samoa beaches

Samoa Beaches: Clean And Relaxing

One thing about Samoa is the beauty of hanging around the beach. Just sitting there and feel the sea breeze is very relaxing. I love doing just that. Samoa beaches are very clean and surrounded by a crystal clear ocean. The wind always seems to blow at the right speed at all times. Sometimes, I wish a can afford to buy a place like it… I absolutely love it.

There are so many beautiful beaches in Samoa I just couldn’t name all of it. Beaches are all around the coast line of the Samoa Islands. There are still many beautiful places that separate from the villages if you are looking for privacy and quiet time. There will never be a time where all the Samoan beaches are occupied.

Another thing I love about Samoa Islands is easy to get around. You can hire a taxi to drive you around to places that interest you for the whole day. You can also rent a car and safely cruising around the Island. The roads are easy to get around with. There is a road all around each island, and some crossing in the middle for direct routes to your favorite destinations.

Samoan beaches are easy to have excess to it at any given time. The Samoan people are very friendly and very easy to approach. If you see a place that interests you, you can stop and hang around there. If someone approach you, then say hi and tell them you just want to hang around there if they don’t mind. When you leave, just say thank you and you move on. But most places, no one will ever approach you anyway. Just very few times that happened when some of the family members happen to pass by and want to make sure everything is ok.

There are also beaches that were built for guest. These beaches require you to pay a small fee to use it. It normally comes with a beach fale (Samoan Style Beach House) that you can use while you are staying there. You can also sleep over if you choose to do so. Beach Fales are very cheap compare to motels and hotels around the Islands. Most Tourists enjoy staying the Samoa beach fale, not only to save them money, but to experience the Samoan way of living.

Don't know much about Samoa? Read this page about where is Samoa.

samoa islands

Introducing The Samoa Islands 

and Some Pictures

There are two political main islands of Samoa. The US Territory of American Samoa and the Independent state of Samoa “Previously known as Western Samoa”.

Samoa Islands

Upolu

Savai’i

Apolima

Manono island.

American Samoa Islands

Tutuila

Manu’a

Swains Island

Apia - Upolu Island

Water Fall - Savai'i Island

Manono Island

Apolima Island

Tutuila Island

Manu'a Islands

Swains Island

Samoa - The Birth of an Independent State

The archipelago of Samoa is made up of two groups, American Samoa being the group that is an unincorporated territory of the US (administered by the US, but not part of the US) and the independent country of Samoa (formerly Western Samoa).

The Independent state of Samoa consists of two main islands, Upolu, a more developed main island in which Apia is the Capitol, and Savaii, the larger yet much less developed island, which provides an ideal opportunity for an incredibly authentic Polynesian experience.

There are two smaller islands, Apolima and Manono, plus 5 other uninhabited islands.

The centre of Savaii is crowned by Mount Matavano, a volcano over 600 feet whose eruption in 1905 was the event that inspired the locals to move over to Upolu.

In comparison to major tourist destinations like Hawaii, the Samoan islands are dotted with beautiful untouched private beaches, most of which are protected by coral reefs. The central regions of the islands are rugged mountainous rain forests with spectacular waterfalls which provide many opportunities for a dip to get away from the humid heat. Some waterfalls also offer the chance for a quick shoulder massage, whilst others are incredibly powerful and simply awe inspiring to behold.

Once one nation, the two island groups were separated by a treaty between the three nations fighting to control them, Britain, Germany and America. This treaty, known as The Treaty of Berlin 1899, gave control of the Eastern Samoan islands to America, and the larger Western islands to Germany. Britain settled with no claim to Samoa in exchange for Fiji and some small Melanesian islands.

In 1997 'Western Samoa' was finally recognized as simply Samoa, the name for which it had been known by the United Nations since 1976. American Samoa protested to this as recognizing the western islands as Samoa diminished their own cultural identity and so American Samoan's continue to refer to the independent state of Samoa as Western Samoa.

Sarah Jayne Gasu is an Australian author who regularly visits the Pacific and loves everything to do with its people and culture. For extensive information on the islands of Samoa you can visit her site at [http://www.dreamholidaysamoa.com] and discover this beautiful and somewhat hidden destination in the South Pacific.

Being married to a Samoan High Chief gives Sarah real insight on the culture from the perspectives of both locals and tourists so you are guaranteed to discover everything you need to know to plan your dream vacation.

Sign up for her newsletter while visiting her site and receive a FREE article to teach you the basics of the Samoan language so you can be talking like a local before you even arrive!

Are we watching Samoa Islands?

Well it seems like we are watching Samoa as it shows on this blog's title. No we are not. Since all the good domain names are gone, we need to be a little creative. So with that saying, this is about Samoa. I am intended to blog some information for travelers interested in visiting Samoa. We will be covering both western Samoa and American Samoa and all other Islands of Samoa down to the smallest one like Manono Island. So, come back often and hope you will find this blog useful in the future.

Help for family in Samoa's baby for sale case

Families remain the backbone of society in Samoa.. so the shock was great when newspapers reported a woman was attempting to sell her baby for just $20 at a market in Apia.

Police say the sale of children is against the law in Samoa and are now investigating the claim that the one month old baby boy was offered for sale.

The Samoa Victim Support Group has been closely involved with the family at the centre of the story.

The president of SVSG, Lina Chan says they were approached by the husband of the alleged woman who asked for help

Not So American Samoa

American Samoa is an unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States. It is located in the South Pacific Ocean, just to the East of the larger country of Samoa. International rivalries in the later half of the 19 th century were settled by an a treaty in 1899, in which the country of Germany and the United States of America divided the Samoan land area. The United States formally occupied its portion and kept a strong presense.

The western islands of Samoa which once belonged to the United States are now the independent state of Samoa. A cooling station was built by the U.S. Navy, in Pago Pago Bay for its Pacific Squadron. During the second World War, US Marines based in American Samoa [http://www.pixibot.com/5-american-samoa], out numbered the local population. This has historically had a huge cultural influence on the country, which is still evident in many parts of the country today.

Some quick Facts:

American Samoa is located in the region of Steps Point, which is the southern most point in the United States of America

Goods manufactured in American Samoa or it's region can be labeled "Made in the USA."
Approximately 30 Samoans, most from American Samoa, play in the National Football League (NFL).
The National soccer team of American Samoa holds a world record in international soccer for the record defeat in an international match, a 31 to 0 crushing by Australia on April 11, 2001.
Feel free to reprint this article as long as you keep the following caption and author biography in tact with all hyperlinks.

Ryan Fyfe is the owner and operator of Pixibot. Which is a great web directory and information center for information on all types of topics.

Invasive Species in Samoa

Samoa is a beautiful country known to all by its diverse natural environment. According to Samoa's Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2001, Samoa's species biodiversity is among the richest and most varied of the Polynesian islands. It contains approximately 500 native vascular plant species of which 30% are found nowhere else in the world. There are also 21 butterfly species, over 20 species of land snails, 14 reptile species and 43 resident bird species, which 8 are found only in Samoa (Samoa's Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2001).

This displays that Samoa has numerous kinds of different flora and fauna established in her islands, however nowadays, the number of these species are declining rapidly due to one of the key reasons being; the bringing in of foreign plants and animals from other nations either accidentally or intentionally. These organisms are known as invasive species and they have become a major threat to Samoa's biodiversity.

What are invasive species?

Invasive species aren't aliens from outer space but are any plant, animal or virus which is not often originally from Samoa and is spreading beyond its normal occurrence rate causing a menace to agriculture or personal resources by damaging it. (Dovey 2003) Some examples of these would be the giant African snail, meremia vine, ivy gourd and so forth.

The impacts of these invasive species on our local environment

Invasive species are recognized as highly adaptive and fast breeding organisms. They are able spread freely in any particular environment, and due to their ability to breed uncontrollably; invasive species have an adverse influence on both humans and the environment.

Their interference with the environment has resulted in serious destruction and is a case that should be taken seriously in Samoa. Invasive vines such as merremia overwhelm vast areas of the native forests in Samoa driving many of our local plants to the verge of extinction. Furthermore, invasive vines also cause the production of flowers and fruits to dramatically decrease, affecting the species which depend on these fruits for food. For example; pigeons and fruit-bats.

Such impacts on the environment can also affect the people living in Samoa by creating "enormous costs to our islands development, food security, and human livelihoods through the damage and ruin caused to our agriculture, fisheries, and forestry industries" (Mark Bonin thesis). Moreover, Invasive species are also known to be disease carriers, thus directly harming humans and their health (Dovey 2003)

Solutions

It is generally recognized that once invasive species become established, they are extremely difficult to eradicate, therefore prevention is the first and best line of defense, and also the most cost-effective. Invasive species have become threatening and aggressive thus many different strategies should be implemented to control the widespread of these species. One method and is currently the best method used nowadays; is the quarantine system which has been set up to prevent any invasive specie from further spreading in the country when it arrives.

However, with the invasives already present in our country, the best thing to do is to control its growing rate by trying out different methods of eradication. These may include aerial spraying in certain areas because such chemicals can be made specifically to destroy that kind of specie, weeding and bagging of fruits for invasive vines and so forth. Overall, this can be an effective way to eradicate the continuing breeding these species. Another possible solution for the obliteration of invasive organisms is through biological control. Biological control is the natural means of eradication. This process involves introducing another type of specie that will feed on that pest and eventually leading to its extinction. Nevertheless, care must be taken so that the new specie will not become another pest in the long run.

Author of ultrasonic pest repeller and nioxin scalp treatment

History of American Samoa

American Samoa consists of several islands in the eastern portion of the Samoan archipeligo. The Samoan islands were first settled by immigrants from the Lau Islands in Fiji, approximately 3,500 years ago.

Contact with Europeans began in the early 18th century, and by the mid 19th century, Great Britain, Germany, and the United States of America, had all established trading posts and were all claiming parts of the islands. The 1899 Treaty of Berlin divided the Samoan islands between Germany, and the United States of America, and U.S. Navy subsequently established a coaling station at Pago Pago Bay.

During World War I, the German part of the islands, was captured by New Zealand and became a New Zealand protectorate. After World War I, a peaceful independence movement, the Mau movement, emerged in both the New Zealand (Western Samoa) and American parts of the islands, but was unsuccessful.

In World War II, American Samoa was an important military base, and U.S. Marines outnumbered the local population, and left a huge cultural influence.

Subsequent to World II, the U.S. Department of Interior sponsored an attempt to incorporate American Samoa into the United States. This attempt was however defeated in Congress, prinicipally due to the efforts of American Samoan chiefs. The chiefs' efforts eventually led to the creation of local legislature which meets in the village of Fagatogo. Additionally, the Governor of the American Samoa is no longer appointed by the U.S. Navy, but is instead locally elected.

As of today, American Samoa, remains an unorganized unincorporated territory of the United States. Although technically unorganized, American Samoa is self-governing under its constitution which became effective on July 1st 1967.

First published at http://www.vacation2usa.com/p1_state_american_samoa_history.php For more information about American Samoa, please visithttp://www.vacation2usa.com/p1_state_american_samoa.php

Laughing Samoans raise money for Fusi

Thousands of Laughing Samoan fans and supporters are set to cram the comedic duo’s final, ‘Greatest Hits’ show in Otara next Saturday.  The finale will be dedicated as a fundraiser to the village of Fusi, damaged during the 2009 tusnami.  Both Eteuati Ete and Tofiga Fepuleai’s , Risati and Semu respectively hail from Fusi.

The fundraising effort will help rebuild the roof and replace church furnishings for Fusi’s Congregational Christian Church of Samoa (CCCS) that suffered major damage in the disaster. An estimated $SAT90,000 tala is nee
ded to foot the repair bill by March this year.

The Fusi village’s effort to raise the money in this short amount of time meant the village calling on its big guns, the Laughing Samoans, for some star power.
Secretary of Fusi Safotulafai CCCS, Auckland, Mafutaga Rufo Tinai Pupualii, says the show is catering for a maximum of 2000 tickets.


Three quarters have already been sold through church members alone, “who have on-sold tickets to their friends and family.”
Set to take over the Otara Recreational Centre, diehard fans may have to buy at the door to see the final rendition of Ete and Tofiga’s ‘Greatest Hits’ series.

The Laughing Samoan’s Otara show is a prelude the duo’s new series called ‘Funny Chokers’ which premier in Wellington, on the 11 February, 2012.
Mr Eteuati told the Samoa Observer they are scheduled to take their Funny Chokers series on tour throughout New Zealand, the Pacific and Australia for the rest of 2012

News Source: Samoa Observer

Samoa Electoral Act to be reviewed by a Commission of Inquiry

The Samoa government has appointed a nine member Commission of Inquiry to review the country’s Electoral Act.

The Commission will be chaired by the Ombudsman, Maiava Iulai Toma, with recommendations to be handed to cabinet after three months.

The commission’s terms of references include the review of any provision regarding special voting booths with a view to encourage people to go to their constituencies to cast their votes.

It will also consider appropriate legislation amendments to require public servants and employees of public bodies intending to stand as candidates in a general election to resign from their positions.

It will also consider and review legislative provisions to change the two individual voter’s seats to two urban seats.

The commission will start hearing submissions and public opinion early next month.

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