The other form of transportation was the local bus system which is quaint and runs people between the "city" and the "villages". Open air buses, basically pickup trucks with the bed removed and replaced with a bus-ish structure, some looking home made, with wooden bench seating and no air conditioning took other guests on tour, but we had passed on that and took a walk.
A conversation:
Pati: (Looking up) A bat!
Gordon: Where?
Pati: No, that can't be a bat. Bats don't soar like that.
Gordon: Where?
Pati: Holy shit! That is a bat and it's huge!
Gordon: Where?
Pati: There! Look!
Gordon: Whoa! That thing must be three feet across!
The only species native to American Samoa, these are fruit bats called Samoan Flying Foxes, and they do have wingspans of up to three feet. They are active during the day and on the way back to the ship, we found an entire colony of them hanging upside down in the trees, chattering to each other loudly. Photos of them are hard to get and don't do their size justice, so look them up in your encyclopedia.
Next stop, two towns in Fiji, Lautoka and Suva. At Lautoka, we took a sightseeing tour to a nearby town called Nadi, pronounced "Nandi". Words over here seem to sprout n's where there appear to be none. On the way, our guide pointed out several villages and every school alongside the route. Interestingly, all the villages have rules, or taboos. Men may not wear hats in the villages. Women must wear skirts and knees and shoulders must be covered. Children must keep their place and respect their elders, or else. These rules apply to tourists as well. We stopped at a marina and were treated to a coconut demonstration. This dude hulled a coconut with his teeth and then opened the nut itself by cracking it neatly in half on a rock. No tools.
We did a little shopping in Suva, three island shirts, not knowing the exchange rate but figuring it's probably not too bad. Believe it or not, the Fijian Dollar is worth 48 cents U.S. Talk about bargains! Finally, we'll say this. If you're thinking about going to Fiji to sit in a five-star hotel on the beach, go for it. Otherwise, fahgeddaboutit.
Suva:
Fiji sunset:
