ rest beside the Arabian sea but Agonda is not the unspoiled paradise trumpeted by the guidebooks. There was a noisy building site right next to our cottage! For quiet, deserted beaches I recommend New Zealand – we’ll be there very soon.