Emile's quick update

We would all like to thank all those who have emailed us!! We really appreciate this!! Unfortunately because we are unable to get internet at home we wont be able to respond to every email but we do read every one!….Thanks ya all heaps for thinking of us!!The girls are slowly getting over their chicken, pox all be it the Samoan version!! When they blister they blister!! Which is why there haven’t been any photos lately. We have decided to home school at this point in time and are on the look out for private Samoan tuition. It’s been 3 weeks now and it’s getting better. Being off the tourist track slightly we are often confronted with people asking for money or wanting to sell us something. It’s hard yacker here for the locals I know! The cost of living has gone up from food prices to fuel. The average income remains at about $5,000.00Tala per year NZ around the $2,500.00 mark.
The government have just banned the importation of LHD vehicles which have really upset a lot of the local businesses. Dodge Rams, Chevy utes, Mustangs, and a lot of other V8s. If ya interested and making a quick dollar come over here and by them up for a dime or 2 or maybe even 3 J
The highlight of this week is Elizabeth texting back and fourth to her mum, Dad and sister, technology aye! As they say in Samoa……….Fa’a molemole iaso lima tala e porrow mai pleeze. Remember if ya want the "Friendly Islands" take a holiday package and stay on the tourist track J
Samoan customs and tradition are not that visible as they use to be. There’s a hustle and bustle through town….in a hurry to get nowhere or what ever. The irony for me and I can say this is that Samoa is supposedly a Nation found on Christian values and beliefs yet one looks around notices the lack of work in local communities to improve hygiene and remove poverty. The village life has changed so much, make shift garages for cars taking up valuable space for crops or homes because the owner cannot afford the parts to keep the vehicle running or the rivers and streams strewn with plastic bottles and rubbish. Is this where I want Samoa to go? Or is this just another step toward progress?
Only 3 weeks and one asks where does one start to begin to educate the government of the downside of progress! Coconut oil is hard to find and expensive because a staple diet is now abe to run a diesel vehicle. That’s a good thing that a local scientist has been able to supply the local market with an alternative that is slightly cheaper then the diesel from the pump. It’s a sort of trade off. How many mouths are not being fed for the sake of not walking or cycling?
Samoa is lush and green and surrounded by an abundance of flora and wildlife that I am stumped to even begin to learn names and medicinal purposes. Breadfruit, Pau Pau cost around NZ $2.00 is fresh and all the kids love it! Bananas are many, With differing varieties galore. We have a bunch of bananas hanging outside out backdoor that I brought green and over time we have observed how fast they have ripened. They don’t have to be yellow before they are able to eat!! And the freshness of the fruit is great. Streets are lined with people selling perfume through to hair ties the thing…….all for money.
Regards
Emile Grey