Tag: South Pacific

Beautiful Samoa, Part II…..

On By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

Beautiful Samoa as it is branded, is deserving of its confident title.

Polynesian for sacred centre, ‘Sa’ meaning sacred and ‘Moa’ being centre, Samoa is as handsome, good natured and charming as its locals and as with any pacific island I have visited, its citizens are walking rays of gloriously warm sunshine. After all, life in Samoa is about happiness, family and enjoyment.

A rich natural beauty with pristine waters and beaches, dense rain forests, blow holes, breathtaking scenery, waterfalls and warm temperatures, Samoa is the perfect destination for a true cultural experience where the poetic language of Polynesian and English are spoken.

One of the best things about Samoa are its surrounding oceans which make for superb diving and snorkelling.   Reefs and lagoons border the islands, and it is here you will experience reef sharks, stingrays, turtles, hundreds of lively coral species, the sacred giant clam and over 1,000 fish species.

Samoa is also a popular surf destination with excellent conditions and without the usual overcrowding.  Swells sit anywhere from 2 to 15 feet on a good day and as many of the locations consist of sharp reef breaks, it is well worth donning your booties. Either way, a beautiful beach location and epic waves will always make for a perfect Samoan day 💙

Apia, the capital, is a busy hub with markets, the airport, eateries, the Museum, Aggie Grey’s (with its sweet little resident cat) and the Palolo Deep Marine Reserve.  Here you will find a diverse food scene with fresh plentiful seafood, fruit and vegetables and always something cold to drink. 

One of the best and cheapest way to get around is on the Samoan buses. These massive diesel beasts with their cheerful colours, dazzling bling and loud music are an experience not easily forgotten.  If the bus is full, no problem Bro.  Take a seat on someone’s lap or just squish right up and experience the true essence of the joyful Samoan people.

Our stay for the duration of the trip to Samoa was Saletoga Sands Resort and Spa.  The resort is lovely, its location is amazing, the staff are wonderful, the drinks are cold and the food for the most part is excellent.  And I promise. You will have the best prawn cocktail of your life here. 

The resort is hidden away among soaring coconut trees and a lush green tropical garden which all green thumbs will envy and is sheltered by a huge lagoon of clear, stunning ocean waters.  And holy cats! The resort has its own cats! Six in total named Sale, Toga, Sid, Little Girl, Sandy and Puss Puss.

Although the resort has an orientation toward family friendliness, singles and couples do not despair.  You will have a fabulous stay, especially if you bear in mind this is a remote location and that Samoa is still classed as a third world country. I guess it is all about perspective!  If you are a glass half empty, pessimist who constantly complains and criticises, there will be nowhere in the world that will ever suit you so just stay home.  

Wi-Fi reception throughout the islands is poor at best so I opted for being unplugged which caused a mix of joy and bitter sweetness.  Anxiety would occasionally creep in when not in touch with ‘the outside world’ and this was especially so when checking in on the dear cats however being present in the moment seemed to win out above all else.  I highly recommend unplugging every now and then. 

I became unwell in the weeks prior to heading to Samoa and became unwell again while there however, being confined to bed like a convalescing character in a Bronte novel, did not diminish my affection for Samoa and its people.  On the days I was able to get out and about, I did so with relish.

Samoa is a place to live with your hands open.  There are no expectations, just gratitude.   It is the smell of the sea, turquoise waters, beautiful happy people and for me, an embracing of quiet respite.

As much as I love to travel and explore, I love the feeling of coming home.  I am quite the hermit homebody and an introvert so at the end of the day, being home suits me perfectly.  I adore my own company and that of my cats but also the company of a select few whom I love and care deeply for.  I really have the best of both worlds.

Returning home, it was another bout of lingering jetlag, the sweetly wonderful company of the cats, and the mandarin tree with its boughs laden with ripe deep carroty coloured fruit was a cheery sight.  

The house, that crooked, cluttered, warm stone cottage is still a work in progress.  While I dream of coloured wallpaper, re-upholstering an antique settee in rich bold velvet, stone walls, paint tints, Art Deco and my quirky collectables, this is certainly not the home you will find on the pages of Australian House and Garden.  This is a home meant for the sharing of local Barossa Valley wines, cats, music, family and friends, wild gardens and indoor plants, and living with no aspiration for the contrived and impossibly dull….x

Bali Ha’i may call you. Any night, any day. In your heart, you’ll hear it call you “come away, come away”…….

On By oceangirl63In Uncategorized1 Comment

Bali was heat, tropical forests, lotus flowers and the most expensive coffee on earth.  It was eating Bebek Bengil, char-smoked satays and Mangosteens with skins coloured a  deep royal purple.  It was dive boat rides, every shade of green imaginable, volcanoes, muddy roads, offerings and gods.

There were days where my hair knotted and curled with salt because I didn’t leave the ocean from sun up to sun set.  On these days, I just let things go.  Things which can suffocate or fell your soul slowly begin their unfurling in the way they should when you give way to it.  Late afternoons were made for uncomplicated cocktails and watching thunderheads build then explode leaving rain puddles big enough to swim in.

1

When out on my wanderings, I photographed temples and tiny street cats.  There are always cats to be photographed.  I visited markets, labyrinths of small shop spaces crammed into dark narrow lane-ways, all strangely quiet.  Most of the goods were out-dated and dust covered.  On one occasion, I came away with a kite and two beautiful hand-printed batik sarongs.  Another day, natural soaps scented with fragrant champaka.

I walked along the beaches of Nusa Dua, finding shells and tiny pieces of broken coral and watched local fishermen cast their nets.  All of these days were good and they were enough.  They were more than enough. They were everything………

2

633

314

130316

31731920200206_123006

Not everything I experienced in Bali was of beauty.  Kuta for example, Bali’s most notorious hotspot, will eat you alive if you let it.  It is not a pretty place but it is by no means dull with its noise, grime and endless strips of cheap bars and nightclubs.  Kuta’s often congested streets are filled with a frenetic joyless tide of aggressive hawkers, touts and the ‘very ugly tourist’. Here it seems, the gentle Balinese culture barely hangs on by a thread.

We headed to Kuta one afternoon.  My husband had wanted to return to see how much change there was in the absence of 26 years.  He also likes Kuta where I do not but it is a fascinating place to ‘people watch’.  While there, a young backpacking Brit said to me ‘man, Kuta has the best beach ever‘ (huge emphasis on ever).  He was drunk or stoned or possibly both.  I fear he was living the last gasp of all that had been promised him by his travel agent for this is Kuta Surf Beach…….

20200207_16471720200207_16475016917120200207_164649

2020 and people still boast this is the best beach in Bali!  What despicable things as humans we have done to this planet!

We had beers at a bar on Legian Street.  Weary from the constant harassment of touts, I happily watched a fearless mouse expertly navigate his way around the bar before I took a walk across the road to the Bali Memorial.

135

This deeply moving site, an intricately carved stone monument, is built on the site of the destroyed Paddy’s Pub and is across from the site where the once famous Sari Club sat.  In 2002, terrorists detonated three bombs in the heart of Kuta killing 202 people, including 88 Australians, with a further 209 people being seriously injured.

121

This very graceful memorial site, with its huge marble plaque bearing the names and nationalities of those killed and its delicate water feature, is clean and well maintained.  Flood-lit at night, I found it to be a simple yet beautiful dedication.

122125

Kuta is what it is and that will never change.  It slowly recovered from the bombings not wiser but definitely a little stronger so I cannot help but wonder where it is headed.  No doubt it has a sense of belonging which is significant and necessary to the economy of Bali, suffering so badly in this pandemic, and it certainly would not be the place it is had it not lived the very big and colourful life it has……..

 

Blog title:  Lyrics from Bali Ha’i – South Pacific – by Rodgers and Hammerstein.

More Bali to come…….