Holiday Part 2

After seeing the sights of Apia it was time to head for the beach. Our first destination was Lalomanu Beach , at the eastern end of Upolu, where we stayed at Taufua Beach Fales. On the way over we stopped at the Falefa waterfall and shared some cookies with a local villager who had been out picking coconuts and papaya.

At Taufua we checked into our fales, we took a normal open fale (no walls, no bathroom) but decided to ease Mum and Dad into things gently and booked them into an enclosed fale - a fale with walls, toilet and shower.

Once we got settled in it was time for a swim. The water was lovely and warm (as it always is) and there were plenty of fish around. Dad was able to christen his mask and snorkel. Mum joined us for a swim, but we couldn't convince her to give snorkelling a try!

After our swim there was time for a walk along the beach, accompanied by 2 friendly dogs, before happy hour. We managed to get our tropical cocktails before dinner. As usual the dinner at Taufua was a feast with plenty of food to go around.

The next day was similar - walking on the beach, reading the latest gossip mags from NZ, swimming, drinking Vailima/cocktails/Jack and eating good food. What a tough life!

We also had some heavy rain overnight and in the morning, but we were pleased to see it clear up by lunchtime. Actually, we had been a bit worried, in the week before Mum and Dad arrive we had caught the tail end of a cyclone that had passed through Tonga. It didn't cause us much bother, just plenty of rain all week - just what people want on their tropical island holiday! It also created heaps of potholes on all the roads, especially the busy roads around Apia, so we spent most of the holiday weaving all over the road trying to avoid hit the biggest of them. We were glad that this rain was last of the heavy rain from the cyclone.

After relaxing at Lalomanu for a couple days we carried on around the south coast and visited To Sua Ocean Trench. This is the spot where there is a large hole in the ground that is connected to the ocean. After looking around the gardens and enjoying the view of the ocean we climbed down the ladder (how many steps was it?) and got into the pool. it was the second time that we had visited this place, but it was still an eerie feeling to be swimming around in a big hole so far below the surrounding ground and to feel the surge of the waves as they pound in against the shore.

Next stop was the Togitogiga waterfall where we enjoyed a freshwater dip. This was much better than when we visited the same falls with Latika and Hedley - on that occasion there hadn't been any rain for a while and the river had dried up!

That night we stayed at Maninoa Beach Fales. This is a basic setup aimed at surfers and is tucked in between 2 of Samoa's most upmarket resorts. We found out that Coconuts Resort was having their Fiafia Night that night, so we decided to head there for dinner and catch their show. We had a great dinner that included some Samoa favourites like palusmai, taro, breadfruit etc. We then were able to watch their show that included a kava ceremony (yes, Mum and Dad did try the kava) some fire knife dancing and some traditional dancing. The next morning we decided to have a look at the other resort, Sinalei, and had a very nice breakfast there.

Anyway, that will have to do for now. We will be back with the next installment soon.