Floors in Aquem's older houses are tiled and belong to the house, so a rug is laid over them, never a fitted carpet. A cotton dhurrie or a Persian-style rug with a non-slip underlay sits well with the old furniture. In the flats, a rug under the seating softens footsteps for the family below, and wool or jute is safe on the upper floors because the air here carries no salt. Two cautions apply. Ground floors in Aquem Baixo can be damp after heavy rain, which rules out anything rubber-backed, and homes near the railway gather dust, so choose a size that one person can carry out and beat.
- Front halls of old houses: a dhurrie or patterned rug on an underlay, sized to leave a border of the old tiles showing.
- Flats in the apartment blocks: a low-pile rug under the sofa and table, and carpet tiles where a bedroom doubles as an office.
- Low-lying ground floors: light synthetic rugs that can be lifted and dried in the sun once the rain water has gone down.
Aquem lies on the eastern side of Margao, around and beyond the Madgaon railway station, and is usually spoken of as Aquem Alto on the higher ground and Aquem Baixo below. It is an old, settled residential area where family houses stand next to newer apartment blocks.
Older Aquem houses are single-storey family homes with a front balcão, wooden windows and tiled roofs. The newer blocks are compact flats. A common request here is to furnish one floor of a family house that has been divided between generations, where each room has a different window size.
Aquem is inland and fairly sheltered. The lower parts hold water after heavy rain, and ground-floor rooms there can be damp, so we check walls before recommending wallpaper. Train and road traffic near the station bring dust.
Apartments and town flats
In a flat, a rug under the seating softens noise for the neighbours below. Leave a border of floor showing around it. Carpet tiles suit a home office because one stained tile can be changed.
Old Goan houses
Old tiled and stone floors are part of the house, so use rugs, not fitted carpet. A dhurrie or a Persian-style rug suits the furniture, with an underlay so it does not slip on polished tiles.
