The one health advisory we were told we should actually heed is the one about drinking the water. Small quantities are ok, but we should avoid drinking it if we can. To that end there was a bubbler in one of the common rooms where we could get fresh cold water. A couple days ago they removed in and installed another sink with a water purifying system of sorts. The problem is that the water coming out of it tastes like PVC glue. We now have the choice of drinking straight tap water or what one of the girls has termed “poison water.” Unfortunately neither of them particularly agrees with me.
Yesterday was our final drop-off in Samoa. We were able to choose a government or NGO office to visit and gather information. The purpose was to discover what government and private agencies there were, the services they provided, and what would happen if you just dropped in on one of them. I chose the NMREM since they were one of the agencies listed in a paper I’d read on alternative energy development- which is the topic of my research. Unfortunately I chose a branch that had several offices. I ended up visiting two since the first one was the wrong one for my purpose. The other one was as well, but at least they were more helpful and friendly. It was really quite amazing. Picture your typical federal government office. Nice building, big desk, at least the appearance of organization. Both NMREM offices that I visited looked like just another house. They was A/C which was very nice considering the heat and humidity outside, but aside from that very little luxury. The woman in the water division with whom I spoke had a very large office on the second floor. That was about the only perk however. There was a desk with a computer and phone, and one small set of shelves. For the most part the room was empty except for stacks of paper on the floor and in binders along one wall. Talk about different.
As I still had some time left after that visit I decided to head over to EPC- Electric Power Corporation- the sole provider of electricity in Samoa. I wound up talking to the head engineer. There are only two in the entire company. He has a Masters in Electrical Engineering from Australia and spoke very good English. Unfortunately he was on his way to Apulima in the afternoon so we didn’t have much time. However, I am planning to go back to visit with him later and he agreed to help me with some of my research. In the short time that I had to talk with him I was able to learn some interesting things. For example: Apulima has ten families living on it right now. Their electric needs are currently being met by a diesel generator. EPC has just finished installing some solar panels on the island and the reason he was flying back out was to ensure they were hooked up correctly before switching over the power. They are making this switch to be able to allow the families to receive power 24/7 even though it is not economical. Currently the diesel generator provides electricity for only 18 hours or so per day. The same goes for the other alternative energy projects currently being researched. The money for feasibility studies comes from the UN and other organizations, but when it comes to implementation the EPC is on its own even in cases where it is not economically sound. I think this project will be an interesting one for me because there is a different mentality in place here when it comes to making decisions. He told me “we do what is best for Samoans.”
After we returned from our drop-offs all of the girls in the group got together for a short dance lesson. We actually have another one this afternoon. Our teacher is our academic director’s daughter, who is a member of a teachers’ association dance group that has performed in China and Taiwan. When we do our long village stay in several weeks we have to perform for the villagers. I think we are also planning to do a line dance to add a little bit of American flavor to it. We shall see. Watching the dancing on TV they make it look so easy. Let me just say that making your feet work that way is much harder than it looks.
This afternoon was another interesting bit of Samoan culture. We had an ava or welcome ceremony with the Samoan students at lunch time. I’m still struggling to describe it since it was part of our experiential learning and we weren’t told much about it before hand. You pretty much sit around cross legged while the talking chiefs give speeches. Of course they did it in Samoan so I have no idea what they were saying. All I know is that girls knees have to be covered while they are sitting and since my lavalava was a little too restrictive for me to sit comfortably cross-legged while they did (I was having issues with it staying on right before the ceremony began) I spent the entire time hoping they would hurry up because my foot had completely fallen asleep. After the speeches are done someone yells something and the brings around the ava cup. How do describe ava? Drinking enough of it will make you drunk, but apparently in a very different sort of way. We’ve been told that it mellows out Pacific Islanders whereas alcohol makes them argumentative. As far as taste and appearance goes it is brown and has a very earthy taste. I think it’s made out of a root. I really should do some more research on it…
Another interesting culture note. Last night I walked into the house and one of my housemates was watching Pirates of the Caribbean on TV. Loving the movie as much as I do I sat down to watch it with her. I asked her if she’d seen the second one and she said “yes but it was very scary to me.” It’s not the first time I’ve heard that comment from students around here. They have TV, they watch movies, they’ve begun to assimilate some of culture but there is still a divide at least in terms of what we consider scary. I think it’s beginning to change but there is still a marked preference for drama over action. It’s also an age thing. We take roller coasters and amusement parks for granted in the United States. Even though they may be quite a few adults who would not under pain of death ride one I don’t think it’s the same fear that even many twenty to thirty year old’s have here. One of the first days that I was here one of the Fijian students in his mid-twenties was commenting about a time when he’d seen a Ferris wheel. It had frightened him and he would not ride it, but he was amazed because there were little kids who really wanted to ride it and who were so excited by it. I guess it’s all a matter of exposure.
