After arriving in American Somoa, a three day sail from Suwarrow, Cook Islands, we dropped our hook in the anchorage in water that is less then pristine. The bottom is very foul in the harbor due to the tsunami in 2009. The huge wave came in and dragged most everything (I think about 50 people died) that was low lying on shore and dragged everything back out again when it retreated. Hence the bottom in the harbor is chucked full of all kinds of goodies to catch on your anchor. We dropped our anchor and hoped we might catch a car or maybe a refrigerator to keep us from dragging on other boats! With lots of scope put out we thought we were dug in well (and we were). We spent a week in the harbor and we didn't have any problems but when we weighed anchor we pulled up lots of plastic bags but were able to get them off the anchor and all went well. We were on our way to The Kingdom of Tonga.

One of the main reasons we went to America Somoa was to provision the boat for the next two months and have all those wonderful American brands to pick from. We weren't disappointed. We shopped till we dropped. Spent a good part of a day at the Cost U Less and when all was said and done we had purchased a skid full of groceries and the store piled all the food onto a flatbed truck and we were all off with Freddie the driver, to the harbor. Please keep in mind that all those goodies need to be off loaded from the truck, carried down to the dinghy dock, loaded into the dinghy (no room for me) and taken back to Always Saturday. Fortunately we were able to find a home for everything and soon it was time for bed. I was exhausted but we will enjoy all that we purchased as some items are really treats.

Now to the Tuna Tour: I haven't even mentioned the smell that was generated from the factory as well as the foul water that was discharged from the plant. Please keep in mind that the tuna factory is located in a third world country so the requirements aren't exactly the same as the US of A. One of the boaters that had been in the harbor longer than we had organized a tour of the factory and were fortunate to able to join the tour. I have to say that it was the best tour ever. I come from a food service background and have been on many canning plant tours in the USA but this really took the prize.

First of all we were down and dirty with the work crews, this would never happen in the US. We would have lab coats on and looking out over a catwalk. Not on this tour, we walked the floors along with the employees and got a first hand, up close look as to what goes on. Most of the labor is done by hand because it is cheaper than buying a machine to do the work (my opinion only). Even if the machine never gets a sick day, vacation day and/or works 24/7…hand labor is still cheaper.

We got to see the yellow fin tuna (frozen with tail and dorsal fins cut off, better storage) being unloaded from the fishing boats (the boats stay at sea for 45 days of fishing at a time). We watched the tuna sized and put in the proper bin for thawing and cooking. This is important because depending on size, thawing needs to be uniform and cooking as well. Wow, after all of this the fish is steamed and then deboned, skin removed and all the meat put into a tray…all done by hand. There must have been fifty men and women standing shoulder to shoulder with an apron on over their street clothes, hairnet and earplugs provided, some had gloves most did not, breaking down all this tuna. There had to be a least six or maybe eight assembly lines for this process. All done by hand.

We were able to walk the floor, and I mean the floor, and be careful don't slip because you don't want to go home smelling like fish. It was really down and dirty and wonderful. We saw the canning process and the foil pouch process. The cans were stacked up and "cooked" for the very last time ready for shipping. All the labeling is done in the USA which is interesting in its own right. Yes, I still will eat tuna fish in a pouch or can.

Most of the employees come from Western Samoa and not American Samoa. The minimum wage is $4.60 per hour…..not the USA minimum wage (by special congressional legislation) but then again remember we are in a third world country.

The Samoan people are the most delightful and happy people we have ever experienced. All along the tour the employees waved and were more then happy to have their pictures taken and continued to work in spite of all the "tourists". There was a pride in doing what they did which you could see. It was the best and a real eye opener about another culture. We were told that the Samoans’ don't work for food but work to buy things. Food is very plentiful and sharing among families is the common norm. Nobody goes hungry. You can say that right, Samoan people are very large and LARGE t-shirts won't sell here, well maybe for the kids……

The buses or public transportation is another topic. Local folks that don't have cars (which is most everybody) take the $1.00 bus. Now in these buses (well actually they are truck chassis, that have been built up with plywood) to form a sort of bus, the driver sits sunken down like normal level, and the passenger seats are above the driver. The system works very well and you mustn’t forget to pay when you exit the bus. Again the Samoan people were the most wonderful people and so very helpful. Where are you going? Remember to get off at such and such…. Of course they knew we were from a boat in the harbor. Where are you going? Where did you come from? Just delightful and the ride into town was the most spectacular. The shoreline in American Samoa was brilliant. Everyday we went in and out of town I didn't fail to notice how special it really was.

We are now in the Kingdon of Tonga. What a difference……more to follow about that. We are waiting for weather here to do the crossing to Opua, New Zealand. The trip is touted as being very difficult but we hope to catch just the right weather. Keep your fingers crossed, I know we will!
From the Crew of Always Saturday