Happy Thanksgiving
Talofa everyone! David and I are in Pago Pago, American Samoa for the moment. We left Bora Bora, French Polynesia when our visas ran out and decided to stop in American Samoa to provision before heading off to Kiribati and the Marshall Islands. The trip from Bora Bora to American Samoa was estimated to take around 12 days, but it took us 20 days to make it to Pago Pago harbor due to crappy weather of high winds and high seas. We reached American Samoa 4 days prior to getting into the harbor and spent 3 days and 4 nights sailing/motoring on the leeward side of the island. Which is beautiful! In fact, the whole island is beautiful. National Parks with lots of hiking, beautiful beaches and the friendliest people.
We originally thought we would be in American Samoa for 3 or 4 days, but our anchor windlass broke while we were resetting our anchor the other day. And since you really need assistance pulling up 150 ft of chain and a 35 pound anchor, we ordered a replacement right away. So a new one is coming by mail and we will leave once that is repaired. Thank goodness for the US Postal Service here. No extra paperwork and fees. Hopefully we can depart around the first of December. It is now cyclone season in the south pacific and there is a increased chance of cyclone activity in Samoa due to El Nino. So I am always watching the weather. In the meantime, we are repairing boat leaks and such. It's funny, you don't find that many boat leaks when is sprinkles, but 3 or 4 days of heavy rain change everything.
Our arrival in American Samoa was interesting. The day we came into Pago Pago was one of those days of constant rain where it rains so hard and fast you can't see more than 3 ft in front of you and your eyes hurt from the raindrops. We called the harbormaster upon arrival and told them we needed to clear customs, agriculture, etc. We were told to tie up to a tugboat and wait for instructions. At the tugboat, waiting for us, were the K9 Unit with US Customs, Agriculture, Health and the Harbormaster. The Customs unit boarded the boat before we could even turn off the chartplotter and engine and searched the entire boat for drugs. Not just a quick search, but a thorough, detailed search. Picture frames had to come off the walls, all compartments were checked, vacume packed items were opened and searched. Every drawer opened and every item in the bathroom scrutinized. At one point we had 4 LARGE Samoan agents, a dog and David and I on the boat. All of this in heavy rain. There was no room to move. Turns out there has been increased smuggling activity in the Eastern Pacific and boats arriving from French Polynesia are now searched. It was very surreal and quite stressful, especially after you have been at sea for 20 days and are wet and tired. Now we have slept and dried the boat out so we can laugh. But who knew?
American Samoa is known as a great place to stock up on food and supplies that can not be obtained in French Polynesia. We were told prices would be cheaper than French Polynesia, but after going to the store I am shocked. It cost me $2.50 here for a carton of eggs. $1.50 for a carton of milk. $4.50 for non-canned New Zealand butter. These prices are lower than Hawaii and I just don't understand. how that is possible. Most of the food comes from the US or New Zealand. Very little is grown on the island as it is quite small with no farmland area. You can find locally grown breadfruit (my new obsession), bananas and avocados, but carrots, peppers, corn and potatoes get shipped in from the US. I don't understand how the supply chain can support low food prices and yet they do. There is also a large demand for junk food, candy bars and ice cream. The last time I saw so much candy in the food isle I was in British Columbia and attributed the need for sugar due to the cold weather. But it's hot here - all the time. It's crazy.
However, the people are the friendliest people I have met so far. They always say hello and go out of their way to help when asked. Yesterday I was waiting for the bus with a filled propane tank (cause you can take that on the bus here) and someone just pulled over to give me a ride back into town. We had a lovely chat and I learned all about the Starkist Cannery here and the relationship with Samoa (also known as Western Samoa).
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I will be cooking a small chicken. I can find LARGE turkeys in the store (along with pigs stomach, pigs feet, pigs head and octopus), but we have a small stove/oven on Lucile. A small chicken it is and we are very thankful for that option. I couldn't find a pumpkin pie so Toll House cookies will be dessert. I could have purchased a two gallon container of ice cream, but that would have been a bit much. :)
Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with lots of good cheer. Many Blessings.
We originally thought we would be in American Samoa for 3 or 4 days, but our anchor windlass broke while we were resetting our anchor the other day. And since you really need assistance pulling up 150 ft of chain and a 35 pound anchor, we ordered a replacement right away. So a new one is coming by mail and we will leave once that is repaired. Thank goodness for the US Postal Service here. No extra paperwork and fees. Hopefully we can depart around the first of December. It is now cyclone season in the south pacific and there is a increased chance of cyclone activity in Samoa due to El Nino. So I am always watching the weather. In the meantime, we are repairing boat leaks and such. It's funny, you don't find that many boat leaks when is sprinkles, but 3 or 4 days of heavy rain change everything.
Our arrival in American Samoa was interesting. The day we came into Pago Pago was one of those days of constant rain where it rains so hard and fast you can't see more than 3 ft in front of you and your eyes hurt from the raindrops. We called the harbormaster upon arrival and told them we needed to clear customs, agriculture, etc. We were told to tie up to a tugboat and wait for instructions. At the tugboat, waiting for us, were the K9 Unit with US Customs, Agriculture, Health and the Harbormaster. The Customs unit boarded the boat before we could even turn off the chartplotter and engine and searched the entire boat for drugs. Not just a quick search, but a thorough, detailed search. Picture frames had to come off the walls, all compartments were checked, vacume packed items were opened and searched. Every drawer opened and every item in the bathroom scrutinized. At one point we had 4 LARGE Samoan agents, a dog and David and I on the boat. All of this in heavy rain. There was no room to move. Turns out there has been increased smuggling activity in the Eastern Pacific and boats arriving from French Polynesia are now searched. It was very surreal and quite stressful, especially after you have been at sea for 20 days and are wet and tired. Now we have slept and dried the boat out so we can laugh. But who knew?
American Samoa is known as a great place to stock up on food and supplies that can not be obtained in French Polynesia. We were told prices would be cheaper than French Polynesia, but after going to the store I am shocked. It cost me $2.50 here for a carton of eggs. $1.50 for a carton of milk. $4.50 for non-canned New Zealand butter. These prices are lower than Hawaii and I just don't understand. how that is possible. Most of the food comes from the US or New Zealand. Very little is grown on the island as it is quite small with no farmland area. You can find locally grown breadfruit (my new obsession), bananas and avocados, but carrots, peppers, corn and potatoes get shipped in from the US. I don't understand how the supply chain can support low food prices and yet they do. There is also a large demand for junk food, candy bars and ice cream. The last time I saw so much candy in the food isle I was in British Columbia and attributed the need for sugar due to the cold weather. But it's hot here - all the time. It's crazy.
However, the people are the friendliest people I have met so far. They always say hello and go out of their way to help when asked. Yesterday I was waiting for the bus with a filled propane tank (cause you can take that on the bus here) and someone just pulled over to give me a ride back into town. We had a lovely chat and I learned all about the Starkist Cannery here and the relationship with Samoa (also known as Western Samoa).
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I will be cooking a small chicken. I can find LARGE turkeys in the store (along with pigs stomach, pigs feet, pigs head and octopus), but we have a small stove/oven on Lucile. A small chicken it is and we are very thankful for that option. I couldn't find a pumpkin pie so Toll House cookies will be dessert. I could have purchased a two gallon container of ice cream, but that would have been a bit much. :)
Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with lots of good cheer. Many Blessings.
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