Manuia le Malaga! - Have a nice trip!

“I’m going to town tomorrow.” This statement means something different for every volunteer. For some volunteers who live near Apia, it means they’re hopping on one of the many busses in their area. In about thirty minutes, they’ll be in the Peace Corps office with Air Conditioning and computers with internet. They will probably leave and head home in the evening. Volunteers who live further away on Upolu might have to wake up earlier, walk further to the nearest bus, and leave town a couple hours earlier. For those of us on Savaii, it’s a little more of a process. For those of us further from the wharf on Savaii, it means taking a long bus trip to the wharf, a long ferry ride, and yet another bus. This is easier said than done. There are about seven of us who live an hour or more out from the wharf, and my trip is convenient compared to some people.

Here is what a typical trip is like for me:

Part one: Getting to the wharf on Savai’i

I have about 6 or 7 opportunities to catch a bus to the wharf if the buses are running regularly. Some volunteers have more, a few have less. I typically choose to leave at 6:30 because it isn’t crowded, and I’m waiting for the bus right as the sun comes up. I cross the street and wait under a street light (so my family can watch me and know I’m safe) 30 minutes before the bus is supposed to come, because you never know if it will show up early.

Here comes my bus

 If I miss the 6:30, the next bus is usually pretty crowded, and I mean CROWDED. Every person sitting has another person in their lap. People are squeezed as tightly as they can be in the aisles, and the spaces under the seats are filled with suitcases and woven baskets full of taro and roasted pig. The people on my bus are awesome, because they always try to make space for Peace Corps volunteers to sit. Any time I offer my seat to someone in the front of the bus, another seat will magically materialize for me in the back. Sometimes I have to hold a child or teenager in my lap, but it could be worse. Along the drive we stop a few times at different stores, and the young men will run out to do the shopping for the passengers as quickly as possible.

Wasn't joking about the baskets full of pig

 *I typically spend the night in a hotel once I’m in Apia, but if I want to save money and take a day trip, it means taking a bus at 2:30 in the morning so I can catch the 6am ferry. I take the bus for about 30 minutes in the opposite direction of where I need to go because once it loops back to my village, it’ll be too crowded to get a seat and I might find myself sitting on an old woman’s lap!

This wooden bus is decorated with a Last Supper towel

 It usually takes about an hour and a half to get to the wharf.

Part two: From island to island

If I catch the early bus, I might be able to just make the 8:00am ferry (if I hustle, and if it’s actually running). If not, I wait two hours for the next one. The 8:00am is a smaller boat. Sometimes, there will be wooden benches on the bottom level, and they are really nice on a sunny day. But I once took that boat a few days before a cyclone, and I would have stayed dryer if I swam to Upolu. The other small boat has no seats, but there are wooden crates that hold life vests you can sit on. The big boat has plenty of room to sit, and indoor areas, so it is definitely more convenient. The big ferry also takes about an hour to reach Upolu, while the small ferries can take twice as long.

Goodbye rainy Savai'i

 

We pass smaller islands when we are halfway there!

Part three: Nearly there

Where you sit (or sleep) on the small ferry

As the boat is docking, everybody rushes and squeezes together near the doors for the mad rush to the buses. Again, you need to hustle to get a seat. There are usually fewer buses at the wharf on Upolu than there are on my island, but people on this island are much less likely to make a seat for me just because I’m white, so there is a good chance I will be standing in the aisle. The bus drivers on this route love to blast the music as loud as they can, and someone always smells like fried chicken, so I’m usually pretty happy when we finally make it into Apia after an hour. We all get off the bus and I either catch a cab or take a long walk to the Peace Corps office, where I crash in the nearest room with air conditioning!

Part four: Homeward bound

Colorful wooden buses are always coming and going

When it’s time to go home, I usually plan to take the last ferry at 4:00pm. That means saying goodbye to everyone as early as 1:15 to rush off to the bus depot. The bus can leave anytime between 1:30 and 2:30. It can be delightfully empty, but typically, it’s horribly crowded. After the hour long trip, I usually get to the wharf with about an hour to wait for the ferry. It’s best when I have other volunteers to wait with. 

With Robert on another small ferry

The last boat is always the fast, large one, so I’m guaranteed a seat and a crowd. Fifteen minutes before the boat docks, we all squeeze on to the steps leading to the door. As soon as we can, we rush to the many, many crowded buses to try and get a seat. 

Who will be the first out the door?

There usually isn’t enough time to say goodbye to other volunteers, so we wave to each other out the windows of our different buses, and head in different directions. After an hour and a half, many stops at different stores, lots of rearranging of the seating arrangement, and plenty of absolutely stunning scenery, I finally make it to my village. I get off the bus and walk pass my family’s house where the children run up and ask, “manaia le malaga?” Did you have a nice trip?

Bye! I hope whoever sits on your lap took a shower today!

Time in transit: 10 hours (if I’m lucky)

Total cost: $44

Sure, it was a nice trip.