So long Samoa!
Our six weeks and two days of fun in the sun have passed all to quickly and are coming to a close, what can we say – we’ll miss you Samoa!
Alas! Don’t fear! We wouldn’t leave our faithful blog readers hanging… oh no! The whispers we have heard is that the next SWAP ambassadors will be winging there way to Samoa soon… perhaps from C A _ A D A or maybe T H E U _ I T E D K I_ G D O M (ooo! That’ll get you all thinking now won’t it?) Shh! Don’t tell the boss we told you!
Our favourite experience here would have to be the opportunity to hang out with the locals; Mate and his family put on an amazing to’anai for us that we will never forget. Samita and his family hosted us for a couple of nights out at Uafatu in his fale… those experiences were something special that we will remember forever. How many people really get to experience a different culture so richly?
During our six weeks in Samoa, we have gawped at the milky way every night, amazed at the stars we can see so clearly, gotten used to waking up sweaty, rid Apia of many, many cockroaches (rest assured! There are many, many, many left!), learnt a smattering of Samoan, befriended our local shop owners, developed an appreciation for the incredible Palusami (mmm…), sipped on coconuts, guzzled Vailima, snorkelled the beach, the lagoons and the clear waterfall ponds, hung out on yachts, screamed our lungs out sliding down waterfalls, been entertained by cultural shows, been overwhelmed visiting the tsunami region, road tripped around Savai’i, mingled with the locals and checked out the markets…
Things we have learnt:
- Vailima consumption directly alters your ability to make a good bet: guzzle with gusto!
- Samoa is hot. Crazy hot. All the time. But it is the humidity that really gets you.
- The dogs aren’t the same as in western cultures. They tend to leave you alone, no sniffing or yapping at your feet here! But at night they like to hold town meetings, where they bark all around all night. ALL night.
- Mosquitos like Matt. Much more than they like me. This I am willing to accept graciously.
- Pigs rule the roads, crickey they even rule the dogs. Cars? Pft! Cars should keep right out of the way of the pigs!
- There are several roosters in Samoa that are lucky to still be alive. Who ever said that roosters crow only at dawn was a liar. A liar that never lived next to a rooster.
It’s been a great ride and an amazing, rich experience. Thank you to Dennis for giving us the opportunity to experience the beautiful Samoa…
So long Samoa, see you soon!