11. Groundhog Day-American Samoa
Our most westerly point had been reached at about 173W and overnight we sailed a few miles eastwards from Samoa to the neighbouring island of American Samoa. Due to political preferences whereby Samoa wants to be aligned with its closest economic partner, New Zealand and American Samoa remains an American territory aligned with the western USA, the Islands are on different sides of the International Date Line and thus we have crossed back. Having missed Wednesday this week, we were now in American Samoa and the date was Saturday April 13...again.
The main town is Pago Pago but it's correct pronunciation is Pango Pango. (You can't say that this blog isn't educational). Our tour didn't leave until late morning so this gave us time to take the short walk into the downtown area. Downtown is rather misleading, it was just a small area with a few more shops, churches and markets.
It also happens that in a few days time, April 17 is the National Flag Day and a day of celebration. However, in true Samoan style, the celebrations are flexible and as the weather forecast was good and there was a cruise ship in, the annual canoe race was going to be held in the morning. The canoe race is a Very Big Thing with each village putting in a team and vying for bragging rights for the ensuing year. The canoes are also massive, requiring a crew of 48 paddlers plus a captain. And as anyone else who is familiar with Polynesian culture will know, the paddlers are pretty big guys too! As we strolled into town we followed the white team who were singling and chanting and high fiving anyone who walked by. Indeed, the whole island seemed to be coming down to the harbourside to cheer on their local team.
The race went right past the ship and got back in time to watch from the vantage of the promenade deck. The blue team won by several lengths (a length is at least 150 feet!), followed by the reds. Our white team was some way behind but at least fared better that the yellow team who, unfortunately, sank.
We joined our tour at midday and climbed aboard our tour bus. All the buses have definitely seen better days. They look as if the Samoans have bought the ones the Cubans and Indians rejected for not being old enough or having bright enough paint jobs. We stopped off for a look at a centre dedicated to protecting and conserving the unique Samoan environment before driving further along the coast and sightseeing. Eventually we stopped for a swim at Two Dollar Beach, a pretty little spot which was too small, too busy, and too shallow. But the water was beautifully warm and it felt good to escape the heat. After swimming we bought a couple of Vailimas at the beach bar and drank to world peace.
Unlike Samoa where we sailed away after sunset, the Pago Pago departure was late afternoon and as it's a natural harbour, there were many photo opportunities to be had.
So we are back now for a couple more sea days before our next port of call, Tahiti.
The main town is Pago Pago but it's correct pronunciation is Pango Pango. (You can't say that this blog isn't educational). Our tour didn't leave until late morning so this gave us time to take the short walk into the downtown area. Downtown is rather misleading, it was just a small area with a few more shops, churches and markets.
It also happens that in a few days time, April 17 is the National Flag Day and a day of celebration. However, in true Samoan style, the celebrations are flexible and as the weather forecast was good and there was a cruise ship in, the annual canoe race was going to be held in the morning. The canoe race is a Very Big Thing with each village putting in a team and vying for bragging rights for the ensuing year. The canoes are also massive, requiring a crew of 48 paddlers plus a captain. And as anyone else who is familiar with Polynesian culture will know, the paddlers are pretty big guys too! As we strolled into town we followed the white team who were singling and chanting and high fiving anyone who walked by. Indeed, the whole island seemed to be coming down to the harbourside to cheer on their local team.
The race went right past the ship and got back in time to watch from the vantage of the promenade deck. The blue team won by several lengths (a length is at least 150 feet!), followed by the reds. Our white team was some way behind but at least fared better that the yellow team who, unfortunately, sank.
We joined our tour at midday and climbed aboard our tour bus. All the buses have definitely seen better days. They look as if the Samoans have bought the ones the Cubans and Indians rejected for not being old enough or having bright enough paint jobs. We stopped off for a look at a centre dedicated to protecting and conserving the unique Samoan environment before driving further along the coast and sightseeing. Eventually we stopped for a swim at Two Dollar Beach, a pretty little spot which was too small, too busy, and too shallow. But the water was beautifully warm and it felt good to escape the heat. After swimming we bought a couple of Vailimas at the beach bar and drank to world peace.
Unlike Samoa where we sailed away after sunset, the Pago Pago departure was late afternoon and as it's a natural harbour, there were many photo opportunities to be had.
So we are back now for a couple more sea days before our next port of call, Tahiti.
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