Pago Pago, America Samoa
February 7, 2007
Pago Pago (pronounced PaNgo PaNgo), a small and friendly American territory located in the South Pacific will forever be remembered by the passengers on this cruise as the hottest place we have been so far. How hot? I haven’t a clue…but HOT! An occasional breeze helped, but still it is an extremely hot and humid place.
Even Tina, our local guide, complained of the heat. A large woman with a big red hibiscus tucked over her ear, her shiny jet-black hair pulled back in a tight bun and her ample girth wrapped in a multi-colored flowered pararo, she almost exploded with pride and enthusiasm over her home. As the owner of the tour group, a business she inherited from her 108 year-old grandmother, I will always remember her as an unofficial ambassadorship to the United Nations… she was SO enthusiastic.
The general feeling of the island is very similar to that of other islands we have visited. It is lush and green and volcanic in nature. Beautiful craggy black rock and beaches ring the island. Tropical and lush, the place obviously is totally based on life on the ocean.
Once again, the place is dotted with hundreds of small churches...it seems the missionaries did…and continue to do…their work. There is an abundance of evangelical churches…an occasional Catholic church, and the ever-present Mormon Temple. There are so many churches that it amazes me how the small population supports them.
Like on the other islands once again we saw the graves of family members proudly positioned in the front yards of the modest houses. Pago Pago’s gravesites can boast of being the most elaborate and most “protected” we have seen so far. Many are covered with “houses” or tent-like structures….and interesting enough…most of these grave houses are more impressive than the house itself. Tina explained that there are no nursing homes in Pago Pago because the elderly are honored and protected and thus cared for at home. This respect is definitely maintained in death with these impressive and elaborate graves.
Another distinguishing factor about the Samoan culture is that almost every house we passed had a “falalalemalo”…. I am positive that I have not even come close in spelling it…and I couldn’t find the proper spelling in the ship’s library…but I know it starts with an “f” and ends in an “o”… These open-aired pavilions are what Tina called “guest houses”; structures where the family gathers and entertains friends at important occasions like funerals, weddings, reunions, graduations….any time where people would gather. Apparently mats and pillows are brought out and food, prepared in another outdoor kitchen building, is served in these structures. Like the churches, these F’s are everywhere. Tina explained that if we, as visitors, were to pass by that we would be invited in to share in the festivities…in fact, we would be treated as “royal” guests. She went on to tell us that there is a definite etiquette among the local people dealing with “where” and “how” ones stands and sits or generally acts when inside one of these special buildings. Not to worry, she assured us….these “rules” were for locals only and since we are guests would not be expected to know them and thus would be excused for any faux pas we made.
Perhaps the most curious thing we did in Pago Pago was to visit the home of a former governor who died a couple of years ago. His widow, obviously proud of her husband, apparently a very popular man among his people, has created a memorial and museum on the second floor of her home. Hundreds of photos, magazine covers….even a hat rack with thousand of dead leis and hats that he had been given over the years. She proudly showed us a table that was meticulously laid out with his appointment books! Then we were encouraged to visit his tomb which was so bedecked with fresh flowers that you would have thought he died yesterday. I decided that there just isn’t much to show tourist on Pago Pago!
Would I return to Pago Pago on future trips? Probably not! But, without question I will always remember the warmth and friendliness I felt as well as the sense of pride in one’s homeland! And I will always remember how good that cold shower felt when I returned to the ship after being so so very hot!
February 7, 2007
Pago Pago (pronounced PaNgo PaNgo), a small and friendly American territory located in the South Pacific will forever be remembered by the passengers on this cruise as the hottest place we have been so far. How hot? I haven’t a clue…but HOT! An occasional breeze helped, but still it is an extremely hot and humid place.
Even Tina, our local guide, complained of the heat. A large woman with a big red hibiscus tucked over her ear, her shiny jet-black hair pulled back in a tight bun and her ample girth wrapped in a multi-colored flowered pararo, she almost exploded with pride and enthusiasm over her home. As the owner of the tour group, a business she inherited from her 108 year-old grandmother, I will always remember her as an unofficial ambassadorship to the United Nations… she was SO enthusiastic.
The general feeling of the island is very similar to that of other islands we have visited. It is lush and green and volcanic in nature. Beautiful craggy black rock and beaches ring the island. Tropical and lush, the place obviously is totally based on life on the ocean.
Once again, the place is dotted with hundreds of small churches...it seems the missionaries did…and continue to do…their work. There is an abundance of evangelical churches…an occasional Catholic church, and the ever-present Mormon Temple. There are so many churches that it amazes me how the small population supports them.
Like on the other islands once again we saw the graves of family members proudly positioned in the front yards of the modest houses. Pago Pago’s gravesites can boast of being the most elaborate and most “protected” we have seen so far. Many are covered with “houses” or tent-like structures….and interesting enough…most of these grave houses are more impressive than the house itself. Tina explained that there are no nursing homes in Pago Pago because the elderly are honored and protected and thus cared for at home. This respect is definitely maintained in death with these impressive and elaborate graves.
Another distinguishing factor about the Samoan culture is that almost every house we passed had a “falalalemalo”…. I am positive that I have not even come close in spelling it…and I couldn’t find the proper spelling in the ship’s library…but I know it starts with an “f” and ends in an “o”… These open-aired pavilions are what Tina called “guest houses”; structures where the family gathers and entertains friends at important occasions like funerals, weddings, reunions, graduations….any time where people would gather. Apparently mats and pillows are brought out and food, prepared in another outdoor kitchen building, is served in these structures. Like the churches, these F’s are everywhere. Tina explained that if we, as visitors, were to pass by that we would be invited in to share in the festivities…in fact, we would be treated as “royal” guests. She went on to tell us that there is a definite etiquette among the local people dealing with “where” and “how” ones stands and sits or generally acts when inside one of these special buildings. Not to worry, she assured us….these “rules” were for locals only and since we are guests would not be expected to know them and thus would be excused for any faux pas we made.
Perhaps the most curious thing we did in Pago Pago was to visit the home of a former governor who died a couple of years ago. His widow, obviously proud of her husband, apparently a very popular man among his people, has created a memorial and museum on the second floor of her home. Hundreds of photos, magazine covers….even a hat rack with thousand of dead leis and hats that he had been given over the years. She proudly showed us a table that was meticulously laid out with his appointment books! Then we were encouraged to visit his tomb which was so bedecked with fresh flowers that you would have thought he died yesterday. I decided that there just isn’t much to show tourist on Pago Pago!
Would I return to Pago Pago on future trips? Probably not! But, without question I will always remember the warmth and friendliness I felt as well as the sense of pride in one’s homeland! And I will always remember how good that cold shower felt when I returned to the ship after being so so very hot!
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