9/9/17, “But Where Do They Make the
Cookies?” (Goal 15/17 Complete)
Fagatogo, American Samoa
At the end of the movie “Roman
Holiday,” the princess played by Audrey Hepburn is asked which was her favorite
place that she visited on her tour of Europe.
She begins to recite the answer that was carefully crafted by her aides
and advisors before throwing it out and answering with one word: “Rome.”
I do not have to worry about being
politically correct or avoiding picking favorites. I have only been on this island for 12 hours,
but is already, by far, my favorite. I
will be on the next flight back to Honolulu, and last night I was lamenting that
that was not for another three days. Now
that I have spent some time here, I am thrilled that I will have three full
days here. Time to relax, time to
explore, time to enjoy.
I have no
schedule for the next few days until my flight.
I only have one thing that I need to do, and that’s visit the National
Park before I leave on Monday. Other
than that, I can spend the rest of the three days doing whatever I want here,
and for that I am glad. Drive to the
southernmost inhabited point in the United States? Sure.
Laze on the beach? Why not! Take a boat ride to nowhere? Might as well. This is the main course of my trip, the
entree. I am in the home stretch
now.
After I closed last night, lit up
an Ardor, published my entry, and posted my photos, which was a bit of a
process due to the slow internet, before going to bed. I woke up early enough and got ready for the
day. The National Park VC is closed on
weekends, so I would have to wait until Monday for that. I then did pretty much exactly the same thing
I did my first morning in Guam. I lit up
an Oliva and walked to my hotel’s other location, which was on the beach and
open for breakfast. I took my first
Official ceremonial pictures in American Samoa and kept walking to the
hotel.
It was less than a mile, so it
was a nice walk with my cigar. I am
staying in town at the famous, historic Sadie Thompson Inn, but they also have
a more resort-like property called Sadie’s by the Sea. That was where I got breakfast. They had outdoor seating where I could
smoke. I got some coffee to start, and I
was in pure heaven looking out at the beach and mountains with my coffee and
cigar. For food, I ordered the most
local thing I could find, though it seemed more like dinner. It was freshly grilled salmon with rice and
fried eggs. It would do well for my
first Official meal in American Samoa.
The meal was perfect, and I enjoyed it very much. That was it.
All 5 US Territories. Goal 15/17
Complete.
After breakfast, I slowly
walked back to my hotel in search of souvenirs, most particularly a flag
pin. As I walked, I realized how much I
loved this little island. Then I saw a
parade of floats for some kind of beauty pageant. It was marvelous. I almost cried tears of joy realizing that I
had three full days here, and this was just the first morning. No longer did I lament have to spend three
full days of my trip here. I kept
walking.
The first souvenir shop (from
before breakfast) had recommended another shop, and when I got there, she said
that she used to have them but didn’t have any more. She said she couldn’t think of anywhere else
to get them. Devastated, I got a
keychain and a different pin. I had flag
(or seal) pins from the other four territories.
It would ruin my display to only have four. I continued to the Fono (pronounced FAHN-goe,
I assume), their legislature and took my ceremonial picture. That was all five of them.
I then went to the market with various vendor
stalls in hope of lucking out there. I
saw a place that specialized in custom magnets and mugs and the like, and I had
the germ of an idea. This seemed like
the oddball place that might just have the flag pin if no one else did, and, if
they didn’t, maybe they could make one before I left. I asked if they had the flag pins, and he
went in the back to ask someone else.
They were back there far too long for the answer to be no, and I had a
glimmer of hope. He soon brought out a
small basket full of dual flag pins (US and AS). It wasn’t the same as a regular flag pin,
but, like the seal pin I got in Saipan, it was far better than nothing. I was thrilled. I continued back to my hotel. I then went out and sat down on the balcony,
where I lit up a Graycliff and proceeded to write this entry, which I will now
close so that I can finish my cigar and relax until I am ready to head back out
for lunch.
If you don’t like the weather in
Oceania, wait five minutes. That saying
is originally applied to New England, but it just as accurately applies to
Oceania, where rain seems to be a frequent, but short-lived, phenomenon. It has been raining on and off for the past
few hours, and it has been quite an adventure.
I will have plenty of time to relax these few days in American Samoa, in
a way that I have never had on a trip in recent memory.
After I closed earlier, I headed out for
lunch, opting for a random place I found on the way. I passed the McDonald’s, knowing that I would
get a meal or two there at some point this trip, but not this meal. I asked her what the local specialty was,
something she had trouble understanding.
The menu was mostly Chinese food and standard American fare. Samoan food seems not to really be a thing
here. She recommended the hamburger
steak. It was literally just a piece of
grilled hamburger meat with sauce and onion and fries. I might as well have gotten the #1 at
McDonald’s.
After lunch, I went in
search of a refill for my lighter, but that seems to not be a thing here, either. I did find a barber shop, where I will be
able to get a shave on Monday, I think.
I lit up an Aroma de Cuba and continued back to Sadie’s by the Sea so
that I could use the beach there. I sat
on a chair with the rest of my cigar as I enjoyed the view of the sea. It started to rain, so I headed to an
overhang.
I was then hungry again. I was now beginning to think that this was
not an issue with my choice in food and perhaps something more serious. I looked up my symptoms, and it seemed to be
a case of Montezuma’s Revenge. Well,
fortunately, that goes away within a few days, there is a very simple way to
alleviate the symptoms until then. You
need to replenish your body’s salts and sugars.
I suppose it didn’t help that I had been trying very hard of late to
avoid salt and sugar. However, I figured
that having some salt and sugar would be better idea than ruining my trip by
being constantly hungry and drained like this.
I got a beach towel and then went to the hotel shop and bought a small
bag of chips and a candy bar. That did
the trick, and I was back to top form.
The
rain soon stopped, and I then did something that I hadn’t done in three
years. I sunbathed. On the beach.
It was very peaceful and relaxing, and I thought to myself that this
must be what normal people do when they take a vacation to a tropical island
and aren’t trying to complete and insane list of travel Goals. I also wanted to even out my tan before I got
back to Hawaii. After spending the
summer wearing the exact same outfit for most of my outdoor time, I was very
tan on half of my feet, my lower legs, my lower arms, and my head and
neck. The rest of my body was pale
white.
After about an hour, it started
to rain again, so I waited it out under the same overhang from earlier. It soon stopped, and I lit up a Brick House
and walked back to my hotel, stopping every time it rained and then continuing
when it stopped. It should have been a
15-minute walk, but it took at least 30.
When I got back to my hotel, I asked about getting my shirts washed, and
they said I could leave them Monday morning and have them back within a few
hours. Perfect. I then went out to the balcony with the rest
of my cigar and sat down in my usual spot, where I proceeded to write this
entry, which I will now close so that I can finish my cigar before I head out
to dinner.
[Publication note: I took a nap after the above entry, intending to go out to dinner after my nap and then write my evening entry. When I woke up from my nap, it was 1:15 AM, too late to get dinner and too late to write another entry.]
No comments:
Post a Comment