Okay, let's go back a few days before all the earthquake and tsunami hoopla! We were really enjoying the island of 'Upolu. It's covered with beautiful beaches, waterfalls, and greenery.

A little info about Samoa first - there are two main islands, 'Upolu, the most populated, and Savai'i, the largest in land size. There are a few tiny islands in Samoa as well, but they are not as frequently visited. Apia is the capital city and is on the north side of 'Upolu about half way from east to west. It is the only place for a yacht to check into the country. To get to Apia, we sailed north between the two larger islands through the beautiful, turquoise waters of the Apolima Straight, then hung a right hand turn to head east. The islands are a beautiful, dark green with many mountains and peaks. There is quite a bit of reef along the north side of 'Upolu, so we had to skirt out far enough to stay clear of it. The entrance to the Apia Harbor has breaking waves on both sides of it and there was a large, unfortunate motor vessel sitting high and dry up on the reef just to the right - oops! Samoa was called Western Samoa or Independent Samoa (to differentiate themselves from American Samoa) just up until 1997 when they dropped all prefixes. Their rule was first "taken over" by Germany and then passed to New Zealand during WWI. Western Samoa finally achieved independence in 1962. There is still quite a German and NZ influence remaining in Samoa - the most obvious (to us at least!) is the local beer, brewed in the 'ol German fashion, Vailima. Okay, there's a lot of obvious architecture remaining from those reigns, as well as people. While in Samoa, we used our eighth type of currency for the trip called tala. One US dollar bought us about 2.45 tala.

There are very few anchorages on Samoa, so to visit 'Upolu, the best thing to do is stay in a slip at their government run marina. We hated spending the money on a slip, but you are not allowed to anchor in the harbor unless told to (waiting for check in), so we made the best of it. The weather here is VERY hot and HUMID, so we enjoyed being able to turn the AC on in the evenings to cool the boat down for more comfortable sleeping. In the daytime, however, we were out and about sweating through our clothes! We met new friends, Steve and Carolyn, on Light Heart as soon as we pulled into the marina. They were very nice and gave us the "scoop" on how best to get around and what to see. We walked into the downtown part of Apia several times and found the supermarkets and the vegetable market. Wednesday night, we went to a wonderful show at the Aggie Grey Hotel and got to meet the granddaughter of the famous "Aggie." I was able to add all the 'Upolu photos to the gallery before we left Apia and I told quite a bit of our story through those captions. Another boat came into the marina a couple days after us and became our next door neighbors - George and Kathleen from Kalalau. Light Heart had organized a sight seeing trip on a little bus, so 10 of us went off to enjoy the island. (I do have to mention that the man with the bus said 12-15 could easily fit, but when it arrived and 12 of us tried to get on, it became obvious our idea of "fitting" and his didn't quite match! Thankfully one of the couples had already done the trip and didn't mind staying behind.)

There is a main beach road that runs around the entire coast of 'Upolu, then there are three cross island roads that allow travel up and over the island. Our first stop was just off one of the cross island roads at the Baha'i House of Worship. It is a lovely nine-sided structure on beautifully landscaped grounds. We didn't know that much about the religion, but found their doctrine pretty interesting. There are only eight of their Houses of Worship throughout the world - the big nine-sided ones, that is (see gallery!). Our next few stops were to gorgeous waterfalls dropping from high cliffs down into deep gorges. The vegetation in the inner part of the island was so deep green and lush - again pictures in the gallery! It was at one of the waterfall stops that Glen and George (Kalalau) got to chatting about their time spent in the Formosa Straights while in the Navy. There was a big stand of giant bamboo and they were chatting about the rafts that the people in Formosa made from bamboo to come out by the navy boats. They would then dive into apparently disgusting water for the coins sailors would throw in the water for them. They obviously shared the same memories. That led to discussing what type of ship they had been on - both on destroyers. That led to which one - both on the USS Hamner! That led to when - both during the same deployment in the early '60s! There were only 212 men aboard the Hamner, but neither clearly remembered the other - Glen was a boiler tender and George had been a quarter master, so their paths didn't really cross, but what an amazingly small world that shipmates from the early '60s should both be out sailing the So. Pacific on their own boats some 40-50 years later and become neighbors at a tiny, little marina in Samoa! What are the odds?!!! The two were inseparable for the rest of the trip, sharing stories about their adventures and friends they both remembered. Glen had spent four years on the ship and George two.

On the south side of the island we got to enjoy the beautiful beaches - both white and black sand stretches. It was very interesting to see the fales the people live in - open structures with high roofs made from either palm fronds or corrugated tin. Most are round, or oval, with wooden poles holding up the roof. We were fascinated to see all of the peoples' belongings - big TV sets, refrigerators, chairs, and sometimes western style beds (although most still sleep on woven mats!), clearly displayed. No doors, so no locks! They do have woven mats that can be hung down to cover the sides during heavy winds and rain. When we asked about theft, it was explained to us that there isn't any. The fales are grouped into family villages and no one would even think about taking something from a family member. The entire family watches out for the village, so no one from another village would be able to get away with taking something either. It sounds like theft just really isn't a part of their culture! Of course, that is in the outlaying areas - in the cities they have more modern homes and issues. As we circled the island on the south side going east, we got to see many of the resorts and fale rentals placed right on the beach. Thankfully, we were able to see them while they were still there. So much of what we saw is now completely washed away. It's still hard for us to believe it.

Our last stop was to the Piula Cave Pools, just east of Apia, where we swam in fresh water pools. There is a three meter underwater passage between the two pools and Glen was the only one in our group to swim it. Of course I was left deep inside the cave (too chicken to take the plunge) waiting, thinking he would come right back. Silly me! He swam in the other pool then left a different way! It made for an interesting "discussion" of how long should one wait when not sure if a person may be stuck in an underwater passage - boys!!! :)

On another trip, we took a taxi up to the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum and Mt. Vaea Scenic Reserve. The famous author is beloved in Samoa for not only his storytelling abilities, but also for how wonderfully he treated the people. Unfortunately, Stevenson only lived 4 1/2 years after building his beautiful home in Samoa, but he is still revered and his tomb is high atop Mt. Vaea (see photos in gallery!). I should mention that RLS's estate was named Vailima - just like the beer! It was built in 1890.

After the tsunami upset, we didn't do much more sightseeing on 'Upolu. We had really wanted to get to the Papasee'a Sliding Rocks, where you can slide down waterfalls into the pools below (you know, just like in all the tropical movies!), but somehow it didn't feel right to go have fun while so many people were dealing with the destruction. Instead, we finished provisioning and headed to Savai'i. We have decided to skip going to American Samoa, and have received our clearance to leave from Savai'i to head to Fanning Island in the Kiribati (for some odd reason pronounced Kiri-bas!). Will write more later about our wonderful stay on Savai'i!

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We just received an e-mail from our friends from Gannet that Tulime, the man who never quit smiling while pulling our "ferry" across the reef in Niuatoputapu, didn't survive the three tsunami waves that hit that island. I had just posted pictures a couple of days ago of him happily being the ferryman from the mainland to Laura's resort on the little island of Hunganga. We have no words to express how sad we feel about his loss. Sadly, Laura's resort (the Palm Tree Island Resort) was a casualty also, but that was mere wood and screen - it could someday be rebuilt.

We are now anchored in a lovely bay called Matautu on the island of Savai'i - also in Samoa. It felt good to get away from Apia on 'Upolu where the reminders of the devastation were so great. There was absolutely no wind yesterday no we had to motor the whole way, but were thankful it was so calm. It was amazing how much debris is in the water and we found ourselves starring, but not really wanting to see what may be floating by. We went ashore today to explore and had a wonderful snorkel adventure in the coral gardens right here in our anchorage. It is soooo hot here - getting in the water felt great. We're feeling pretty low again tonight after the sad news, but are again reminded just how lucky we are. Another big thank you to everyone who has sent such wonderful e-mails and even more information than we have been able to get locally. We promise a more positive report soon!

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A big hug and thanks to all of you for your e-mails, phone calls, and caring thoughts. We appreciate it so much! We know several more of you tried to call and couldn't get through - both power and phone coverage, even cells, were out for some time. News coverage at home is so much better than what we can get out here, so you guys probably know a lot more about the specifics than us, but we thought we'd give a quick update on what we have seen and heard. I still want to write about our adventures on the island before the quake and tsunami hit, but will save that for another day.

After getting back to the boat after the evacuation, our first concern was to let everyone know we were all right. Then, reality hit about just how lucky we had been. We were just starting to hear about how hard the southeast side of the island was slammed, when, about 4:00, the tsunami alarms went off again and we again were instructed to evacuate to higher ground. This time, however, the water in the harbor remained fairly calm - no big recession, so it didn't feel nearly as intense as the first evacuation. As Glen and I were making our way back up the street, new friends George and Kathleen, from the boat Kalalau, were driving their rental car back towards the marina. They picked us up and drove up a hill to safer ground. They had been standing in line at a grocery store in the downtown part of Apia (with a basket full of their final provisioning) when the alarms went off and everyone was rushed out of the store. Their first thought was to get back to their boat and the two young men who are crewing with them. It didn't take long for the alarms to stop this time, and we drove back to the marina. Thankfully it didn't matter, but we had been much better about grabbing stuff this time - the address book with everyone's phone numbers, the power cord along with the computer, our external hard drive with all our photos, Glen was fully dressed, and I had my jewelry box in toe! We left it all in the backpack ready to go just in case we should be evacuated again. We listened on the VHF as an Orion plane from New Zealand hailed boats that were underway to let them know another wave may be coming. Boats out in deep water are actually much better off than those at anchor or in a marina. The swell would just pass right under them. Finally the warning was completely canceled with no reported waves hitting anywhere on the island. We were so pleased to have an alarm free night, but couldn't sleep very well all the same.

The official death count right now on Samoa is 111, but many are still missing. Over 140 were injured seriously enough to require hospitalization and many, many more have cuts, scrapes, and bruises. Hundreds have lost everything - their homes, clothes, vehicles, etc... We chatted with a couple in town yesterday who were both cut up pretty badly. The girl told us their story - they felt the earthquake, but the water near their beach didn't seem to recede. A minute later, some children from their village came running in from the reef yelling that the water outside of the reef had "gone away." The village they lived in didn't have an alarm, so thankfully the children knew what to do. The couple got in their car and was trying to drive away when the first wave hit - reports say a mere 13 minutes after the start of the quake. The wave rolled their car and pushed it off the road where it was left on its side. The man was able to kick a window out and had just gotten himself out and was pulling on her arm to help get her out when the second wave hit and swept him away. The car filled with water and she was trapped. She said she tried to get out but finally gave up and faced she wasn't going to make it. A third wave then hit the car and rolled it more so she was able to get some air and get out. Amazingly, they both lived through the ordeal. They were in the internet cafe trying to get word to her family in England and some of his relatives in New Zealand that they were okay. Their cell phones had been washed away and they didn't have any telephone numbers. Another story... the parents of a young single-handler on a boat a few slips away from us had just arrived for a vacation to see their son. They were staying on the south side of the island in a resort. The mom was up at the showers (a separate, shared facility in many "resorts" on the islands) and was able to get up on top of the water cistern before the first wave hit. The dad couldn't get to higher ground and was swept away - being tumbled along the volcanic rock ground and hitting trees. Thankfully he survived, but was in pretty rough shape when they got back on a plane to head home to Australia. Their son, Nick, is now volunteering with the red cross unloading trucks. The stories we have been hearing go on and on, and sadly not all have happy endings.

In American Samoa, the cruising boats in Pago Pago were not as lucky. At least two were hurled up on land and one was washed down the main street while its mast was taking down power lines. The captain of a boat name Mainly was washed overboard. His wife had been down below and when she went up to look for him, he was gone. His body was recovered and she later found it at the morgue. She is now a widow, alone on a damaged boat (their home), far away from their family and home country. I cannot even begin to imagine how she will cope. One of the boats which wasn't damaged in Pago Pago reported (on the SSB) they were on a mooring ball with 30 feet of water under their keel but ended up hitting bottom when the water receded from the harbor (and we thought we had it bad touching bottom when 6-7 feet of water rushed out of the harbor!). Several other boats, including a little boat named Sunshine, were completely destroyed. Again, the stories go on and on.

Our last port of Niuatoputapu was hit extremely hard. We just couldn't believe it when we heard the reports that two of the three villages suffered huge losses. We finally were able to get internet to see some of the coverage and checked out the website at matangitonga.to It has aerial photos that show a lot of the homes near the shoreline were washed away. Those poor people were already hurting from not having supplies delivered for over 3 months and now this. Many cruisers here is Apia collected medical supplies, food, etc... to send to the island with our new friends from Kalalau. They were heading that way anyhow, but left a few days early to get supplies there. The two young men that are crewing with them (Nick and Tory) bought lots of hammers, nails, gloves, tarps, etc... to take down to help rebuild whatever they can. The photo added to this entry is one of theirs - they went to the south side here in Samoa to check out the damage and offer help. They had just come back from a road trip of the island and wanted to check out if their new friends at a little fale (tiny hotel room) were okay. They both are great photographers and shared their photos. They were shocked to find their fale, along with the restaurant and family homes nearby were all completely washed away. I'll work on getting some more of the photos into the gallery - they're heartbreaking. In this picture, you can see tons of debris from several homes that were destroyed and if you can zoom in on the top right corner, you'll see a powerboat that was thrown up onto the roof of one of the houses. Another roof then landed back on top of the boat. Anyhow, we eagerly await what they find in Niuatoputapu. There have been a few reports (on SSB) from the 2 boats that were left unharmed in the anchorage there that there have been many deaths and a lot of destruction. I had put quite a few new photos in the gallery from our visit and went back to add comments on what we think may or may not be left.

A side story from Niuatoputapu... our new friend Laura, who owns the little Palm Tree Island Resort (and hosted the "Cabaret" party) had left for a trip to Fiji with one of the other sailboats. She had then flown from Savusavu to Suva to Nuku'alofa and was trying to catch a flight back to Niua, but couldn't because a beacon on the island had gone out and they wouldn't allow a plane to go. She had contacted us, knowing we were heading to Samoa, to see if there was a boat heading from Samoa to Niua. She was able to fly into Apia on the Monday night before the quake. We hadn't heard from her and were so thankful to finally hear she had made it safely. She stayed the night with us and then sailed off to see what may be left of her home with Kalalau. It should have been a day and a half trip, but we heard this morning that they were having to beat into the wind and it was going to take them an extra day to get there. On top of that, the markers for the passage through the reef had been washed away, so when they get there, they will have one heck of a time getting in to the anchorage. We're hoping to hear they make it safely tomorrow on the SSB.

I hope this doesn't seem to be endless rambling. We are still somewhat in shock that this horrible thing really did happen here where we are and had just recently been. I promise the next entry will be more positive - we really were enjoying Samoa before the Q and T hit! Big hugs to everyone and thanks for all the comments. We are thrilled to hear from all of you - and can't wait to catch up a little more personally with long lost friends and family that posted. :)

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