Samoan Outrigger Hotel Apia

... with lush rainforest and small villages with brightly coloured houses and and overflow of churches in pastels. The Samoans are highly religious people (Christianity) so churches are scattered all over the island and people are regular churchgoers. Plus most people's front gardens are family burial ground, so elaborate headstones with masses of flowers can be seen in every village. Actually, it is only 0.3% of the population that is not Christian. After 4 days ...

I awoke with a start. Rubbing the carpet imprints on my cheek, I wondered how intelligent it had been to press my face to the floor of the Faleolo Airport. Considering the amount of monstrously huge cockroaches I'd been desperately dodging for two weeks, it probably wasn't the best choice of makeshift beds. I sat up, absently wiping the drool from my face, and tried to focus my bleary eyes - which is when I noticed my glasses weren't on. Vision cleared, I looked up ...

... dans le village voisin. Nous avons passé les deux nuits suivantes à Faofoa Beach Fales. C'est un endroit vraiment sympa, et les fales sont typiques. Cet endroit est bien mieux que Taufua, c'est aussi moins cher et inclus trois repas par jour. Donc on recommende vivement de rester a Faofao si jamais vous passez dans le district de Lalomanu. On a emprunté les masques et tubas de Sebastian et Jasmine pour découvrir un nouveau monde sous marin. Jo n'avait pas trop aimé l ...

... with each other! So to reach the beaches around Upolu you have to do a kind of star shape: Apia- beach 1 - Apia - beach 2 - Apia - beach 3... we'd end up spending more time in Apia! Lonely Planet has failed to mention that although there is a road going around the island, no bus takes the whole route - our faith in the trusty LP is ruined. Our first beach destination was Lalomanu Beach, popular tourist spot in Samoan scale, no Costa Brava though! The first ...

... we encountered was very polite and very friendly. We were greeted by smiles wherever we were. Robert Louis Stevenson lived Samoa for the last four years of his life and is buried there. We've seen that starry sky he described in the poem that was also his epitaph (Bury me low and let me lie...under that wide starry sky...). January 27, Sunday (Crossed the International Dateline) January 28, Monday At sea.

... selecting a suitable tree in the forest to the final finishing, while the master, Pulasui, directed the work of his sons. After the tree was felled, the boat was roughed to shape on the spot and then moved to his workshop for completion. My intention was to resurrect the sailing canoe, unseen in Samoa for many years. Canoes are paddle-driven for fishing in lagoons. For work outside the reef or for ocean travel where sailing ...

... the other half) in you pita! Yummy! It actually worked out well as we got a free meal! -Guys wear skirts (LavaLava's) here, which at first seemed weird, although i now know from experience that the breeze coming up inside the skirt feels great! -Transexuals are accepted for who they are and are not forced to hide their status. They are called "Fau Fau Fina's" here, and many give me "the ...

... bribe over and above the value of the boat. Even so, it is not quite a traditional Samoan paopao though useful enough for my purposes. Then, after I had sailed it a few times, the High Chief insisted it be put away in a fale 'to protect it.' It took four men to do this, as the boat is quite heavy-one of the ways in which it differs from a traditional canoe-and the help to ...