Go West, Young (Wo)Man!

Spring break may have been canceled due to the tsunami, but we we're not giving up all of our vacation dreams! Thanh and I decided that we would take a couple of days off of school so that we could have a mini-vacation to Western Samoa. I was especially adamant about having this vacation as I had not made it to Western Samoa yet since I was stranded on Manu'a when I was supposed to go at Thanksgiving, and went home for Christmas.

Western Samoa is the other half of the Samoan archipelago and has the same culture as AmSam, but was originally under German occupation and then was granted independence. As a result of the lack of US funding, Western Samoa (to the rest of the world, just Samoa) has retained a more traditional lifestyle for much of the population thereby making it a more "authentic" tourist location. Personally I went to see a building taller than three stories and some new sites, and to not run into students every five seconds.

So it was decided that we would leave on St. Patty's day after school and come back on Sunday. After much begging Thanh and I also convinced Rosemary to join us which just about solidified the perfection of the trip. So on Wednesday after school Thanh and I ran home, chucked our school stuff, grabbed our bags and ran like hell to the airport to make our 5:00 flight. We met Rosemary and with much dorky dancing and celebrating we made it on the tiny plane to Western.

The north-west side of our gorgeous Tutuila. 

A mere half an hour later we were in Apia and reveling in our vacation! We checked in at Princess Tui's Hotel which has hostel like bunking for cheap and hit the town for St. Patty's Day. We had a leisurely dinner at some crazy restaurant which made great iced coffee but gave me soup so salty not only was it inedible for humans, but the cat hanging out with us wouldn't eat it. After dinner we headed to the bar next door for a drink, and lo and behold who do we run into? All of the other WorldTeachers! Most of them were there for the week, and they had already kicked off the festivities with some green beer and were having a good time. We joined in with piña coladas and the night was wonderfully fun. Maybe too fun as I ended up in a slap fight and skipping down the street, but it's hard to say if that was from the drinks or the ecstasy of being free from teaching responsibilities.

Rosemary and I giving our students' go-to picture pose at dinner.

We returned back to our hostel and met some fellow travels in the living areas. There names were Dwayne and Glen and they were from England and Australia, respectively. I was chatting with Dwayne and after the initial awesome realization that he had been to Erie before (weird...) he turned into the most self absorbed, pompous travel gloater I have ever met. Rosemary got the cute blond one... Eventually we turned in to hit the hay, and I climbed into my lower bunk and tucked in my mosquito net. I rolled over to face the window and found myself staring at the glorious sea of stars that is so much more expansive in the South Pacific. That night was another moment where I am completely confident that this year is one of the best decisions of my life, and I feel asleep blissfully and exquisitely happy.

Morning was equally transcendent as I awoke to the kiss of the sun's first rays on my cheek and watched the colors of the sunrise. Assured that they day was going to be marvelous, I rose from bed and showered, then met my friends for breakfast.

 The view from the front porch of our hostel.

Discussions over the fresh fruit and toast decided that we would hire a cab for the day to hit up some of the sites we most wished to see. After some haggling and packing of day bags we were on the way. We lounged in the cab as we drove the coast and mountains of the island to reach our destination.

Ocean view as we traverse the island of Upolu.

Our first destination was the Ocean Trench which is an old lava tube that now allows water from the ocean to collect in a trench slightly inland. You can actually swim in an underwater tunnel and reach the ocean, which some of the WT boys actually did that week, but no way were we trying that. You can climb down and swim in the water, letting the ebb and flow of the current rock you back and forth. I will let the pictures describe the rest.

Ocean Trench. Yes, it's that awesome.

A bad time for acrophobia.

Under the tunnel to another opening.

Our next stop was at sliding rock (not ours at home...) where you can slide down the waterfalls into the pool below. Wicked fun!

Waving from the pool after we slid.

Swimming in the waterfall.

Finally we returned back to Princess Tui's, tired and dirty, and immediately headed to the showers. After I had recomposed myself I found out that Adam and Jung had stopped by to see if we were in, and we decided to all go to dinner together. We headed to Paddle's, an Italian restaurant/bar with a beautiful view of the Apia Harbor, and kicked back to chat. It was very pleasant catching up with Adam and Jung and we also thoroughly enjoyed the change of cuisine and atmosphere.

Paddle's on Apia Harbor

Me, Adam, Jung and Rosemary after dinner.

Once we wrapped up dinner we headed back to On The Rocks for more drinks, and met up once again with the other WorldTeachers who were in Apia. We sat and swapped stories about wayward childhoods (Rosemary and her neighbors loitered in a construction site too!) and just enjoyed the night. Finally we said adieu to the others as we were heading to the other island, Savai'i, the next day and wouldn't see them again.

Roomies!

Rosemary and Bobby.

A truly terrible pic of Alex, Tanne, and Molly. My bad.

The next morning we hit up the market and bought some gifts (which I can obviously not write about here) and then swung by the food market on the way to the bus that we caught to get to the ferry to Savai'i. We don't have markets like this in AmSam so I indulged by buying some starfruit and umu-ed green bananas for lunch on the road. All that shopping sure made us thirsty so we grabbed some young coconuts for about 20 cents each. Delish.

Food Market

Nature's carbonated beverage.

Eventually we got on a bus, but since this is Samoa you know it wasn't normal. My big suitcase that we had brought for souvenirs was tied on to a platform on the back of the bus with some twine, and we piled in with a ton of other people. Just like in AmSam no bus is ever too full, so our hour long ride happened with Thanh sitting on my lap and Rosemary holding our bags on hers with a switch in the middle. This is how memories, and numb legs, are made.

Good thing we are such good friends.

We made it to the wharf, and soon after made it on the ferry to Savai'i. The waves were fun, and soon I was lulled to sleep, only occasionally awakening to the spray of salty water. Once we reached Savai'i it was another hour bus ride to Manase - the super awesome tourist spot were we could wear bathing suits on white sand beaches!

Ferry time!

Our lodgings were perfect for us - a thatched fale with mats and mosquito nets that opened directly onto the sandy beach. That Friday evening we arrived was spent with some swimming, dinner while watching the sunset over the ocean, and long night chats. Again I was thoroughly content to fall asleep to the sound of the bats in the trees and the waves crashing on the reef. Life doesn't get more simple and satisfying.

Fales opening to the beach.

The view from our fale.

 Rosemary kicking it in the mosquito net.

Sunset on the deck.

Saturday was a day of pure hedonistic pleasure. All day was occupied by swimming (in baiting suits!) napping on the beach, reading, and relaxing. Sadly, in the afternoon Rosemary took ill, but at least she had an amazing place to recover. That night after dinner I left Thanh to her book, and took a very long walk out on the beach under the stars. Again I was taken aback that this was my life, and couldn't be more overjoyed that I found myself there at that moment. Those lonesome hours under the stars might have been the closest I have been to understanding what I want from my life, but like all wonderful moments it too had to end.

Sometimes getting up at dawn is worth it.

Thanh, as the sun rises.

A tropical breakfast.

Our front yard. Not a desktop background, I swear.

The next morning, back in the real world, we were enjoying a leisurely breakfast as we had a few hours before we had to catch a bus to the wharf for the 12 o'clock ferry. However during this serene scene the owner approached us to tell us that there was no 12pm ferry that day, only at 10am. Our eyes met, momentarily stunned. Then springing to our feet, we hollered for the owner to call a cab and bolted to pack. It was 8:50... The cab arrived at 9:10, and we rapidly explained to him that we had 50 minutes to make the one hour drive to the ferry before it left. He assured us that he could make it.

Our cab man took his job seriously and we found ourselves careening down winding jungle roads at break-neck speeds dodging chickens, pigs, cars and children as we barreled towards the wharf. After reaching for our seat belts (alas, broken!) we held on tight and jammed out to his sweet Samoan mash-ups.

9:50... We're getting there...

9:53... Almost there...

9:58... Just around the corner!

9:59... We're dead!

10:00... We pull into the wharf with screeching tires as the ropes from the ferry are being pulled up and our driver yells from his open window the the man signaling up the gangplank. After a moment's hesitation the man nods at the cab driver, and stops the ferry for us.

A quick fist pump and satisfied "Yes!" are signs that our driver has set a new personal best.

I grab the luggage and pay, Thanh runs to the boat, and Rosemary grabs the tickets and in no time we are stepping on the ferry as it pulls away from the dock. Talk about an adrenaline rush.

The rest of our trip is calmer from there as we reach Apia without further drama, grab some chow, and hit the airport for home. Needless to say this is one weekend adventure that I will not forget quickly.

Here are more pics if you want them!

Western Samoa!

Thanh's Western Samoa Pics (And Stuff from Before)