Wednesday, March 10, 2010

The Pacific Adventure Continues....







March 5th 2010
We had a new experience this week. Our vehicle had to go in to be serviced and our courtesy car had the steering wheel on the passenger side of the car. As I said previously, Samoa changed from driving on the righthand side to driving on the lefthand side of the road, to fall in line with Australia and New Zealand. Well there are still some cars that haven’t converted yet. So this week I have been driving along the kerb trying to judge how close I am from the middle line. The speed limit is 40 Km/hr or 25 mph all over the Island except in town and I am still trying to find what the limit is in town as there are no signs to let you know. In fact there are no signs, period. I turned left the other day down a street that had cars coming towards me on the other side of the road, which was fine. Well a car came out of a side street driving towards me on my side of the road, then, another van joined it. Guess what! It was ‘a one way street’ No sign to indicate it, you are just expected to know. When I asked a policeman he said “What do you need a sign for, just watch the other traffic “Anyway I had to back up about 50 yards into a busy street with horns blowing in every direction. When driving on the main roads around the Island not only are there white arrows indicating which side of the road you need to drive on but there are speed bumps strategically placed all around the Island about a foot high and that can be very uncomfortable at speed if you happen to be late to catch a plane or the Ferry boat. Another sight you will see are small mini pigs grazing on the side of the road or trying to cross to the other side, where the grazing is tastier.

Another animals you might expect to see are chickens roaming everywhere seemingly wild but not so, they all belong to someone and watch out if you run over someone’s pig . There could be a lynching party after you from the village that owned the pig. There are many dogs just laying around sometimes in the middle of the road too underfed and sick looking to move, you have to be careful they don’t try to nip at your heels . Fa’a Samoa, (the Samoan Way) like everything else one becomes accustomised to the local way.
On Saturday morning at about 3 a.m, we were awoken to a tsunami warning, sirens going horns blowing. We had till 6 am to get to higher ground Or risk getting very wet. As it happened the wave had diminished drastically by the time it reached us. We spent the morning sitting around at the Golf Course Parking lot, which is on higher ground. We had a nice devotional and spiritual discussion, studied a little with the younger Missionaries and went back to our homes at about 11-30am. So after putting away all our 72 hour pack things we napped for a couple of hours. The downside of all this is we didn’t get to go over and build the Fale we had planned to build which puts us a week behind schedule.

a picture of the devistation left behind in the last Tsunami

Pat had to escort a sick Elder home to Tonga this week and the only way he could get back to Samoa was to carry on to Auckland, New Zealand to catch a plane back to Samoa the following day. Not that it was all bad, it gave him time to look around and do, ‘the tourist bit’. He was also able to call in to see the Area Medical Adviser, who is our supervisor, Doctor Fuller, is serving in Auckland but his practice covers the whole of the South Pacific Area, Pat got home at about 3-30a.m. on Friday morning. It is very confusing living so close to the Date Line. He started out at 6am on Wednesday 3rd. got there on Thursday the 4th, went shopping and sightseeing all day Friday 5th till about 7p.m then went to the Airport, took off at about 10 p.m. and arrived back in Samoa at 2-30 am then by van, back to Pesega where we live, about an hour’s journey. Still Friday morning and by 8 am , was back at the Office to work all day Friday the 5th again. We suppose that you get used to it after a while.


We will try and take some photo’s of the Fale building project tomorrow and send them on to you.
Well take care of yourselves and be good. As you can see we are still having a great time and thoroughly enjoying ourselves. A lot of you should start saving for a mission. You will have a ball, as we are. The rest should investigate the Church, then start saving, we can thoroughly recommend it. It certainly gave us direction and purpose. Till next time, lots of love and best wishes.
Elder and Sister Kelly (Pat and Barb Kelly) xxxx

0 comments:

Post a Comment