American Samoa. A much smaller, more mountainous group of islands that is now a US Territory. Back in the day its main asset was the deep and well protected harbor of Tutuila. We spent four short days there, and it is still a challenge to decide what to say about it.
I’ll start with our activities there. We flew out from Upolu at 7:30 on Thursday morning on a little prop plane. My perception of things must be changing because it was actually comfort to know that we were going on the “big” plane as opposed to the 15-passanger plane that we used to fly across the ocean the last time. After breakfast and a tour of Pago Pago we drove to American Samoa Community College, the institution that would be hosting us for the weekend. We met our host students and then had a chance to attend part of their YANA (You Are Not Alone) 3rd year anniversary celebration. YANA is an organization that started after three students committed suicide in one year. More on that later. After lunch we had an art class. I must admit that after sitting in lectures for hours on end painting cloth and making siapo bookmarks was a welcome relief. We spent the evenings with our host families. Friday morning we watched a film on a man who tries to bridge the gap between being a Samoan and an American. The man who produced the film was actually our host so we had a discussion with him afterwards which was very enlightening. Our next lecture was by Sia Figiel, one of the foremost Pacific authors. I think it’s always a great opportunity to be able to meet with authors, especially when they are as entertaining as Sia was. Saturday the entire group, SIT students and hosts, hiked up to the Mt. Alava and then down the other side to the ocean. Let me just say now the view from the top is amazing- even though it was cloudy and rainy. It’s, I believe, the highest point on the island and looking down you can see the wharf and main town areas. It was incredible. The hike was a lot of fun as well, especially the one on the way down where we had to use ladders and the ground was slippery and muddy from the rain. We went in two groups. The first group made it to the top and down in under four hours. We then sat and waited another three hours for the second group to emerge from the mountain literally covered in mud. It was quite a sight to behold. I wish I had more time to describe the hilarity and awesomeness of the hike, but I think that’s one story you’ll just have to ask me about when I get home. Sunday was pretty cut and dried. We went to church, had to’ona’i, did a little shopping, and then headed home. I was exhausted by the time I got back and couldn’t wait to crawl into bed.
Now to the fun part…trying to describe American Samoa. As I mentioned earlier it’s much more mountainous than Western Samoa. It’s also much smaller and the beaches aren’t quite as nice. So much for the description of the land itself. Relatively easy compared to the rest.
Aside from the geography, American Samoa is also very different in other aspects of its physical appearance. For one, it is more developed due to all the aid that comes from the US government. There are more cars, more buildings, a very smelly tuna cannery, a bigger wharf, more American restaurants, nice houses. However, with all of this also comes more junk and more outward appearances of poverty. It’s easy to forget that Samoa is poor because it doesn’t have the same look that is so often associated with poverty in rural America. That is not the case in American Samoa. Another thing that really struck me was all the billboards. They weren’t tall and they didn’t scream out advertisements for everything you could imagine. They were at eye level and had messages about drugs, smoking, teenage pregnancy, and early childhood immunization. Another difference in physical appearances was that of the Samoans themselves. One of my sisters had asked me in an email if Samoans were rather large. My response was not particularly. I mean they aren’t. Most of the younger guys here are actually quite ripped. They might have a little bigger bones and be a little taller but I wouldn’t call the majority of the younger people here overweight by any means. It’s becoming a problem, but I didn’t really see a major difference with the US. That is not the case in American Samoa. There, the Samoans were big. Very big. Why? I’m not quite sure. Maybe its all the processed food, maybe its that they don’t work on the plantations as much as they do here. I don’t know the reason. All I know is what I saw.
Culturally and socially there were also some differences, but this is where I begin to have problems. Some things were the same- the respect, the openness with which my host family received me, the extreme hospitality and generosity, the closeness of family ties, the importance of religion (at least in my family). Those things were the same. Others were different. My first night there I had a long talk with the girl who was hosting me about suicide, and family problems, and life choices that many young people are facing. It was a very heavy conversation and I couldn’t help but think that the issues being faced there today are very similar to those being faced by many inner-city youth today in America. It was not easy and I think that is one reason I have having such a hard time sorting through this in my head. I know some of those issues are being faced here, but to this extent? How much an influence has Westernization had on this culture? How much of it has been good and how much has been negative? How do you solve some of the problems that have been created?
Don’t get me wrong. My experience was amazing. My family did everything they could to show me the differences between the way things used to be and the way they are now. The first two nights I showered outside in the middle of the school yard and ate outside with the parents sitting on the ground. The last two days we used the indoor bathroom and ate at the kitchen table. We watched football and I was actually allowed to help cook- things that never happened in the village in Western Samoa. If I could, I would have stayed another week. I think I could safely say that it has been my favorite home stay to date.
And now I think I’ve rambled enough so I will end this post. I’ll share more later this week. J
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