On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
way2blue
We visited the main town of Apia, on the north side of the island, a few times. Great lunch place called Nourish. Huge open air market, local crafts shop, better stocked grocery stores than elsewhere…
On both American Samoa & here, I was fascinated by the school uniforms. Most boys & girls wore identical colored sarongs (lava lava) and white shirts. Very cool. Men wearing sarongs is also quite common. They do seem more functional in a hot humid country than long pants (John G Cole? just saying).
Students heading home after school. Note the flags of Botswana lining the road. Flags of the surprising multitude of countries still line the roads. Each village had adopted a different country and a competition ensued for which was the best decorated…
And me trying to remember which flag goes with which country from my fading memory of the their boats floating down the Seine at the start of the Paris Olympics.
Visited the Robert Luis Stevenson Museum one drizzly day. A young Samoan woman led our tour of Stevenson’s house which has been restored to historical accuracy. Lots of photos and history of RLS & his wife when they lived there, from 1890 to 1894. I liked this photo because it showed the Samoans in their traditional clothing during RLS’ time on Samoa.
A corner of RLS wife’s bedroom with some of the white dresses she wore. The house is situated high enough above Apia to catch breezes. Still warm & humid though albeit a bit cooler during the drizzle.
Apia has a large, beautiful church. The original cathedral was finished in 1857, but has recently undergone extensive repair following the 2009 earthquake (& tsunami). This photo is looking toward the alter.
And this photo looks back toward the main entrance.
A closer look at the ceiling. (The ceilings in traditional-style buildings are marvels of craftsmanship.)
Stained glass dome in the ceiling.
Close up of the dove of peace (holy spirit) from over the alter. Just so.
eclare
The woodwork in that church is amazing.
gene108
The school sarongs have pockets and seem stitched at the waste. Interesting update to traditional wear.
mvr
Thank you for these.
I’m kind of an old building/house nut. The church photos and the story about it needing repair after the earthquake reminded me that even without the help of clueless owners/renovators/real-estate-speculators things fall apart so that even the coolest things don’t last forever. Last night I walked past a local somewhat interesting house from the turn of the last century that was being “renovated” with ugly windows and the like. I got kind of mad and had to detach as I continued my walk in my neighborhood. Somehow it is helpful to realize that even without human help things fall apart eventually and that doesn’t mean they were all for nothing. In the church’s case, human help is keeping it around longer, and that is good.
stinger
That church really is gorgeous, in detail as in overall. I wonder how often it is full?
I don’t recognize the street sign symbol in the top photo. Speed bump?
Torrey
@stinger:
Father Brown crossing?
way2blue, thanks for the great photos and commentary. My brother spent a bit of time teaching in Samoa or American Samoa when he was a young man. He reported that the sarongs were amazingly comfortable, particularly for the climate. Men look good in sarongs. They feel casual (he reported), but you always look well dressed.
That church is beautiful.
stinger
@Torrey: Hah!
Another Scott
@stinger: @Torrey:
I saw someone call it a “turtle-eating snakes” caution sign years ago.
;-)
Great shots, way2blue. Thanks for the post!
Best wishes,
Scott.
jame
Altar, it’s an altar.
Steve in the ATL
@Torrey: well played!
@eclare: concur.
@gene108: is there a Spanx version? Asking for a friend.
way2blue
@stinger: Yes. Speed bump.
way2blue
@eclare: Yes. Sorry, the close up photo of the ceiling didn’t get posted, rather two of the stained glass window.
way2blue
@Steve in the ATL: Some of your questions from earlier fell through the cracks. >>
We didn’t snorkel in American Samoa, so I didn’t see the state of the reefs. In Samoa, they were okay but not pristine. I had beed hoping—being in the middle of the Pacific Ocean they would be healthy—but they got hammered in 2012. Albeit one we snorkeled the branching coral had bright purple tips. So was growing again.
way2blue
@Steve in the ATL: I didn’t explain the flags well. Took me a while to figure out their significance… There had been a competition between villages before King Charles arrived. Each decorated according to a different commonwealth country. He had visited the year before, but the villages kept the decorations up.
way2blue
Per the 2009 tsunami >> since Neil grew up in Kauai, he recognized what was happening and fortunately the first wave was out/down. He said he untethered the skiff from a buoy with difficulty, got the two boys into the skiff and headed a kilometer offshore. Lost a truck, another boat, a lot of gear… about $100K worth of stuff. The resort lost the lower half of their buildings.
way2blue
As for sea level rise. For American Samoa,—being a volcanic island—it’s not facing the existential threat that atolls are facing around the Pacific Ocean. More immediate perhaps is the intensifying of storms.
way2blue
Oh. And mosquitos weren’t bad! We were in Samoa during low season (hurricane season), so the weather was a bit cooler and rainier. But still hot & humid when the sun was out. Slows your pace…
Steve in the ATL
@way2blue: thanks–your follow through is impressive!
Dmkingto
@way2blue: Even without the closeup, that ceiling is amazing
WaterGirl
@way2blue: If you send me the correct photo and tell me which photo to replace – refer to them by number, please – I can add the close-up.
way2blue
@WaterGirl: Okay. Will do. Thanks.
way2blue
@Steve in the ATL:
A further note about the health of the reefs. Our snorkel guide was quite upset about the NZ warship sunk against the reef. He said the NZ governement assured Samoa that it was not leaking fuel. But. He dove it. And it is… Fortunately the current carries the fuel away from the reef.