From Samoa with Love - Part Two - The End

After an eventful first day of my visit, the next nine days of my stay in Samoa were filled with more adventures, love stories and chasing waterfalls to put it in summary. From Vailua beach fales, we hitchhiked to Taufua beach fales which is located on the east coast of Upolu. We soon found out as we hopped into the car we hitchhiked, that  the guy who picked us up from a side of the road was a policeman. He was in his private car with his girlfriend & he wasn't in his uniform. After 1 1/2 hours driving along the villages and coastal road, we arrived in beautiful Lalomanu beach. Taufua beach fales in Lalomanu is another Samoan typical simple thatched hut on the beachfront, it was our home for the next three days. The beach was just breathtaking! Can't believe this area was hit by tsunami back in 2009, looking out from where I stood, the beauty after all that sad time still speaks louder. Though when I snorkeled just stone throw from the beach, I could see how the corals didn't survive but there still lots of colorful fishes staying put in this part of the island. When it comes to water activity, M has warned before that he can go for hours looking for Octopus that usually hiding under the rocks. I couldn't keep up with him so I went back to the shore and lie down with occasionally watching him from a distance coming in and out of the water. 

I love the concept of communal dining in Taufua Beach Fales. At 7pm sharp we were all seated around the long table, with our cocktails from Happy Hour, M & I were looking forward to  the meal that soon to be in our tummy! I was quite surprised with how delicious and scrumptious the food was. There were pasta, chicken with mushroom sauce, lamb chops, veggies, salads, plates after plates came out from sizzling kitchen nearby. We devoured them as we got to know other travelers sitting next to us. From French duo mother & daughter who were on a short stint break to a Dutch guy who been living in this fales for 4 weeks, a melting pot kind of companions. After dinner, we went for stroll on the long stretched beach of Lalomanu, with the moon brighten up the sky, it was my favorite walk!

 

The following day I parted with M for a day and I got to know my fales neighbour, Jule, a solo traveler from Germany currently works in New Zealand. Together we hitchhiked to To Sua Ocean trench, which is the number one spot to visit in Samoa. This is the signature advertisement picture you see every time they're promoting their country. It's translated literally as 'big hole'. It's undoubtedly one of the most beautiful swimming spots I ever been. Jule & I wasted no time to go down on the slippery steep wooden ladder. I think going down was more intense than going up! 

 

Next day was check out day from Taufua. After bidding goodbye to Jule and the lovely staff, I walked bit further from the fales and waited for a lift. However after an hour waiting with very few traffic of only a taxi and a truck, I retreat back to the fales and as I was about to enquire the reception of the once a day public bus, I saw a local postman collecting mails from the mail box. I soon approached him and asked if he was going to go anywhere near the wharf after I told him my plan to cross to Savai'i. He happily said yes and told me I could catch a ride with him. Though he said the ride will be longer as he needed to stop by and pick up mails from some shops along the way. Of course I was ok with that. We chatted many different things on the way to the wharf and the journey itself was fun! We stopped at one of the shops to pick up  our Samoan style lunch that  consist of Chicken with soy sauce, Taro with coconut milk and Sapa sui(Samoan Chop Suey). It was how I thanked him for giving me a lift all the way to the wharf. 

M came bit long after I was waiting for a while, I spotted his blonde hair as he tried to make his way out of the public bus. The crossing took about 1 1/2 hours to reach Savai'i. From there we walked to our accommodation, Lusia Lagoon Chalet, it was an enclosed rustic fales that was built above the lagoon. There was balcony so we can watch colorful fishes, turtle and a good size of GT(Giant Trevally) that occasionally swam below our feet. I loved this kind of accommodation, it's so down to earth and simple yet still serve its purpose. The staff were courteous and friendly, they also helped us to rent a scooter. 

 

The next morning we took our rented scooter around the island. It took us around nine hours until we were back in our chalet that night. Pretty ambitious but sometimes that's what travel is all about. Its spontaneity that hooked us. From just go with a flow kind of ride to see how far we can get. So here we were, riding from  sunny weather to heavy rains that felt like hundred needles pinching our skins to night ride filled with insects hitting our faces. The ride was exciting as we passed by many villages, national parks and often wave back to locals as we crossed path with them.

Savai'i has been such a beautiful spot to zoom around, it's simplicity and deep turquoise colour shades of water never failed to tease. Rock pools that were scattered alongside of the road kept calling us to stop to cool off for a while. We also stopped to grab our favorite "instant" drink, coconut juice. M had his knife handy so off he grabbed some coconuts from the tree and we took a sip of the mouthwatering goodness! 

We went hiking on muddy track, overgrowing Taro plantation, herd of cows looking  at us in confusion as we walked pass them, crossing stream in search for waterfalls. It was quite tricky at times as we tried to retrace our way back to where it started due to the track that was not really exist! Well, sometimes it's not just about the destination but it's more about the journey itself. It didn't matter if there was waterfalls in the end of this mind boggling track or not, it's the hike to get there that engraved within me more. Some blisters and cuts on my feet were just scars to remind me of those wonderful memories. Being in the outdoors with M chasing blowholes, waterfalls, off beaten tracks, secluded beach, giant clams etc is what it's all about. 

Back in New Zealand, I could only reminisce those times as if it was a fantasy. Fantasy that was good to be true. Only this time, it was real. Something that I could go back to whenever I would like to vanish with my thoughts for a while. Something that I longed to relive one day. Whenever that moment may come. Que sera sera....

"Whatever will be, will be"