My first day in "town"..

31/07/2012

So this is the main city?

Today I got a lift into town with Dave Parker's wife Malama, we departed the lodge at 7:30am and head to "town". I have decided to at least get driven around is a car and get a sim card that works before just hopping on my bicycle and getting lost. (or something weird happening to me like usual)

My first impressions of the main city is that it looks typical to that of every third-world city. The roads are uneven, the paint on the buildings are peeling off. The "traffic" (meaning just a light hand full of cars, trucks and buses) are mostly scrappy and dirty looking, most people are on foot either barefoot or in flip-flops.

In the morning the sides of the streets swell with "crowds" of school kids, they all wear tidy uniforms and actually seem very orderly. There's also a large Mormon school complex that looks nearly like a palace from the outside,  undoubtedly money for this palace is sourced from overseas Mormon churches donating theirs hearts and lungs out.

It seems "foreigners" like myself get up later than that rest of the folk here, when I got in town in the morning I could not spot any other European around and I guess I'm standing out with my "new" clothes, back pack and sunglasses, cause I felt a lot of eyes on me haha. I believe none of the eyes were that of trouble as people were very friendly and quick to say hello to me :-)

I found out a little secret getting through the streets the "smoothest" way, walk pretty fast so the old bum asking for a cigaret can't keep up, and if you see another group of tourists simply merge into their group and walk with them like you belong there. (not only do you get a fee tour but it seems foreigners in numbers are intimidating and keeps the street merchants away.

I also noticed that public transport is readily available, there is a fairly large "bus/taxi" stop in Apia. I'm not sure yet if I'll actually use it, but I might... I just need to get use to the idea... the buses look rather a lot like a large chicken coop on wheels, but there's loads of people using it on a daily basis... So, I guess they must be ok despite the first impression :-)

A lot of what I'm seeing and experiencing so far feels very similar to South Africa, the difference is just that in SA I would not risk going into the dodgy looking bust stops or crowdy markets by myself.

I must say, only being here for my second day now, I already miss some of the luxuries we take for granted in our everyday life Mostly, "home" a place of peace and rest and readily availible "internet", other things like easy food and familiarity of course up there too, but those are things one can "develop" here over time.