Monono Island

03/08/2013

Other than getting a little lost, having a debate while driving there about the direction of the map and our current position on it, our drive went just fine and was not as awkward as it could have been.

I have now found out Sayaka has been accepted into a village on the South Coast where she now stays in the village with the Samoan family by a "trust" relationship" and as part of " extended family" :-)

With the aid of the villagers she constructed a beach front "tree house" as I understand it. This tree house is part of a personal project she's doing. The tree house makes part of other "fales" or huts built in the village.

Sayaka takes "modernized" people that's "stuck" in the 9-5 business world and who's lost touch with nature, to come and experience a truly natural village lifestyle. That's mainly what her "project" is about as I understand it at present. Thinking about it, such village life experience will really put things in perspective for just about anyone who thinks that the world is about money or worldly things.

Anyway, back to the current situation...
We managed to park up right near the boat ramps and a friendly local offered to grant us parking and "baby sitting" of the car for only 5 Tala.

The boat looked a little worse for wear and was a double hulled aluminium craft powered by an outboard motor, never the less it was a very enjoyable trip. The water is crystal clear and with a beautiful lively blue reflection of the sky on the white sands deep below and some dark areas in-between where lush under water forests cover the sand.

Views from the boat on the way to the island

 

Arriving at the island after the scenic 20-30min boat trip felt like I have now entered the heart of paradise. (In all fairness to Samoa, you get the feeling of entering the heart of paradise quite often)

Map to Manono Island

 

On the island we are welcomed by Margaret and an older European man called Euen. Margaret is the host and the manager of the resort and Euen is a very interesting character and a retired deep sea captain that's made Manono Island his place of retirement, only going back to New Zealand his original home for a short while during the end of each year.

I got showed to my "fale" or hut which was a very basic small structure, yet totally fit for sleeping. 

My "fale"

The whole resort is right on the beach and was hit really hard by the 2009 tsunami. There still some evidence of the damage and for me it acted as a reminder of how fragile we are on this earth.

The little yet simple resort offers so much for so little. From as cheap as 100 Tala ($NZ50) per night it includes all meals, the boat transfer to and from the island and a trip out to the outer reef to snorkel on the unspoilt pristine reef that lies about 1-2km off the island. (I highly recommend visiting and staying at "Sunset View Fales" on Manono Island, it truly is a special and quite spiritual place)

Snorkeling on the reef was an absolutely wonderful experience. The crystal clear water is nice and warm so you are not on a body temperature "timer" while in the water. Visibility in the water around the reef is easily 40-60 meters where the underwater horizon disappears into the schools of  fish and the blue abyss of the vast ocean.

While snorkeling face down, looking at the coral and fish right under me, I cannot help but to close my eyes and to start praying. How can we all live on this world yet most of us do not go and see "see" this? or rather "experience" this? We spend far too much time looking at human created nonsense.

I would love to write about everything I saw, felt and experiences while on the reef, but it is simply something that cannot be conveyed in any amount of words, photos or even a video.

This is why the resort is called "Sunset fales"

When night time came there was the most beautiful starry sky, it is so magnificent to look at it's actually really hard to make yourself go to bed. 

Sadly my first night on Manono did not yield a good sleep. My room had a bit of a mosquito infestation and despite spraying myself with some insect repellent the mosquitoes kept being a persistent pain. In the morning I counted 7 dead mosquitoes on my sheet, so evidently even while sleeping I was swatting at mosquitoes. I later found out there were mosquito nets available.... sigh, had I only known I'd have had a substantially better night :-)