Tufulele village Pool project...

 

Back in sunny Samoa for our 2nd Ah Siu Reunion in Samoa for 2025. It was neat to drive into the town of Apia and check out the sites along the way.

There's been a lot of development over the past couple of years, and one that has piqued my interest has been the development of the Tufulele Village Pool.

I watched the development of the Tufulele Village Pool project each time we visited Samoa last year, and it was one such site that I was really interested in watching as it was a large freshwater rock pool they were developing.

Since my return, the CHOGM Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 21 - 26 October (a couple of months ago) has already been hosted by Samoa. As we headed home after hosting international guests, we saw how each village decorated its roadside with bright lights, paintings, flags, and beautiful flora.

However, the Tufulele Pool project took it up another notch with railings and small faleo'o dotted around the pathway where people can have lunch near the rock pool with a nice scenic ocean view. Loving it back here in home-sweet-home.

Ah Siu Reunion Samoa 2024

 

It's all on! Getting ready for our Ah Siu Reunion, representing the Aialaisa clan (my paternal great grandfather) with bright oranges, although burnt orange was chosen by my cousin as she was quick off the mark. My choice would have been blues.

So next week, from 19 - 22 December, we're all converging in Upolu island in Samoa for a 4-day weekend celebration and getting to know each other with people flying in from the USA, American Samoa, Australia, New Zealand (I'm not sure of Hawaii?).

There are five fale tama (houses of children) or clans that my great, great grandparents, Shing Ah Siu (China) & Asia Fasavalu (Matautu, Falelatai), had with their eldest son Aialaisa being the branch that I come from.

My grandmother was his eldest and was named after her paternal grandmother and my progenitors. My father was my grandmother's eldest. So a small group from Auckland, New Zealand, will represent our family there. I'm so looking forward to it.

It will be interesting as this is our second Ah Siu Family reunion, with the first celebrated in Auckland in 2018, close to a year after my grandma Asia died. Her wish was for our families to fealofi or care/love one another.

So our family will be decked out in oranges (all shades as you can see in the pic) with complementing orange hat, orange ribbons, string and the list goes on. We're anticipating to have a lot of family members there with clan colours of: blue, green, red and purple.

Now starting to pack as there's so much to consider taking with the reunion starting next week on the Thursday on the 19th December which is a week from now. I've decided to even take a mini Christmas tree as we will be spending Christmas and New Year's day there. Roll on the weekend...

Evolution of Lolly leis...

 

I decided to write a blog on Lolly Leis and how I remember the evolution of where they started and how they came to be when I was growing up.

I remember as a youngster that the only time we would make up lolly leis was when we were going overseas, or we knew someone was going, and we would make up lolly leis for them.

This was especially in the 1970s (yeap! maybe even before then) when we would go to Samoa, or we knew someone who was going, and we would take them to wear on the plane.

Those lollies would then be gifted upon arrival to family or friends they would visit, as there were only a few lolly varieties sold there.

The story has now completely changed. Nowadays, there are a variety of leis, and some contain chocolates, bars of chocs and even money.

I also don't see them at airports anymore, but they are prolific, particularly at graduations where Pasifika students are, and they come in all different shapes and sizes. You can also coordinate the colours, like the ones in the pic with gold and blues above or with various coloured wrapping, like the ones below with a chocolate theme.

Even Tongan varieties have their own woven pattern that is not enclosed, draping them upon the recipient with ribbons. I even saw feathers (unsure if they were Maori), but they piqued my interest as it's the first time I've seen feathers used. I also saw one made into a type of hat. Now that was a first.

Suffice it to say that this won't be the first graduation to see innovation with feathers incorporated and even a hat whereby lolly/choc leis are a symbol of celebration, albeit at graduations where families celebrate their family member's success. Neither will it be the last...

Prize Giving and Success...

The busyness continues with the countdown towards Christmas and our trip away to sunny Samoa. However, today, we celebrated my youngest's success in the first year of high school at the prize giving.

It was where I learned to strive towards success, especially around prize giving, as I knew that my hard work would be rewarded.

I also have my parents to thank for always encouraging me when I was young, and now I pass on the same encouragement to my children.

It's an interesting year for my youngest as in a break from tradition, she is the only one of my close family who has gone to an inner city girls' grammar school.

My siblings and I went to the local high school co-ed with many Pasifika and Māori students and some European and Asian students.

At this particular prize giving, it was great to see many parents, grandparents, siblings and friends coming to the prizegiving and sharing this special time together. We got to give our lolly leis, flowers and best wishes to our youngest and also with other girls, some who were even related to us.

Now it's time for the holidays to start and it's something to look forward to as we count down with only five more sleeps before we board the plane to Samoa and soak in the sun in Samoa. Plus we have our Ah Siu Family Reunion. Not long now...

 

Brunch and family trips away...

 

I had brunch at 'The Gaff, ' a local cafe/restaurant with my eldest, and we both ordered an eggs Benedict with salmon. It came on two hash browns with a balsamic-type vinegar dressing.

I was catching up with my eldest as she had just returned from a trip with a friend to Rotorua (a 3 - 4 hour drive from Auckland) and told me about all the different rides they went on and the fun things they enjoyed.

She also recommended it for a family trip in the not-too-distant future, which I think is a great idea. I'm considering booking a family trip there sometime next year as something to look forward to.

I've also got a family trip to Samoa next week for our Ah Siu Family Reunion, so I am busy getting things ready with so much happening at this point in time. But it was good to catch up with my eldest over brunch as I try to keep up with what my children are doing, and I'm happy to support them whenever needed. Roll on the holidays...

Back to the gym this summer...

 

Can't believe how fast these past few months have been with Christmas just around the corner and planning to attend our Ah Siu family reunion in Samoa.

It's summer here and have finally made the decision to start back at our local gym complete with a swimming pool complex and outdoor pools as well.

I'd love to take up badminton again as that was one of my favourite sports growing up but unfortunately the fitness complex doesn't have provisions i.e. net to be able to play Badminton there.

But no worries there, as the treadmill (pictured left) and the weight machines are more than enough to keep me busy and enjoying the workouts again.

The gym was a place that I frequented many a time back over 5 years in my Uni days and before the kids so it great to be back with muscle memory and all that entails.

It's definitely something I'd encourage those over their 50s to consider, if not doing regular exercise as it keeps us health and fit (if we try and eat a more healthy and balanced diet) which isn't always easy as when one gets older, we kinda hang up our boots a bit (a lot).

So looking forward to what this new summer brings and especially in these last couple of weeks before Christmas. As I've finished all my marking with just a few small things to complete and then I'm home and away to Samoa. We're almost there....

Moana 2 at the movies...

 

Yesterday, I went with my youngest to watch the highly anticipated movie "Moana 2" at our local cinema. With our fave movies now, we pick up the tickets with the lounge chairs that you can chill into with your feet up and the chair back and relaxed.

Add to that some ice cream, popcorn and a drink (in a promotional Moana cup of course) and that adds to the atmosphere of enjoying the movie. In this movie Moana has grown into a young woman and navigator with a new slew of additional characters that brings more laughs to the movie.

I still prefer the first Moana movie as my fave with its iconic music and storyline but my youngest prefers this one better. I must say that it did feature some important Samoan cultural elements for me like the ava ceremony with the ava bowl that was featured twice with for her title bestowal and for welcoming guests.

The other Samoan element was the tattoos featured on both hands of Moana's mother which are similar to mine but only on my right hand and Moana features one extended upon her hand. It was also interesting to see the Samoan male tattoos called a pe'a or malofie on Moana's father that was featured in the origin Moana and also on the old man.

This is the topic of the next book that I hope to publish and launch sometime soon. It's about the origins of tatau or tattoo in Samoa. It is so neat to see women's malu lima or hand tattoo featuring on the movie. Interestingly enough they didn't feature the Samoan thigh tattoo that is very popular called the malu.

It gave me great pride to think that I came from a line of navigators who traversed the seas and conquered the Pacific Ocean way before any European ventured out into the oceans. It also confirms our identities as explorers and wayfinders, with our ancestral DNA continuing to this day...

"Proud to be Samoan" FREE Artwork/s by Doug Healy...

 

Check out "Doug Healy"s artwork that I came across on Facebook. When I saw this particularly print I saved it as the artist has written on his Facebook post, and I quote..."All my Art is FREE to use and enjoy."

Thanks Doug Healy as he's obviously an amazingly talented artist but to share his artwork freely for other to enjoy shows his generosity to the max!

I especially like this series of his artwork on "Identities". If you go to his Facebook site it showcases his talent by creating artworks that feature iconic images associated with the theme of the pic.

Take for example this one with the red, white and blue colours of the flag, frangipani flowers, coconut palm tree fronds, some traditional Samoan tattoo designs with the words "Proud to be Samoan." So why not check it out and see if he has an iconic image that summarizes your cultural identity...

P.D. at Mt Maunganui then homeward bound...

Had a great time at Mt. Maunganui just out of Tauranga. Really enjoyed meeting with our national team of kaiako (tutors/lecturers) for our professional development with a team of 8 of us.

It's a 3 hour drive out of Auckland and the weather was beautiful driving in and then 3 days later, driving out to Auckland.

We have four campuses offering the course of learning called: Kaitiakitanga (guardianship, protection, preservation etc.) Post Graduate Diploma of Bicultural Professional Supervision.

The campuses are at:

1. Tamaki Makaurau (Māngere, Auckland campus)
2. Mangakotukutuku (Hamilton campus)
3. Tauranga campus
4. Papaioea (Palmerston North campus)

I even got time to explore a lil' island with a walkway as pictured above and between meetings we were able to go for long walks, swimming at the hotel pool (I gave the sea a miss) or just chillaxing on our hotel balconies. 

Now ready for finishing my marking, closing the year and looking forward to visiting Samoa in a couple more weeks. Roll on Christmas...

 

Sun, Surf and sand at Mt. Maunganui...

 

I'm currently in Mt Maunganui on a 3-day professional development teaching focus with discussions on how everything went.

Mt. Maunganui is an interesting place to be as I remember coming down with my family a few years ago. 

It's become a real touristy town with lots of hotels/motels and private homes on 'Marine Parade' and many luxury Cruise ships dock at the harbour nearby. 

Across the road the beach with golden sands beckons us all to put down our tools and enjoy the sand, surf and sun but we're here for some professional development so all the fun starts after finishing the work. Gotta go and catch some sun, oops! I mean surf! oops! I mean work meetings...

Birthday trip to Auckland Zoo...

 

Happy Birthday to me! Yes, it's that time of year again and I got to spend it with my close family at an AirB&B which was really lovely.

I also thought to take a trip to the Zoo much to the chagrin of my entourage and we sent out to view all of the enclosures at the Auckland Zoom.

It had been a few years since I'd taken a tour around the enclosures it is very different with lots more viewing platforms and places to view the animals or reptiles etc.

This pic is taken with my middle child next to a large elephant corrugated iron sculpture. I remember it years ago and it's still going strong with many a family and friends photo taken under it.

There were 5 different areas starting that were amazing to view and they had lots of information for the interested traveller and plenty of seats for the weary walker:

1. Africa Safari track
2. Aotearoa New Zealand
3. South East Asia Jungle Track
4. South America Rainforest Track
5. Australia Bush Track

It was definitely worth the trip and I'd highly recommend it as an exercise activity as I easily broke my 10K steps a day in walking around and seeing all the sites. One of my favourite was checking out the NZ track which took one up stairs and you ending up on a viewing platform on top of the trees and native bush canopy....

"Wicked" movie...

 Just returned from watching the highly anticipated movie "Wicked" as a Girls' night out, and it was definitely worth the wait. The movie was a musical and the music was amazing with both lead actresses' amazing voices! i.e Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.

I also enjoyed the set design with an interesting storyline that is the 'back story' of the Wicked Witch of the West from the "Wizard of Oz" book that I read as a child. The origin story was written by L. Frank Braum who's initials were used to name the main character of LFB or Alphaba.

It was also a hit Broadway Production that I remember seeing advertised in Melbourne when we were there last in Australia. It's still also being showcased in Musical Theatres around the world and something I'd definitely watch.

It's only Part 1, so we anticipate that there's probably an upcoming Part 2. (Spoiler alert!). I guessed that the Wizard of Oz is actually the biological father of Alphaba but my entourage don't agree so I guess we'll wait until the next movie instalment. However, as a seasoned writer, there were enough clues to given but I'm happy to stand corrected if this is not the case.

Over all a neat evening out as we watched the last show of the evening and it was a fairly long movie at just under 3 hours but there was plenty of drama to keep us watching. Some of the songs were outstanding with one called "Gravity". Comes highly recommended if you like musicals and theatre and something just a little different...

It has definitely been a very busy couple of months and especially hurling towards Christmas! with so much happening since my last post.

Just yesterday, I was able to double-team with my eldest at a Career's Expo at a local school of around 800 students called Papatoetoe Intermediate school. 

I was invited as an Author and Publisher and I was able to share some tips, considerations, ideas and answer questions from the students as well.

My eldest was able to give her perspective as an avid reader, and law student on how enjoying reading and writing had helped her to get into law school with other tips about publishing on Whattpad and AO3 (Archive on your own).

There, we exhibited with 9 other career "experts" that included a lawyer, entrepenuer, a CEO, police, virologist, environmental scientist, general manager of a hotel and an artitect.

It was a really interesting experience as we got to have 8 groups of students over a period of 4 hours. The neat thing about my eldest was that they got to introduce themselves and we played a game with them of making up their own story with each student contributing three words each. It was hilarious at times.

I was able to thank Vilimi, the careers coordinator, for inviting us there as they served us with a lovely lunch and even gave us a box of biscuits as a Christmas gift. I was also able to respond in kind by leaving two of my books for the school and will keep in contact too.

One of the highlights of my day, apart from having my eldest accompany me, was that there were some students who recognized my books from the earlier schools they'd attended. One in particular remembered some of the books that she had seen at her earlier school library and at an ECE Early Childhood Education and that family members had bought some. I in turn had to give her one that she didn't already have in her collection and that was a real blessing. 

It was also interesting that she explained that "Sina and the Tuna", my first book that I published in 2015 almost 10 years ago (next year) was her favourite of them all. The neat thing was that I had already considered to re-publish books in a different format so looking to re-launching the books with a different look but still retaining the same text. Roll on 2025...