First Day, Great First Impressions

Our first night in Samoa was that of an interesting one. We arrived at midnight and got picked up about 1am. As we drove to our village, called Tiapapata which was about an hour away, we got a lowdown of the history of Samoa, customs, culture from our new friend Manu, who was the eldest son of the family we were staying with. Sitting in the front seat, hanging my head out of the window, seeing an absolutely clear sky and learning about what comprised of a village (the chief-hood and customs in the family) and just feeling insanely happy- it was a really good start to our visit.

Needless to say, we didn't get much sleep, but heck, who needs sleep!? (that's been my theory for the past 2 months...I think it might be affecting me). Our first full day we had the pleasure of waking up to the smell of fresh made bread- Wendy, the mother who really became our mother, made her own bread, and for our whole visit she cooked for us everyday, and it made us feel so at home and so loved. It was the first time that I can remember that I could taste the love and care in the food I was eating. Maybe I just miss home a bit haha.

The House of Worship, which is the first in the Pacific Islands, one of 7 in the world, is literally in their back yard! It was such a blessing because we didn't have to worry about transport because it was a 2 minute walk down their drive way :) We saw it when we drove to their house during the night, but it was pitch black, so we full on intended to make it out first visit in Samoa. However, the family was going to the beach, and since we didn't really have a plan for our trip and no means of transportation, we decided to go with the flow and hop on the beach wagon. We ended up going to the other side of the island, unknown to us- it only took about 35 minutes to get to- and we visited a black sand beach where the sand looked like sesame. What was a amazing is that the waves crashed miles away, so we were in a bay and were able to snorkel (first time!) which our backs suffered for. To get to any beach we had to go through a village and to go through the village we had to pay, about $10AUS- they chiefs take the money and distribute it to the whole village to use. The beaches in Samoa totally took the cake from Australia- I was completely taken by Aussie's beach, and they are gorgeous, but NOTHING compares to a Pacific Island's water- absolutely clear and the blues are so intensely contrasting that your eyes are just having a feast! We could be 7feet deep and still see our whole body and fish swimming around us. Simply amazing.

We went to a freshwater waterfall afterwards to “clean off.” Jumping off the waterfall was a little daunting, even thought it wasn't a huge jump, the idea of it was still...ek. But soooooo FUN! Gorgeous, gorgeous country. Like everything else, you need to see it to know what I'm talking about! On the way home us white girls sat in the back of the ute (truck) and waved as we drove past the locals. We got fully rained on as we made our way up the hill to home, drenched! We tried to shield ourselves with beach towels, but alas, the rain won :)

If you've never been to a Pacific Island, I high recommend Samoa to be your first. It's just modern enough to not have lost it's own culture. It's a really great balance. And plus, it's paradise.