Hi, I'm Morgan! I'm a 29-year-old Samoan woman, and this month, I visited Samoa for the first time.
Some of my family from Australia and New Zealand joined my mom and me in the motherland, and we made so many memories I'll treasure forever. But there were a bunch of things I didn't know or expect about Samoa, so I thought I'd share some of the things I learned:
1.I didn't realize how emotional it would make me just to look around and see other Samoans.
2.There's SO much natural beauty.
In my opinion, the most beautiful area was this swimming hole named To Sua Ocean Trench. It was formed by an ancient lava eruption, and the pool is connected to the ocean through an underwater cave.
3.People bury their family members in their front yards.
4.You have to pay to visit the beaches.
5.I learned how to weave coconut tree leaves into a plate for my lunch.
6.I also learned how to cook in a traditional umu (an aboveground oven).
7.I got to watch two men get their traditional pe'a tattoos.
8.Visiting my grandparents' villages was even cooler than I imagined.
We only briefly stopped by my papa's village (Fusi) to see the graves, but at my nana's village (Leulumoega), we got to explore more. I spent some time at my auntie's house and fell in love with the fale beside it.
I also got to try star fruit for the first time! Because of the unique shape, the pieces look like cute little stars when you slice it.
11.My hotel room key was attached to a plastic key that turned on the electricity.
12.Speaking of the hotel, it was so much better than I expected.
But the best part about Amanaki was definitely the people. They were so kind, welcoming, and warm. We became friends with a front desk worker, Anna, who even asked for pics before we left and posted a sweet message about us on social media.
13.Apparently, Robert Louis Stevenson brought pineapples to Samoa.
14.You shouldn't drink the tap water.
15.The taxi drivers often decorate the insides of their cars.
16.And finally, I had no idea how reconnected I'd feel by the end of my trip.
This was honestly the trip of a lifetime. To be with my family in our ancestral homeland was such a moving experience. I can't wait to visit Samoa again!