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You'll sit cross-legged with Sushila on her courtyard floor as she splits and softens lavo reed by hand, then shows you the over-under rhythm that turns loose fibre into a sturdy mandri mat. By the end of the day you'll have woven your own mat, the kind still spread out for guests and pujas in Ponda's older homes.
Woven reed mats were once standard flooring and seating in every Goan home for meals, sleep and rituals, and the skill of splitting and weaving lavo reed by hand is fading as machine-made alternatives take over.
Mandri mats woven from lavo reed and grasses have been used across Goa for centuries as everyday flooring, wedding seating and temple offerings, with each region developing its own weave pattern and border style.
We're still verifying a practitioner for this experience — check back soon.
Morning
Harvesting and splitting reed, softening demonstration
Midday
Learning the base over-under weave
Afternoon
Weaving and finishing your own mandri mat
Difficulty
Easy — repetitive motion, quick to learn
Age suitability
8 and up
Splitting lavo reed by hand
Sushila demonstrating the base weave
Finished mandri mats stacked in the courtyardPhotographs from this experience will replace these panels once available.
How big is the mat I'll make?
A small personal-sized mat, roughly two feet across, that you can take home the same day.
Is this physically demanding?
No, though sitting cross-legged for stretches is part of the experience — cushions are provided.
“Such a simple craft on the surface but Sushila's hands moved so fast I could barely follow at first.”
Neha S. · 5/5
“Loved learning something so ordinary yet so skillful — my mat is now by my front door.”
Tom W. · 4/5
Not a sight to see — a practice to enter.