Weekend Fun

Weekend Fun

I love the weekends so much, for reasons I would not like weekends in America.  My life is completely different here that when living in Colorado, Wyoming, or even New York.  I do things that I normally wouldn’t, which makes life more enjoyable because it is so fresh. 

Saturdays and Sundays are full of church.  I wake up each day for morning tea, head to church and then have an amazing to’ogani with a family.  On Saturdays many times our whole church gets together to eat which makes it quite enjoyable and feel like such a great family.  Sundays, just as I alternate churches, I alternate families to eat with.  After eating such a magnificent meal the afternoon is spent relaxing.  On Saturdays it is just around the house, and Sundays it is in whoever’s house I eat at, with sometimes a break to go to the pool to cool off.  In the evenings I sometimes join my family on a drive on the main road. 

This weekend made me smile as it showed why I love Samoa so much.  I love spending time with the people in my village as I feel like I connect with them so much more from the time we spend together.  Today, I ate my afternoon feast with a teacher from my school.  She lives with a small family, so it was a totally different experience than normal.  There were only 4 of them, so 5 including me.  So for one of the first times in Samoa, I was able to have a family meal, where everyone eats at the same time.  It was so nice to eat with everyone and made me think of my family and the family meals we normally have. 

After our meal, I helped with homework, lounged about, then hung out watching rugby on television.  During the hot afternoon we  walked down to the pool to cool off. 

Samoan pools are completely different than the pools we are used to in other countries.  Next to the ocean, a cement/rock wall is built to make a circular pool where fresh water collects.  During low tide it can be pretty shallow, and high tide it is very nice.  These fresh water pools are SOOOOO cold!  It can be rough at first, but is very enjoyable with how hot of a day it normally is. 

On Sundays it is against village rules to swim in the ocean, but it is allowed to wade in the pool.  During the hot afternoons many people in the village congregate to the pools to cool down.  Men and women take turns so they do not bathe at the same time. 

We spent such a long time there and had a great time, but I had to get home to get ready for school the next day.

The day was so relaxing.  I left for church at 8:30 in the morning, but returned home well after 5.  Spending time with such an enjoyable family the time seems to always fly by. 

Weekends are something I always look forward to.