Adjusting to the Culture

One of my biggest challenges since moving to the island is adjusting to the culture and respecting the Samoans. It is not socially acceptable in this culture to eat, talk, or drink standing up. So many times we are getting told that we need to sit down. If there is no bench or chair to sit on you are supposed to sit on the ground. I am hoping after a couple of weeks of being here I will remember to sit down. Another big thing in this culture is that your not allowed to show any skin above the knee unless you are swimming. This has been really hard since ninety percent of my summer I spent in my swimsuit and its hotter here and I have to wear way more clothes. The worst part is this is the cold season so I can only imagine what it is going to feel like in a couple of months.

Today we got the opportunity to go into town and get our phones and school uniforms ordered. It was fun to see what the town looked like. I purchased my first phone and it’s a little cheaper for one out here. My phone cost me thirty dollars and then I bought some minutes. They don’t have contracts here you just have to go to grocery stores to purchase more minutes when you run out. I also had to purchase some material for my school uniform. If you want to see what it looks like just google lava lave and puletasi and that’s what I will be wearing!

We also got a chance to go to the beach today. The water is so clear and the waves are HUGE! I can’t believe how big they get. I was standing on the beach and I could already see fish swimming in the water. I can’t wait to see what its like once I get to go snorkeling!

I also got the chance to view the island that I will be living on for the next year. I am not going to lie it looks like a very tiny island. Like I tried to take a picture for you guys and you couldn’t see it in the picture next to the big mountains because it was so small. So living there will be interesting but I am excited to see it!