Samoa Week 3 - Marine Ecology

Remember all those Discovery shows about the abundant life on the coral reefs? Well, we saw it - puffer fish, starfish, parrotfish, hard coral, and soft coral. All underwater too! We spent this week on the beaches at the eastern edge of Upolu, Samoa's second main island. It was beautiful place to end our trip before we headed back to Christchurch. [Photo: Unknown]

Samoa Week 2 - Faga

Did you know that in Samoan "g" is pronounced like "ng" at the end of "song"? During our 2nd week in Samoa we moved in with the families of Faga, a rural village, for 4 days. We each learned about different aspects of village life, a little Samoan, and how much we have to appreciate about our life back in the US. Out last night ended with a "fia-fia" - a ceremonial singing competition between us and villagers. We sang each other songs as gifts to one another. It was hard the next morning to leave our adopted "mothers" and "fathers."

Samoa Week 1 - Savaii

We spent the first week of our Samoa trip with Warren, a retired Australian geologist who's made his home at Safua Hotel where we're staying. He took us around Savaii, one of Samoa's main islands, introducing us to its ecological and cultural history. Wow! Where do you begin to describe the sights, sounds, and tastes of Samoa? [Photo: Unknown]

God & Nature...& Us

We spent the 2 weeks before we left for Samoa in our God & Nature class with Bret Stephenson. Another thought-provoking class, we considered how religious, philosophical, and ethical ideas shape how we think about the relationships between us, God, and the rest of Creation. [Photo: Unknown]