Apia, SAMOA
Airing Date: Oct 18th, 2004
Apia, on the island of 'Upolu, is the capital of Samoa. Upolu is 433 square miles with good roads reaching beautiful beaches, freshwater cave pools, spectacular waterfalls and beautiful tropical plantations.
Apia, a bustling township of 60,000 people and the closest thing to a city on the island, blends colonial and modern architecture. Restaurants and cybercafs can be found on and around the main street Beach Road, sitting alongside the traditional marketplace, where beautiful handcrafts and fresh fruit and vegetables can be purchased.
Although most of the accommodation is found in and around Apia, there are beautiful resorts dotted along the coastline, all less than one hours' drive from the main town.
Author Robert Louis Stevenson, famous for his pirate novel, Treasure Island and also known as 'Tusitala' (the Samoan name for teller of tales), spent the last four years of his life in Samoa. When Robert Louis Stevenson and his wife, Fanny, decided to stay in Samoa in 1889, they bought 314 acres of virgin land on the slopes of Mount Vaea above Apia and named the estate Vailima - or Five Waters because five streams crossed the property.
They cleared about eight acres and lived there in a small shack for nearly a year. This rough existence didn't last long, however, and in 1891 they built the first part of a mansion. When it was completed, the house had five bedrooms, a library, a ballroom large enough to accommodate 100 dancers, and the only fireplace in Samoa. The Stevensons even shipped 72 tons of furniture from England!
Kirikiti is the Samoan version of cricket, and strangers are permitted to join in as long as they can follow the rules. Games are played with a three-sided bat, an uncertain number of players, umpires who use their whistle for any number of reasons (including just the sheer joy of being alive), and continue for an indefinite number of days, before the winner is decided by a mysterious process known only to Samoans. The only hard-and-fast rule is that the host team automatically forfeits the game if they can't supply enough food.
While in Apia stay at the Aggie Grey's Hotel. The hotel was founded by Aggie in 1933 and it became a renowned club for American servicemen stationed in Samoa during World War II and for celebrities like Marlon Brando and Gary Cooper in the 1950s.
Today, guests have a choice of accommodation, including deluxe suites with harbour views, all with traditional South Seas ambience.
The facts
Air New Zealand fly to Apia. Prices start from $994 ex Melbourne and $1550 ex Perth.
Air NewZealand
Tel: 13 24 76
Entry to the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum costs from $7 for adults and $3.50 for children.
Robert Louis Stevenson Museum
Tel: 0011 685 20798
Rooms at Aggie Grey's Hotel and Bungalows start from $175 for a suite and $110 for a standard room.
Aggie Grey's Hotel and Bungalows
Tel: 0011 685 22880
Samoa Tourism Authority
Tel: 0011 685 63516
Suggested reading material: Lonely Planet
Prices correct at 18/10/04
