Week Six
Wednesday, 12th July
Talofa Lava
I did my yoga practice out on the balcony as it was a nice cool morning with rain predicted for later today. When Pablo surfaced he informed me that he would be throwing a ‘sickie’ as he was still not feeling 100% after his fall.
 |
| Michelle Clarke & husband Neill |
I had received a message a couple of days ago from my good friend Michelle Clarke, who works for Enjoi as a guide doing wine tours on Waiheke Island. She had a recent client, Wendy Burns, who was travelling to Samoa; would it be okay to pass on my contact details?
Wendy had rung yesterday upon arrival so we arranged to meet up this morning. I swung by the Talofa Inn, her small, clean guest house (with few facilities) on Vaea St and took her to Caffe Milani for a coffee. Wendy, of English origin has lived in Western Australia for the last fifty-five years. At eighty-three years of age, she is very intrepid, travelling alone.
 |
| Wendy Burns @ Caffe Milani |
I suggested we head to Piula and Wendy was happy to accompany me. By this stage it was raining but not too heavily. We had a pleasant drive and it cleared by the time we reached Lufilufi. We decided to eat lunch first at the Le Uaina Beach Resort, next to the Theological College and shared some Oka, Poke and Sashimi. The oka was the worst I've ever eaten, over-seasoned with pepper and the poke way too sweet, but the sashimi was perfect.
 |
| Le Uaina Beach Resort |
The day had turned pretty steamy so it was nice to cool off in the pool and as it was high tide, the water was deep and over my head. Wendy wasn’t too keen on having a swim but was content to explore while I indulged. She was soon befriended by a young girl. I hadn’t realised that the place was going to be so packed, I had forgotten about the school holidays.
 |
| Wendy's little friend @ Piula |
We headed back to Apia in the mid afternoon and stopped at Sula’s supermarket to buy some German coconut buns. Wendy used to run a cooking school and do walking food tours in Perth, so she is quite keen to try some of the local delicacies.
I had recommended the Amanaki Hotel for her dinner last evening and advised her to try the Island Grill Steak & Seafood tonight, within walking distance of her accommodation. This is the restaurant where Becky Kamu used to work. We also made plans to meet up for the fiafia night at Sails tomorrow.
https://www.facebook.com/islandgrillsamoa/
I whipped up some sushi, two rolls with tuna and one with sardines (you'd be surprised, it's really not that bad) for dinner, then made a birthday call (Manuia asofanau) to my mum. I finished reading Lani Wendt’s book before calling it a night. My knee is still a bit achey.
 |
| Happy Birthday Mum |
I have made contact with school friend James Atherton. He remembers me and would love to catch up. He has suggested we meet for a drink on Friday night at the Marina.
Thursday, 13th July
I dropped Pablo at work and the laundry to Kentos before picking up a few grocery items from Lynn’s. I hung out at the apartment until Michael and Antony arrived to clean, a little before lunch-time.
Finally, Cam Wendt answered his phone. He also remembered me. I was hoping to catch up this weekend before my influx of visitors arrive but he is off to Savai’i tomorrow to climb Samoa’s highest peak, Mt. Silisili (6,095ft/1,858mt)…which sounds a bit silly silly to me LoL!
https://www.samoa.travel/plan-book/activities/mt-silisili/
Today I went to Pickled Lam for lunch. I ordered a bottle of water and an omelette with my favourite fillings - onion, mushroom and cheese. I also purchased a second-hand book for $5 tala. I was hoping to find another in the series by Lani Wendt but had to settle for ‘The Dream Swimmer’ by Witi Ihimaera instead.
I had some time to kill after I ate so I helped Amanda fold some napkins. She was explaining that it is difficult to get staff in Samoa at the moment because many of the local people have gone to work in NZ or OZ with the Registered Seasonal Employer (RSE) programme.
It’s concerning because Samoa is expecting a huge influx of approx 2,000 visitors for the International Va’a Federation (IVF) World Long Distance Championships that are being hosted by the Samoa Outrigger Canoe Association (SOCA) between 10th - 19th August, 2023.
 |
| Parliament Buldings, Mulinu'u - Now |
As well, Apia will be hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in October 2024, where they estimate the Heads of States and their entourage will number up to 10,000 people. Apparently, last time Samoa had to host a large group like this, they hired a cruise ship, which moored out in the harbour to help cover the accommodation shortage.
 |
| Parliament Building, Mulinu'u - Then |
https://thecommonwealth.org/news/commonwealth-heads-government-meet-samoa-2024
Samoa (officially the Independent State of Samoa) was known as Western Samoa until 1997. They were the first Pacific Island nation to be granted Independence on 1st January 1962, which they celebrate annually on the 1st June.
The New Mau Movement was the name given to the popular non-violent movement for Samoan Independence from Colonial Rule. Mau means "opinon" or "testimony" in Samoan and their ethos was "moved by love, never driven by intimidation".
 |
| Marching Independence Day |
Due to Covid, Samoa's 60th Independence celebrations were scuppered in 2022 so 2023 saw them celebrate this major milestone instead. Traditionally there is flag raising and a marching parade by schools and ministries. There are also fautasi (long boat) canoe races.
 |
| Fautasi (Long Boat) Races, Independence Day |
This years Independence theme was "Preserving Our Heritage, Nuturing Our Future". This theme serves to highlight the importance of honouring and preserving Samoan culture, traditions and history while focusing on creating a brighter future for the Nation's youth.
I had received a request from Sandra McKersey, Andrea's mum asking if I could look for their old house and take a photo. So I took a detour via Vaivase enroute to Vanya’s, and found it easily enough.
 |
| The McKersey Residence |
I stopped by Sula’s (again). The serving lady recognised, laughed and teased me when I purchased three more German coconut buns for afternoon tea. Vanya had invited me to come and look at her amazing collection of large art pieces that fill her walls.
 |
| Vanya's art |
Vanya's PhD was about lineage, memory and object. But most of her work focuses on Samoan concepts such as Va Tapuia, Legends and social issues like domestic violence and incest. While her MVA was on tattooing, Eternal Symbols. Plus she has a Grad Dip on tapa, and proverbs with a huge focus on the environment.
It was another steamy day so it was a relief to plunge into the pleasantly cool waters of the lagoon afterwards. No other locals turned up and I made my leave in time to collect Pablo from SPREP bang on 5pm.
Once back at Vaoala, Celine came to ask if she could borrow the Ractis so she might do her grocery shopping. Pablo had kindly offered her the use of the car whenever she might need it. Unfortunately the guy who rear-ended her only has enough money to pay for his car to get fixed, so am not sure where that leaves Celine, as she did not have any insurance.
We indicated that she would need to be back by 6:15-6:30pm at the latest so we could go to the fiafia night at Sails. We were told the buffet would start at 7pm and the show at 8:15pm plus we promised to pick up Wendy from her hotel on the way.
No surprises that Celine was held up. The pizza she and Gabriel had ordered for their dinner took longer than expected and she eventually got back by 6:45pm. No problem, we arrived at our venue in plenty of island time! It was rather windy down on the waterfront but not unpleasantly so. The place was pretty packed though as there was a large group ensconced to celebrate someone's 60th.
 |
| Wendy & Pablo @ Sails |
 |
| Sails buffet |
The buffet eventually kicked off closer to seven thirty! There was a mountain of food. Oka, three salads (green, pasta & potato), taro & palusami, garlic mussels, rice, sweet n sour pork, stir fry vege, chicken and fish. Followed by fresh fruit, a sponge roll, chocolate cake and a yummy lemon cake.
As for the show itself, I could not fault the performers, the fire dance along with the other male and female dancers were excellent. I understand the troupe have previously taken their show to Korea. However I was disappointed as it was very “pan pacific” and I wished it had more Samoan focus. I felt for the performers though as the crowd was difficult and a little lacklustre.
Friday, 14th July
I dropped Pablo at work around 9:30am as I needed to be out at Faleula by 10:00am. At Vanya's yesterday I received a phone call from Kamu Tagaolo Wright. He had gotten my message via Michael, was feeling better and free to meet this morning.
Gosh, apart from gray shorter hair I could still recognise the young man he once was. The same vintage as Tafito and Maifea, they are all aged 64 now, which means that he was also nineteen to twenty one years of age when we knew him. I was also able to ascertain that Kamu’s father was Lalomilo’s cousin.
 |
| Kamu & wife Tausaga |
I met Tausaga, Kamu’s second wife who has borne him three daughters and two sons; plus they have one adopted son. They were married in New Zealand in 1991. As well he has two children to his first wife and one grandchild, who live in Australia.
 |
| With Kamu & Fale |
He originally studied agriculture at Massey University in Palmerston North and on his return to Samoa worked at the Methodist Land Development Scheme. He assisted Ralph with the construction of the cowshed then worked with Tafito and Maifea milking and caring for the herd.
 |
| SMLD Cowshed |
Kamu then started his religious studies at Piula Theological College and has predominantly lived in NZ with parishes in Petone, Wellington and Panmure, Auckland since. He is currently based in Palmerston North, where he looks after the youth ministry for the Wellington Regional Sinoti, which extends from the Hawkes Bay to Wainuiomata in Wellington.
He will find out this weekend if he has a new posting or not. He was absolutely delighted to have news of our family and enjoyed reliving the past through the photos I showed him. He was able to tell me that Olofa and her sister Toa (the teacher) are living in South Auckland. Her parents were Sione and Tima. He was unsure about Naomi Lokeni’s whereabouts, who David and Erana adored. Last he heard she had married a Palagi and was living in America.
 |
| Naomi with David & Erana. Sam Stevenson watching. |
I think I may have eaten something a bit dodgy at the fiafia last night as I got half way back to Apia and needed to make an emergency bathroom stop. So I pulled up at Burger Bill’s in Vaitele, Samoa’s version of Hungry Jack’s or Burger King.
While it may not have been the wisest decision to eat junk food, I figured that since I was there I may as well try something off their menu. I ordered their Swiss Mushroom Burger (only) for $18 tala. Actually it was pretty good, a decent size, freshly made and piping hot.
It was next door to the Farmer Joe’s so I popped in to check this particular supermarket out. They had a good range of chilled and bakery products but my only purchase was bog roll. I then headed back into town to exchange the last of my cash and got my best rate yet.
I then visited Indoors. As well as selling clothing they are a general store and have now branched out into car rentals. I wanted to arrange to get a dress made. Mona Lisa was there with her mother, Iva Chan Chui, who oversees the dressmakers. Eseta, the woman I spoke with previously is going to be my seamstress.
 |
| Indoors dresses |
 |
| Alo Kamu Family |
Lucky for me, Mona Lisa had just had a big family reunion so I met her sister Sita, who was over from Sydney. Plus Alo happened to arrive while I was there along with two of their three kids; Penina, who is studying business at Waikato University in Hamilton, NZ and Damien who lives & works for a trucking company in the United States. The other brother, named for his grandfather, Lalomilo works for vodafone. He lives in Apia and stays with Donna.
 |
| Alo Kamu, Ross Butters, David & Loama Mavaeao |
To be expected, Alo didn’t really remember our family, even when I showed him some photos. He did recognise a number of other people in the pictures and was able to give me some intel on Loama Mavaeao who now has a Govt. job working for the Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (MPMC). Alo told me that Loama's father, Mavaeao, is now deceased.
 |
| Loama Mavaeao |
From there I stopped at one of the many Chinese stores and bought a $10 tala Samoa flag bunting, a souvenir and collected the laundry on my way back up the hill. I had a cold shower and read until it was time to pick up Pablo from work at 4pm. I was still waiting for him at 5:30pm!!!
He had lost track of time. He had been invited to tour the USS Rainier, a research vessel for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that was currently in port; along with other Conservationists and Diplomats. The USS Rainier constantly tours the US Pacific to monitor coral reefs and do bathymetric mapping.
https://www.omao.noaa.gov/mo/ships/rainier
I got simultaneous messages from Pablo who apologised and said he would taxi home. And another from James Atherton, asking if I could meet at 6:00 instead of 6:30pm. I freshened up then Pablo dropped me off at the Marina. He planned to have a meal somewhere then touch base afterwards re giving me a lift back up the hill.
 |
| Apia Marina |
 |
| Wendy |
I walked into the Marina and the first person I bumped into was Wendy, who was eating her evening meal. I sat and chatted with her for a few minutes while scanning the space before walking into the fray. James came to greet me. Crikey’s he has grown tall since we last met but what a super lovely guy.
 |
| James Atherton & I |
These days James is an Environmental Consultant and coincidentally was on the NOAA boat with Pablo this afternoon. He is also President of an NGO, the Samoa Conservation Society and he presented me with a copy of his latest book (hot off the press), ‘A Pictorial Guide to Samoa’s Natural Heritage’.
https://samoaconservationsociety.wordpress.com/
His passion for nature and its creatures is evident and the society is involved in many projects from forest restoration, tree planting, invasive species management, environmental research and awareness activities and clean-up days. James is also involved in the protection of Samoa’s national bird, the endangered Manumea; a tooth billed pigeon. In 2020 a bird-watching hide and nature trail was estabished in the Uafato conservation area of Upolu.
 |
| Manumea, Street Art |
James also presented me with a beautiful bowl that he made from a business venture of his called Samoa Green. This particular piece was made from a pressed palm frond with red lavalava material, while other pieces use tapa cloth. Some of the products are a fantastic natural alternative to plastic and would be suitable for catering purposes.
We did not run short of conversation over a few gins for me, beers for him and some nibbles of sashimi and sliders; as we turned to more personal matters. James is unmarried and has no children but has been with long term partner Charmina for roughly twenty years. They have quite a few fur babies though. He is also a Hash House Harrier and knows Ariane through this sport.
His father Dr John Atherton was an Englishman (now deceased) and his mother Puipa’a Dr Viopapa Annandale-Atherton was the first Samoan woman to graduate in Medicine from the University of Otago in the 1960’s. She is known for her tireless work in improving the health and welfare of women and children in the Pacific.
His family spent time in both the UK and Samoa while growing up but we met in 1980, when he was in the third form at SamCo. His older brother Malvern was in my year but not my class. I’m sad to report that Malvern tragically passed away a little over seven years ago, an untimely death, shortly before his 50th birthday.
 |
| James & Mavern Atherton |
Upon reading his obituary I discovered that Malvern was a quiet achiever. He was a graduate student of three renowned education providers, Edinburgh University, Manchester and Massachusetts Technical Institutes. Plus his professional career saw him lead a handful of elite engineers at Rolls Royce in the design and improvement of aircraft engines.
In his spare time he volunteered and was a co-leader for the Democrat Party’s Lobby Group, ‘Organising for Action’ around climate change; to not only spread awareness but also formulate solutions to mitigate the impact of emissions on the environment.
Malvern’s influence saw him invited, by Michelle Obama, as an esteemed guest to the White House in 2012. Plus he was post-humously honoured by the State of Indianapolis, with keys to the city and naming rights of the Mal Atherton Award for Climate Advocacy. His death is a great loss but I'm sure his family must be extremely proud of his accomplishments.
Our reverie soon came to an end. tt seemed the night was about to kick off, judging by the sudden influx of young people plus it was getting increasingly harder to hold a conversation over the loud music. Pablo messaged to say he had finished dinner at Paddles; did I want a ride? So he came and joined us for one drink. James and Pablo appear to have many common interests in their line of work.
Saturday, 15th July
It was bliss to wake up to the heavy rain this morning as it cools everything down. My guts were mildly unsettled, must’ve been something I ate at the fiafia night, but as the day progressed I improved, thank goodness.
Pablo wanted to head off about 9:30ish to get our supplies. We stopped at the SWAG markets first. Only four stalls today, very small. Vanya is unwell with a cough, so had stayed home. I teed up with Janet to get a haircut this Monday.
Next stop was the King Fish Market where Pablo purchased a kilo of Tuna. Then it was onto the French Bakery for a baguette and a Pain aux Raisin for him while I got my usual Pain au Chocolat. From there it was off to Eat the Kiwi for Vogel’s bread, Fever Tree Tonic, Chorizo and Parmesan cheese.
Thankfully it stopped raining by the time we got back into town to the veggie market. Today they had freshly picked sweetcorn on offer. Got more carrots, cabbage, spring onion, cucumber, capsicum, tomato and avocado. We stopped at a supermarket for potatoes, cornflour, aloe vera juice and a chicken samosa before heading home.
 |
| Fugalei Market |
When our family first moved to Samoa you could not get potatoes, only pasta or rice. Mum had never really cooked rice or pasta much before and my sister Erana did not particularly like the rice. I remember at home in NZ she would pretty much only eat a concoction of mashed potato, peas and tomato sauce.
Mum soon discovered a potato substitute called ‘ulu (breadfruit). There were two big trees right outside, one in front of Ralph’s house and the other in front of Joanne & Bin’s. You knew when they were ripe because they got white blemishes on their green skin.
 |
| 'Ulu - Breadfruit |
Mum would peel and boil the breadfruit, then chill it before chipping and frying it up in butter, like potato. They were quite delicious and I preferred it this way rather than cooked in the umu, as they can be quite dry.
For dinner we ate a lot of sausages, usually curried, and poultry (at least two-three times a week). To be honest I was a bit over eating chicken by the time we returned to New Zealand. Invariably the chicken that was served to us at Sunday Toonai would still have a few feathers stuck in the skin.
Apart from buying a ham for Christmas and an occasional treat of bacon, the only pork we ate on a regular basis was luncheon sausage (hands up those who would make face masks with their luncheon?!). We weren’t huge pork eaters because being on a dairy farm we always had beef in our freezer.
 |
| Pua'a (Pig) - from this... |
 |
| ...to this |
I think it made my mother’s stomach turn when they would bring out the big cooked pua'a (pig) at feasts, its porcine face intact along with a number of wiry hairs. The flies were always attracted to that big hunk of swine, which needless to say was very unappealing. But protocol dictated that you had to eat at least a little, to avoid offence.
We planted a pineapple (fa'amaina) out the back of the house and two papaya (esi) either side of our front door, which grew like they were on steroids. We always had a big bunch of fa’i (banana) for a snack, hanging in an old window frame between the dining/sitting room and kitchen. My brother David disliked bananas but I loved them.
 |
| Our homegrown Pineapple |
.jpg) |
| Banana's (Fa'i) |
At the markets you would see all sorts of big and small bananas in a range of colours; green, yellow, gray and brown. I remember that the locals used to grow their thumb nails super long, which they used to scoop the plantains out of their skins
We also got to taste a number of other unusual foods while in Samoa. Things like sea cucumbers, which were plentiful. We would always see them while snorkeling. The locals used to gut and sell them in old soft drink bottles at the markets. It didn't look very appealing and I can’t say they were my favourite.
 |
| Sea Cucumber |
When we went to visit our Samoan family, Siaosi and Tafito Selesele’s family in Sataua, Savai’i, my parents were presented with a very charred bat to eat. Considered a delicacy it did not have an awful lot of meat on it. I think they struggled with that.
One year, we had to time our harvest just right, we went out at midnight to collect Palolo (coral dwelling caviar-flavoured sea worms) with nets and flashlights. This usually happens in October, seven days after the full moon, during the sea worms annual mating ritual.
The Palolo look like long spaghetti strands with no heads, as the worms have the rare ability to bisect itself. Their heads remain alive, safe and well in it’s coral home while it’s lower half floats to the surface to release eggs or sperm. The males are reddish-brown in colour while the females are bluish-green.
 |
| Palolo worms |
 |
| On toast! |
I can’t remember exactly where we went to collect our Samoan caviar but I do recall that the ones we ate were bluish-green. These were fried up in butter and we ate them on toast. It was salty and fishy but delicious.
We nearly broke our teeth trying to crack the red shell of the Lopa seed, the tiny nut inside was hard and brown. I'm not sure if you were meant to eat them as they are often used to make 'ula fala. There used to be a lopa factory across the road from Bonnie's in Puipa'a.
 |
| Lopa seed |
I got to try Rambutan & Lychee for the very first time, OMG, so good. I also loved the Chinese flower biscuits (keke saiga) and the salty, dried red plums. I remember seeing Indian Apples on the Cashew Nut tree. No wonder cashews are so expensive. One apple has one cashew seed. Each cashew has to be taken from its shell (drupe) and cleaned well because the drupe is toxic and can cause sickness if eaten.
 |
| keke saiga |
Sunday 16th July
The rain did not abate at all today, until the evening. I was quite pleased for the respite from the heat and also having an enforced day of rest before my influx of visitors, starting with Kate who arrives tomorrow night.
I had just arisen and come out to the kitchen to boil the billy around 8:15am when there was a knock at the door. Celine wanted to use the car to go to Church. She said she should return by around noon. No problem, we had no plans to go anywhere.
I have managed to avoid attending church on my visit to Samoa thus far, compared to when we lived here previously. Most Sunday’s we would don our whites and head to Avoca, where the sermon and hymns were all in Samoan, which naturally we did not understand.
 |
| The palagi's attending Avoca |
Us kids would be fidgety and bored as hell, sitting cross-legged on the floor. After about twenty to thirty minutes you would get pins and needles in your lower extremities but by the end of the hour your feet would be completely dead. I can remember having to shake them awake at the end of the service, before I could stand.
In the Samoan Church calendar there is one special day in October for children, called White Sunday. This celebration of childhood includes Biblical story re-enactments, recitations and dance performances during the church service. On this day children are granted special privileges, like being served first at mealtimes.
 |
| David & Erana on White Sunday |
I remember one time I tripped and fell on the Avoca Church steps and badly grazed my right shin. You have to be so careful with wounds in tropical climes. Before long it had ulcerated and it took some weeks to heal. It left a big scar.
I have always been a bit clumsy on my feet and back then I was constantly spraining my left ankle, as a result it was permanently swollen and rounded The worst wound I got however was on the in-step of my left foot. My jandals had developed a hole and somehow I got an abscess on the bottom of my foot, it has also left a sizeable reminder.
It was not desirable to spend any extended time at the hospital but I succinctly remember visiting the out-patients. Whereupon the physician who was treating me inserted a giant needle into the core of the wound, in order to numb it, so they could squeeze the pus out. I just about hit the roof and had to be physically restrained. It was gross and extremely painful. Perhaps not as bad as the boil that my brother David got on his bum!
I also remember that Dad contracted dengue fever while we were there and he was pretty crook for a bit, but recovered okay at home. I remember that us kids had to get our TB shots early, (usually you got them when you started college in NZ) along with the small pox vaccination before we could travel.
On occasion my parents would take us to the Apia Protestant Church for an English service. When Mum started her Samoan Language classes, which is where she met Angela, she also met Randy and Ruth Hurst; the American pastor’s of the Assembly of God Church (AOG). They had two sons, Rusty and Roly, who were rather rotund.
I will never forget the first time we attended their Church. After the staidness of my childhood Presbyterian upbringing, it totally freaked me out. This was my first experience of a “happy clappy” Pentecostal service. I had never seen such interaction within a congregation.
People were waving their arms, calling Hallelujah and praising the Lord when suddenly one woman, I think her name was Klara Powell; fell to her knees and started speaking gobble-de-gook, ie. in tongues. I was out of there quick as a flash and vowed never to return.
It took some months of persuasion before I considered crossing the threshold of that Church again. By this time Randy and Ruth had left and were replaced by Pastor Ben Kaufman, another American man who started their youth group.
 |
| Assembly of God Church |
I’m not quite sure how I came to join, but a few of my friends from school, siblings Tammie & Monika Leung-Wai, Letitia Cordtz and brothers Robert & Joseph Matthews; must have invited me. I remember John Leota and William Schwenke would play guitar and there was another boy who went called Nelson (?). We went on lots of fun outings to swimming holes and once we made a cool haunted house for our Halloween party.
 |
| Connie in Church play |
 |
| David singing |
The AOG were always putting on productions like plays or singing concerts, that both my brother and I got involved with. One time a group of us flew over to American Samoa for a weekend to sing there. That was when I had to get my own passport, as prior to that I had been travelling on my parents one.
 |
| Youth group in American Samoa |
Photo 1: William Schwenke, Joseph Matthews, Nelson ?, Robert Matthews, Tammie Leung-Wai (now Winters), John Leota.
Photo 2:
(Front) Monika Leung-Wai (now Maynard), ?, Tammie, Letitia Cordtz, ? (in blue)
(Back) Nelson, William, Robert, Joseph, Pastor Ben Kaufman, ?, Connie Nicholson
There was always a lot of focus on the Book of Revelations in the New Testament, particularly about the Anti-Christ and the Mark of the Beast (666). It used to terrify me especially when ‘The Omen’ films came out. To this day I still have an aversion to the name Damien. The main thing I found off-putting was that at the end of each youth group meeting we had to pray to repent our sins. I guess I felt that I wasn’t quite ready to commit to a life of Christ.
I have been trying to track down some of the crew from the youth group, without much joy.
Tanya Wendt did send through some useful information about brothers Robert & Joseph Matthews. Robert was in her class at SamCo. Apparently they were related to Erna Vaai (now deceased) and her sister Ioana Chan Mow, who was a Biology teacher at SamCo; now a professor at the National University of Samoa (NUS). I have asked Ariane to see if she can find out anything more, as Ioana is her Aunty.
 |
| William Schwenke |
Once again, if anyone reading this has any information on brothers Robert & Joseph Matthews, William Schwenke, Steven Leifi (who I affectionately called Grandson), Letitia Cordtz and Nelson (can’t recall his surname); I would be very grateful.
I spent the majority of the day enjoying the rain and working on my blog. I made Shakshuka for brunch and Oka for dinner. Both delicious.
Monday 17th July
I had promised Celine to take her to work this morning, in case I ever need to pick her up from town while she is car-less. We left the house at 7:45am and I dropped Pablo at Myna’s so he could get some supplies for morning tea then picked him up again after dropping Celine, then deposited him at work. I then went back to Myna’s to get a few supplies for myself. I saw they were selling Koko esi this morning, which is with papaya instead of rice.
 |
| Celine Nelson @ her work |
We have some new guests staying downstairs. They arrived yesterday in all that rain. A young Aussie couple, Helen and Jarrah from Mullumbimby, near Byron Bay. Jarrah’s father is quarter-kasi and was born in Samoa so he has a few rellies here, and looks pretty fly for a white guy.
Their holiday hasn’t got off to a good start. They are supposed to be staying at the Le Manumea hotel but they booked for the wrong dates, so hence the emergency accommodation here for a couple of nights. The rental car they hired does not have roof racks, which they requested because they have surf boards with them, it's a bit of a squeeze but luckily they can just fit them inside the car.
I headed out to Janet’s place in Lotopa for my haircut appointment at 10am. I found the place without too much trouble, well maybe one wrong turn. There are a lot of little “Samoan Roads” that don’t show up on Google maps and no one has letterboxes or street numbers. It’s all landmark based!
Married for twenty six years, Janet & Oliva Lapalapa have two daughters, who both live in South Australia. Janiva (23) is a beautician while Mira (21) is studying, a double major in English & History at Adelaide University; with a view to becoming a teacher.
Janet & Oliva originally met in Adelaide where he studied Mechanical Engineering. He has had a few career changes over the years He was Head of the Fitting & Machining Dept at NUS and has worked as a sewing machine technician. These days he is self-employed and works from home creating designs that he screen prints onto fabric.
The home hairdressing studio that Janet has set up was practical and quite retro, with the well used basin and chair acquired from the salon where she did her apprenticeship many moons ago. They built things to last back in those days and these have stood her well over the years, considering that many of her clientele are large island people.
 |
| Janet Lapalapa's Hair Salon |
 |
| Janet & I |
She also told me that invests a lot into her equipment, mainly the cutting tools. She keeps four sets of scissors, around AUD$1k a pair and has to replace one pair every three months, because they blunt quickly on the thick wiry Samoan hair.
Janet really knows her stuff and not just how to cut hair. She understands what will or won’t suit the shape of her client’s face and she was quick to rectify my inverted bob to a regular one. The appointment took an hour and cost $70 tala. I’m really happy with my new do.
 |
| Apartment & Balcony |
 |
| Kate's bedroom |
 |
| Kate's bathroom |
I then spent the next few hours writing up edit notes for William, as he has made my requested changes already. I had awoken to a second video link for me to view. It’s looking amazing, a few more tweaks I reckon and we should be there.
After that it was a quick visit to the neighbour’s to play Skip Bo. I was beaten 2-1, so that’s one each now. I feel a play off coming on. I had a quick dip in the pool before collecting Pablo from work.
We discovered that the fan in the spare room where Kate will be sleeping is playing up. It works one minute and not the next. Sila tried to fix it today but had no luck. They will call the electrician tomorrow. In the meantime, there is a pedestal fan.
 |
| Sela with Stasi & Suva (in blue) |
 |
| Sila, Sela & twins |
A few people have asked to see what the apartment looks like, so have included some pictures of it plus the property managers Sila, Sela and the twins Stasi & Suva.
 |
| Kitchen & my bedroom |
I ate left over Oka before heading out to the airport to pick up Kate around 8pm. She eventually made it out around 9:30pm. It's been 41years since her family left Samoa so she is super amped to be here and explore over the next week.
 |
| Kate Larkindale |
Tuesday 18th July
I awoke with the birds and by 8:15am everyone in the apartment was up. Pablo planned to work from home today so Kate and I will leave him to it and go exploring. Before we left I made a quick call to say. Happy Birthday Dad.
 |
| Dad (next to chair) with Apia Repertory |
Kate was raring to find her old house, located across the road from the old Apia Primary School, on the corner of Vaitele & Ififi Street’s. Christina, one of the residents at the property was more than happy for us to wander around and take photos.
 |
| Larkindale Residence |
From there we went to find her old school, Apia Primary. It turns out that my sister Erana actually went to Apia Infants (school colours red & white) and not Apia Primary (school colours light & dark blue) Kate's younger sister Jane, also attended Apia Infants, which is now a printing shop.
John Larkindale had previous postings with the diplomatic corps in Vienna, Austria and Washington DC, USA before the family arrived in Samoa, when Kate was seven. She attended Apia Primary in 1981 & 1982. The old Apia Primary buildings are now part of the Ministry of Education complex and used for archival purposes.
 |
| Old Apia Primary School |
As we wandered around the grounds of the new Apia Primary School (where Leifiifi Intermediate used to be) we met the headmistress and some of the teachers. We were told they go right through from infants to Year Eight now.
 |
| Old Leifiifi Intermediate |
The school roll is 1200 with three classes/year with roughly fifty students in each class! Plus they have adopted the pink & grey school colours of the old Leifiifi Intermediate. Leifiifi is now a college and occupies buildings in the same vicinity but back towards the cross-island road and their colours have changed to blue & white.
 |
| Leifiifi College |
Some mornings while driving to school we would notice that Erana was still wearing her pyjama pants and had forgotten to change into her undies. Kate recalled that every morning the school prefects would do an underwear check.
If kids were found to be knicker-less then their punishment was one of shame. You would have to stand until morning break holding the flagpole, with your dress or lavalava hitched up to reveal your bare backside.
We continued our tiki tour via Samoa College, where Kate’s mum Philippa taught Chemistry. (James Atherton told me he remembered her teaching there and that his dad used to play squash against Kate's dad). We had a look at Taumeasina Resort before cruising down Beach Rd and out to Mulinu’u then headed back into town to Cafe Nourish for lunch. Would have gone to Caffe Milani but couldn't find a park.
After we ate we went snorkelling at Palolo Deep. Thankfully the tide was coming in because it was a bit of a mission initially to swim out to the drop off. In places it was quite shallow and you had to navigate around the coral. But it was worth the effort. OMG what an incredible underwater wonderland. The coral and marine life has regenerated heaps in the last 40 odd years.
 |
| Palolo Deep Entrance |
There were schools of hundreds of damselfish (a green-yellow colour in one light but turning light blue in another) surrounding us. We got a birds eye views of their little pink mouths and gills fluttering as they literally kissed our goggles. We saw many other species, big and small in a range of bright colours; starfish and lots of coral.
Excellent value for $5 Tala per person entry. Kate paid an additional $12 to hire goggles and a snorkel.
It was soon time to head back up the hill for gin o'clock then out to dinner at Island Grill Steak and Seafood. Kate & I both went for the Lobster Mornay. I was in food heaven. We completed our meal with an ice cream from Scoops.
 |
| Oh My! The Lobster Mornay was divine. |
Well that's another week done and dusted. Six down, two to go. Thanks for coming on this journey with me. Until next time to fa soifua (Goodbye).
Comments
Post a Comment