A second piece based on a recent visit I made to Samoa has appeared in
Escape, in the print version as 'A Nation of Villages' and online as 'Boat Race Festival in Samoa'. The article is available in full
here.
An earlier companion to this story is available
here.
"On my first night, I sleep fitfully, too aware of the noise of the sea and the odd shower that threatens to blow in. But on the second night, when the weather clears and I'm in a fale campground that sits a little further back from the sea, I don't wake at all, and greet the dawn with the feeling that the whole world must be as spacious and calm as my view out to the Pacific."
"The ruins of a Catholic church largely demolished by the storm complete the haunting commemoration, and also a very beautiful statement of village identity, past and present."
"I am to join them on stage and, before I know it, I find myself torn between the two fa'afafines, and between the old and new worlds they represent." (Pic:
Cameron Cope)
