Homeward bound already

I was going to take the public bus into Apia today for a look-see before my night flight. I realised at breakfast that the owner was going to see the Prime Minister today to try get some funding for tsunami repairs required by the village.

They offered me a ride for WST20 and dropped me off at the Robert Louis Stevenson museum. It was interesting to learn that he had made such an impact on Samoans by spending only four years of his life here.

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While at the museum, the heavens opened and it poured. After much waiting, the skies cleared and I tried walking to town (based on the advice given by a couple of Kiwi women who were also in the van with me). When the rain came back, I managed to find a taxi. Just as well as it was far too far to walk. I don’t know what those women were thinking – 10 minutes by foot, my foot@#!

After some lunch at a nice café, I changed my excess Samoan Talas back to Kiwi dollars because I had too many Talas leftover. I had an ATM “accident” due to a lapse in my arithmetical abilities upon my late night arrival. As a result I had withdrawn far too much money! Just as well though, as it would have been difficult to find any source of money at all on the south coast of Upolu.

I found a tattooist (and his helpers) at work behind the tourist information centre. They were inking the victim when I first arrived. I had to wait quite a while before they started pricking him again for the next part of the design. There was no screaming or groaning at all. Brave man!

It started pouring again. I found an internet café to kill some time before taking the public bus to the airport. I had hoped to be on one of the colourful older converted lorries but ended up being on a relatively modern one.

As my flight was quite full (and being on standby), I had to wait a while before being given a boarding pass. I was issued one some 90 minutes before departure which was a very pleasant surprise. That marks the end of a quick long weekend away from the wet and cold Auckland spring!