Thomson Airlines Boeing 757 Explorer One (G-OOBF)
Samoa
Friday, February 12, 2010

    As expected, it was early morning that we arrived on Samoa. Immigration and customs was a simple process and it was a reasonably short bus ride to the Aggie Grey’s Resort. It looks like a nice place, but we weren’t to be here long. A quick check-in was followed by a shower and then into bed.

    I awoke a few hours later feeling not quite 100%. I would later learn that just about everyone was also feeling some GI discomfort. The doctor is busy handling the more distressed cases, but I’ve taken am Immodium and hope to recover soon.

    Following a light breakfast, some of us were off across the island to visit the final home of Robert Louis Stevenson. He built a plantation house in Samoa, loved the land and the people, and they loved him. He was only there four years before his failing health led to his death. The house is now operated as a museum.

    Upon arrival at the RLS house, we were honored with the Kava ceremony. The elders welcomed us and the kava was crushed into a drink that has the taste and appearance of dishwater. It has a slight numbing effect and narcotic effect if used too much. The ceremony usually takes many hours, but they shortened it since we only have a few hours total in Samoa.

    We experienced the effects of the cyclone that we had to divert around last night. It was raining off and on, was very hot, and extremely humid. The heat, humidity, and stuffiness of some of the rooms in the Stevenson house were taking a toll on me. I was quickly wearing out for the day.

    Once back at the hotel, there was no time to rest. In fact, we were already checked out of the hotel before we left for the museum. However, we had a special lunch at the hotel and were entertained by local dancers and musicians in a typical Samoan/Polynesian show.

    Then it was back to the airport for our seven and a half hour flight to Cairns, Australia. We will cross the International Dateline on this leg of our journey and lose a whole day instantly. We will arrive late in the evening and have about an hour bus ride to Port Douglas and the resort.

    This entry is a bit short not only because of the short time in Samoa, but also because of the current state of my brain and stomach.