Like most Europeans, Samoa is just a mythical place in their minds too far away to reach, but nonetheless a tantalizing destination to pursue for those who can take the distance.

Emma from the Netherlands is glad to finally see Samoa, after wondering about it for many years, and she feels extremely lucky to have the chance to explore the Pacific before she heads back home to reality.

“I worked in Australia for a while and I’m making my way back to the Netherlands to work again, but very slowly so I’m going through the Pacific. The Pacific is the furthest away from the Netherlands and we always hear about the Pacific, especially with new years, and it sounds so exotic so I just wanted to see the beautiful culture.”

“I have been to New Zealand and Fiji and now Samoa. It’s beautiful, the thing I like the most is the people, they are very nice, very helpful and have lovely smiles.”

To Emma, the most memorable experiences she’s had so far in Samoa has been of the colorful kind of buses and she can’t wait to tell her friends and family back home in the Netherlands all about it.

“I think they would be really impressed by the buses, the colourful buses with all the reggae music and I think also the way you experience your religion and how you incorporate it in your lives. All the churches here are really impressive.”

The Dutch doctor made an interesting observation about Samoa.

“In the Netherlands, we have Christianity, but a lot of people aren’t religious anymore, so they don’t go to churches, so it’s a real problem that the churches are empty on Sunday, and I think that one of the main differences is the singing.”

“People here sing from their heart and it’s very different than the Netherlands. I did go to church a lot when I was younger, but not anymore, as a doctor I have to work on Sundays.”

In the past couple of days, Emma has thoroughly enjoyed her time and pointed out how impressed she was with the Robert Louis Stevenson museum - a hotspot that just recently won that S.T.A. Tourism Award for Best Attraction Site.

“Yesterday, I walked around the city and looked at some sights. I went to see the beautiful Mulivai Cathedral and to the markets and to the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum which was incredible,” she said. “I had a really good tour, it’s really preserved very well and the guide knew a lot about the history of the museum.

It has beautiful surroundings; it’s just nice to know something about the history of somewhere. I went to the sliding rocks just to cool down a little bit. I didn’t go down them though, I was too scared,” she laughed. 

And finally, Emma said if her memories of her Samoan paradise getaway faded of over time – she at least would never forget the sounds of Samoa.

“The music is so good. I really like the singing, especially the reggae on the buses and the Sunday singing and the music on the radio. Everyone here always enjoys their music. It’s a good way to live.”