Timeline 18th Sept to
1st October 2005

I had wanted to go island hopping around the South Pacific for as long as I could remember. Once the planning for this round-the-world trip began it soon transpired that the only way this was ever going to be possible was if I had a yacht or a large amount of spare cash. Not being even remotely close to either of these predicaments I realised a visit to one island would be all that I could manage.

I chose Samoa.

Due to Samoa's location, just east of the International Date Line, when you arrive from the west you go back a day. It's also the last place on earth to see the sun set. Just like Phileas Fogg I had completely overlooked this. The good news was that we had scored ourselves an extra day; the bad news was that this day was a Sunday. On Sundays in Samoa everything is closed and there's little sign of life. Even in Apia, the easy-going capital, the streets were deserted.

Christianity is big in Samoa. When the first missionaries first arrived in 1828 they found Samoan legend was similar to their creation beliefs, it even predicted a new religion would arrive on the islands and so the missionaries found the locals well prepared to accept their message. Now there are so many churches no one knows how many there are.

Fortunately for us there was a marine reserve open on Sundays with some excellent snorkelling so we weren't at a complete loss. The islands are volcanic and dominated by rugged mountain ranges and are surrounded by a fringe of coral reefs and lagoons. Dolphins and whales migrate through the waters while turtles, now a protected species, are returning in abundance. On the crossing between Upolu and Namua we saw around 20 of these spectacular creatures in clear, shallow water.

The reefs around the islands, immediately out from the beaches, are home to 900 species of fish and over 200 varieties of coral. This abundance of marine life is quite incredible, you just have to stand at the shore, in water no greater than ankle deep, and you will see it all around you. Thankfully, eco-tourism and preservation have been embraced whole-heartily by the Samoans so this will continue.

The islands were first settled more than 3000 years ago with peoples coming from Fiji then Tonga and by the early 1800s a small number of Europeans had settled. A civil war between kings divided the 13 islands, significant amounts of land were sold to Western governments to finance the conflict and eventually the Americans and Germans carved up the spoils between them.

By 1900 the Americans controlled Eastern Samoa and the Germans, Western Samoa. After the outbreak of the First World War New Zealand, at the request of Britain, assumed control of the German territory. In 1962 Samoa became the first South Pacific country to gain independence. American Samoa has remained so ever since.

Independent or Western Samoa as it is sometimes called is made up of nine islands, four of which are inhabited islands and five uninhabited. Although Savaii is much larger, Upolu is the more populous but between them they account for 96% of Samoa's land and 99% of the people.

Savaii's scenery is dramatic and rugged and home to the highest concentration of volcano cones anywhere in the world, an estimated 400. Upolu is more varied, beautiful but is the more developed. But while the word 'developed' invokes connotations of holiday resorts and waterfront high-rises most land and sea in Samoa is the property of a village and, by law, cannot be sold. Unlike most other South Pacific nations, modernisation in Samoa is evolving at a pace dictated by the Samoans themselves.

As with every other country we've visited so far we had come to Samoa to backpack around in order to see as much as possible. With a hire car out with our budget for any more than a single day we had to rely on the local buses. These are an inexpensive way to travel and provide an experience to remember. They are extremely colourful, have local music blaring and are always packed to at least double capacity. It can get hot and uncomfortable very quickly.

The locals take great pride on having you aboard and will make every effort to find you a seat even if this verges on physical impossibility with people, strangers, sitting on each other's knees! The buses however are owned and operated by villages and tend only to travel to where they are from, or to where they have family, and so reliable routes out with of Apia don't really exist. They also run to a timetable entirely dependent upon the whim of the driver. This was charming enough to begin with but after finding ourselves more or less stranded in the isolated southeast corner of Upolu we decided a more stringent itinerary was required and eventually we hired a car for a day.

Despite this we still used the local buses and managed to get around both main islands successfully if a little slowly allowing us to visit the various sights. On Upolu this included the Polynesian ruins, waterfalls, freshwater pools, tropical plantations and the idealistic tropical landscapes of turquoise water, tilting palms and fine white sands. On Savaii, the more rugged of the two main islands, we saw the lava-fields, blowholes, volcanic craters and rain forests.

We also managed to visit two smaller outlying islands that were only accessible by boat. The first of these was tiny Namua, isolated off the south east coast of Upolu but still situated within the reef. It was home to just one woman, her two sons and three dogs and no electricity. The second was Manono, which sits in the straight between Upolu and Savaii. Manono is only slightly bigger in that it is home to four small villages connected by a circular dirt track. It is possible to walk around the island in an hour.

The Scottish connection existed long before we arrived!

Robert Louis Stevenson spent the last four years of his life in Samoa, arriving in 1890 with his extended family. Although critically ill with TB he oversaw the building of a grand house and plantation that he named Vailima (right), after the nearby village. He built up such a rapport with the locals that they in turn affectionately named him "Tusitala" (teller of tales). Upon his death he was buried with a ceremony normally reserved for royalty, finally being laid to rest at the top of Mt Vaea, the peak that he would look out to from his desk. The house has been beautifully restored and serves as both a museum and venue for government conferences. Co-incidentally, Vailima is also the name of the very fine Samoan beer.

As our two-week stay went on the weather began to change. At first every third day was raining, then every second and soon it was every day. During our last three full days it basically didn't stop. The rainy season had come early. And Samoan rain is like no other rain I have ever seen before; it descended with such volume, velocity and continuity that I wouldn't have thought possible.

Tradition holds strong in Samoa and is known as "Fa'a Samoa" (Samoan way of life). Society is still based on the "Aiga" which is a large extended family loyal and close where families share work and food, everyone has a place to live, a role to play and a sense of belonging.

A "Matai" (chief) heads every village and he is very much respected and honoured. Almost 9 out of every 10 Samoans still live under the direct authority of their Matai. The village council consists of all local Matai and the "Alii" (high chief) who make the laws and discuss the events of each village. Outside interference in village affairs is extremely rare.

Each family has its own house called a "Fale" (left) which is generally oval in shape and has a high thatched roof supported by wooden posts. It has no walls to allow for a good flow of air but in the event of rain, or for privacy, hand-woven mats are lowered. The design and construction is unique to Samoa. These are also the standard form of accommodation for visitors and are usually situated nearby or in the actual village. More often than not the fales are literally on the waters edge, which offer stunning views.

One night we were lucky enough to be invited to a "Fiafia", a show of traditional signing and dancing and the following day we were fed from an "Umu", the traditional Samoan oven. Built above ground, as opposed to the below ground oven used in the rest of Polynesia, everything that is used is sourced from the forest and nothing goes to waste, even the cut branches are used as cooking tongs. The fire burns down to embers and once the stones are glowing red they are layered with food such as breadfruit, green bananas, and a fantastic coconut derivative known as "Balusami". It is covered again with banana leaves to keep out the dirt and conserve the heat and it's left for around 45 minutes. When it is opened up everything is ready and really does taste amazing.

Throughout our travels we have always made concerted efforts to meet locals, talk and travel with them but nowhere has it been like Samoa where you are warmly accepted into the villages, homes and lives of the local people. They will take you in feed you, talk with you and embrace you as if you are of their family. There's so much of Samoan society that seems right. Whether it be the emphasis on family, the sense of community or, like one morning, watching all the men of the village out cutting the grass of the school with just knives.

Of course, it's no Utopia but then where is? It's as close as I've ever experienced. It reminded me of a quote by Gandhi when asked what he thought of Western civilisation "I think it'd be a good idea".