The scenery really became beautiful as we rounded the south coast of Samoa. It is full of white sand beaches, turquoise water, lava rock pools, black sand beaches, palm trees and waterfalls. It is also open to the southeast trade winds, making it feel cooler and much more comfortable than the north coast (of course, the air conditioning in the car helped too!).
Our first stop was Lalomanu Beach, with soft sand so white it almost seemed to glow. We saw a few white sand beaches as we went around the island, but this was my favorite. -Cyndi
Fales on Lalomanu Beach.Looking towards the east and Nu ‘utele island.Soft white sand and clear blue water.Lalomanu Beach
One thing we had to get used to with sightseeing was every stop had some sort of fee – everything is on property that belongs to someone (and these someones are generally lurking around). Generally these fees were reasonable. I don’t mind paying $5 US to drive down a long unpaved road that someone works to maintain. Paying $8 US each for the To Sua Ocean Trench was well worth it. Paying $5 US for the Sopo ‘Aga Falls was a bargain.
The only fee that we objected to was the first one we ran across. I wanted a picture and had Rich pull over to the side of the road so I could get one. Sure enough, a lady emerges from one of the nearby houses and heads our way. She seems nice, wanting to know where we’re from and all that kind of stuff, then she adds, “There is a 10 tala fee to park here.” We weren’t exactly parked – just momentarily stopped on the shoulder of the road. Rich said no thanks and we got back in the car and left. It was just not a 10 tala parking spot! -Cyndi
Picture from the side of the road that almost cost 10 tala (about 6 dollars):
We had decided early on not to take a guided tour of the island, but we did consider sharing a car rental with other cruisers. Several people had asked us if we’d like to go in on a rental, but in the end I realized that it’s hard enough to decide what to do and where to stop with just the two of us. (Plus, I already have Rich rolling his eyes when I want yet another photo-op stop; I don’t need three people rolling their eyes at me!)
We ended up with a nice, comfortable car with air conditioning. The air conditioning was to be one of our favorite things about our circle-island trip! The driving was on the wrong side of the road, with the wheel on the wrong side of the car. Rich had no problem with this (we saved money by making him the only driver). Soon, we were hitting the road to see the island. We rented the car for two days; so we thought we might make this a 2-day process as it’s a rather large island with a lot to see.
Apia, our starting point, is on the north side of the island. The coastline here is rather rugged, with little in the way of actual beaches. The highway runs along it for awhile, then turns inland and goes up through mountain and rainforest before going back down to the water on the east coast. -Cyndi
The north coast of Samoa.Stopping for a bottle of water.A wall of jungle growth.Tree ferns grow freely in the mountains.Heading back down towards the coast.
Apia marina had its drawbacks, but I want to mention here the good things, too. The marina where we stayed was actually very pretty. We had electricity and plenty of water, and the restaurant above the bar was really good. We could get happy hour beer and these small plates of food that made a great dinner. Our favorites were Oka, which is basically Samoan poisson cru only a bit spicier, and these mini burgers (sliders have invaded Samoa, too) that had a slice of beet on them. I would never think to put beet slices on a hamburger, but it’s wonderful. They had a chicken coconut wrap that was great, too. Other good things included some very nice people and frequent visits from a sea turtle. Once in awhile it would rain, and that would cool everything off nicely.
We did complain about the mosquitoes, but after a few days we finally dug out the mosquito net and found it much less difficult to put up than we thought it would be. With the net over our bed, we didn’t have to spray ourselves every night and were much more comfortable. The sales stuff got annoying, but we learned to loudly say “No!” and walk away. In the end, it was the heat that was really driving us crazy, but we even came up with a temporary solution to that: renting an air conditioned car!
The pretty Apia marina.Rain showers at the marina.A visit from our sea turtle.Sunset at Apia Marina.
One of the first things we wanted to do here in Apia, Samoa was revisit Aggie Grey’s, the famous historic hotel that’s just down the street from the marina. We stayed here during our honeymoon 23 years ago and were anxious to see it again.
While the hotel had been modernized in some ways, we were relieved to see it hadn’t changed too much. There was one change we liked: at the front of the hotel they had put a little coffee house where you could enjoy coffee drinks, sandwiches, and help yourself to their collection of magazines.
As it turned out, we probably visited that coffee house every afternoon. It wasn’t because the cappuccinos were that good (although they were fine); it was because it was magically cool. Well, not actually cool, more like less hot. It didn’t have air conditioning, but the ceiling fans, shade trees outside, and a slight breeze off the bay outside seemed to keep it almost comfortable. We would stop on our way back from town, have a large cold water or a coffee drink, hang out a long enough to recover from impending heat stroke, then make the short walk to the marina. -Cyndi
A covered walkway at the hotel.The dining room.Treating ourselves to a buffet breakfast at Aggie Grey’s.Our daily ritual: Aggie Grey’s coffee house.
