Apia, Western Samoa

The Host of the South Pacific


Aggie Grey's Hotel Facade
Facade of the hotel founded by Aggie Gray on the coast of Apia.
offshore cruise
Cruise to the lake of the capital Apia and the Aggie Grey's hotel.
Marlon Brando stayed here
A plaque distinguishes the fale in which Marlon Brando stayed at the Aggie Gray hotel
big night of spin
Party night spins at the Aggie Grays hotel in Apia.
powerful hips
Young dancer enchants the night audience with fast and exuberant hip movements.
fire dance
Young man exhibits another dance with flames by the pool at the Aggie Grey's hotel
Fia Samoan
Dancers perform Samoan choreographies during a night of dancing at the Aggie Gray hotel
Argument "South Pacific"
Aggie Gray holds the script for South Pacific, the musical that inspired the character of Bloody Mary.
Samoan Fashion
Samoan-style dress display outside the hotel.
Aggie Gray's seal
Samoan stamp that evokes the character of Aggie Grey.
Marina Gray
Marina Grey, Aggie's daughter-in-law shows off her skills in Polynesian dances during a night of dancing
She sold burguês to GI's in World War II and opened a hotel that hosted Marlon Brando and Gary Cooper. Aggie Gray passed away in 2. Her legacy lives on in the South Pacific.

Almost every day or several times a day, Upolu is irrigated by thunderstorms.

The afternoon had started perfectly but, as on other days, we were once again caught without refuge by the dynamic weather and a warm rain that left us drenched. So it was with pleasure that we returned to the temporary home from Apia, Samoa, for long showers and change of clothes.

aggie gray, samoa, south pacific

Facade of the hotel founded by Aggie Gray on the coast of Apia.

That night, we were invited to watch the spin spin (Samoan party/banquet) at the Aggie Grey's Hotel. Perhaps because of sacred Polynesian humility, those responsible for promoting Samoa had forgotten to explain to us where they were going to stay.

Little by little, thanks largely to a hardcover book we found in our room and to the internet that we only picked up from the balcony, there we learned about the historical importance of that place and the family that founded it.

Aggie Grey's Fascinating Samoan Origin

Agnes Genevieve Swann was born in 1897 in island of upolu, Samoa. She was the second daughter of William Swann, a sailor who settled on the island as a pharmacist, and of Pele, a Samoan ceremonial maiden.

Shortly thereafter, a war broke out between the chiefs of the archipelago, Agnes was sent to the safety of Fiji. When he returned, Samoa had been divided between Germany and the USA, in accordance with the Tripartite Convention of 1899, Upolu was integrated into the Germanic Empire. The misfortunes did not stop there.

In 1903, his mother died. Aggie was raised only by her father. He tolerantly adjusted to his hedonistic existence, financial problems, and Samoan stepmother. Confirmed an already announced bankruptcy, she and the sisters helped the parent in a small shop far from town. But as they grew up, isolation plagued them. Thus, they engendered a longed-for return to the city.

aggie gray, samoa, south pacific, samoan dresses

Samoan-style dress display outside the hotel.

After a few months in the graces of an influential friend, Aggie has become a desired single on the social circuit “afakasi” (mixed Samoan and Western). She ended up marrying two promising New Zealanders.

The first relationship ended with the death of her first husband. The second became extremely degraded, with five children to raise, another bankruptcy and a new retreat far from the capital Apia.

In the distance, life in the capital continued to call for Aggie. But the only profitable businesses open to women were, then, either brothels or bars. The bars and Drinking Clubs of Apia had succumbed to the prohibition with which the later New Zealand colonist sought to remedy the excessive alcohol consumption of the Samoans.

The British Club and Aggie Gray's Career in Catering and Hospitality

Finally, Aggie Gray came up with the idea that revolutionized her life: she rescued the decaying British Club in the capital and began serving drinks legitimated by “medical authorizations” that she could get in unserious numbers.

Over the years, it has turned the new Cosmopolitan Club into the favorite haunt of bored, lonely expats. Later, also hundreds of soldiers passing through the city. He made a small fortune serving American sailors' favorite drink, a Tom Collins.

James Michener and the Disclosure of His “Tales from the South Pacific”

James Michener was one of them. By that time, this naval lieutenant was developing a fruitful career as a writer, author of 40 titles, largely family sagas set in unlikely locations around the world.

Your "Tales from the South Pacific” and the partial film adaptation “South Pacific” revealed those confines of Samoa to the West. Covertly, it was the figure of Aggie Gray that inspired Michener for the cartoon character Bloody Mary.

Aggie Grey, Samoa, South Pacific, "South Pacific"

Aggie Gray holds the script for South Pacific, the musical that inspired the character of Bloody Mary.

Aggie's convivial aptitude and her experience dealing with men acted as a surefire decoy. Disillusioned lovers and angry wives gave the business the publicity it no longer needed. It turned out to be common to all of their ventures, including the Aggie Grey's hotel that had hosted us.

It's Fia Night at Aggie Grey's Hotel

The fia-fia Samoan night begins.

Fia Fia: High Rotation Polynesian Folklore

Proud of her heritage, Marina Grey, daughter-in-law of Aggie, wife of son Alan Gray (hotel manager), takes the microphone and speaks: “I'd like to introduce you to these beautiful young Samoans all of them working here at Aggie's.

Tomorrow, one of them will be your waiter for breakfast, one of them will take care of your room and others will help you at the reception or with the purchases you make in the store. Please give them a warm applause.”

Aggie Grey, Samoa, South Pacific, spins

Party night spins at the Aggie Grays hotel in Apia.

On a stage with a vegetal aspect – with so many palm leaves and other plants that decorate it – island musicians prepare the audience for their contagious spirit of fun and celebration. When the objective is assured, they are joined by a group of energetic and hyperactive dancers in typical costumes from the archipelago.

They accompany the accelerated melodies they sing with mimic choreographies from Polynesia, beating arm against arm and arms on legs in an almost acrobatic way and at the infernal rhythm that distinguishes Samoan dances from much slower Maori, Hawaiian or Tahitian dances.

Several performances later, Marina Gray is called back to the stage. Despite its classic figure, something british, joins the last dance in an elegant and harmonious way, which surprises and delights newcomers.

aggie gray, samoa, south pacific, samoan dancers, marina gray

Marina Grey, Aggie's daughter-in-law shows off her skills in Polynesian dances during a night of dancing

The Stimulus of Hamburgers Served to American GI's in World War II

Soon after, a buffet full of traditional Samoan dishes opens, which spectators line up in long but fluid lines. And yet it was to serve fast food American mother-in-law Aggie cooked the family's success.

With spread from WWII to the Pacific, US armed forces poured into Upolu from Pago Pago, the capital of neighboring American Samoa. The Seabees (Navy Construction Force) were quick to reveal to Aggie Gray their Yankee love of hamburgers.

aggie gray, samoa, south pacific

Cruise to the lake of the capital Apia and the Aggie Grey's hotel.

“The Americans had all the money in the world, they didn't know what to do with it, and they were at war. I really cared about those guys.” You declared in 1977 to a reporter for the Free Lance Star. “I bought a cow, gathered onions, salt and pepper, just like I was told to do.

In the first sale, I had to ask the GI how to stop everything from falling apart. He jumped to the other side of the counter, smoothed the meatballs and said, "See, it's easy."

Aggie estimates that he served hamburgers to more than 12.000 Seabees and GI's. With the money, he made the Cosmopolitan Club a hotel and built speak (traditional cabins) additional for accommodation.

aggie gray, Samoa, South Pacific, Marlon Brando Fale

A plaque distinguishes the fale in which Marlon Brando stayed at the Aggie Gray hotel

And soon, the Aggie Grey's Hotel Stardom Phase

Gary Cooper, William Holden, Marlon Brando, the entire cast of “in the South Pacific” and so many other showbiz personalities elevated him to stardom. At 80, Aggie still delighted guests and guests with prodigious displays of blasphemy and his humorous and warm tirades. He died in 1988, aged 91 years.

aggie gray, samoa, south pacific, stamp of aggie gray

Samoan stamp that evokes the character of Aggie Grey.

Aggie Grey's was just part of their heritage.

From the first moment, the room that we were given seemed to be basic, with a controversial decoration, not to mention in bad taste. But we had already realized that Aggie Grey's had never had to worry too much about ephemeral Western luxuries and refinements. It was from the overcoat of his mentor's aura that he prospered.

Until recently, thousands of guests chose it – the original and the SPA version built in the meantime – as a base to discover Upolu, one of the unavoidable islands of Polynesia and the surrounding Pacific.

In December 2012, Cyclone Evans left the original hotel in disrepair, but a half year later it was reopening. For most Aggie Grey's historical fans, the worst was to come.

A few months ago, Tupaimatuna Lulai Lavea and Lupesina Frederick Gray – representatives of the group and of the holding Aggie Grey's – closed a deal with the Starwoods chain.

Some time later, the Aggie Greys's were renamed Sheraton Samoa Aggie Grey's Hotel & Bungalows

Tonga, Western Samoa, Polynesia

XXL Pacific

For centuries, the natives of the Polynesian islands subsisted on land and sea. Until the intrusion of colonial powers and the subsequent introduction of fatty pieces of meat, fast food and sugary drinks have spawned a plague of diabetes and obesity. Today, while much of Tonga's national GDP, Western Samoa and neighbors is wasted on these “western poisons”, fishermen barely manage to sell their fish.
Houses

Homes Sweet Homes

Few species are more social and gregarious than humans. Man tends to emulate other homes sweet homes in the world. Some of these houses are impressive.
Apia, Western Samoa

Fia Fia - High Rotation Polynesian Folklore

From New Zealand to Easter Island and from here to Hawaii, there are many variations of Polynesian dances. Fia Fia's Samoan nights, in particular, are enlivened by one of the more fast-paced styles.
Upolu, Samoa  

The Broken Heart of Polynesia

The imagery of the paradisiacal South Pacific is unquestionable in Samoa, but its tropical beauty does not pay the bills for either the nation or the inhabitants. Anyone who visits this archipelago finds a people divided between subjecting themselves to tradition and the financial stagnation or uprooting themselves in countries with broader horizons.
Upolu, Samoa

Stevenson's Treasure Island

At age 30, the Scottish writer began looking for a place to save him from his cursed body. In Upolu and the Samoans, he found a welcoming refuge to which he gave his heart and soul.
Couchsurfing (Part 1)

Mi Casa, Su Casa

In 2003, a new online community globalized an old landscape of hospitality, conviviality and interests. Today, Couchsurfing welcomes millions of travelers, but it shouldn't be taken lightly.
Travel does not cost

On the next trip, don't let your money fly

Not only the time of year and in advance with which we book flights, stays, etc. influence the cost of a trip. The payment methods we use at destinations can make a big difference.
Samoa  

In Search of the Lost Time

For 121 years, it was the last nation on Earth to change the day. But Samoa realized that his finances were behind him and, in late 2012, he decided to move back west on the LID - International Date Line.
Tongatapu, Tonga

The Last Polynesian Monarchy

From New Zealand to Easter Island and Hawaii, no other monarchy has resisted the arrival of European discoverers and modernity. For Tonga, for several decades, the challenge was to resist the monarchy.
Effortless Traveling

Book Comfortable Stays for Your Finances Too

As with flights, booking accommodation has its secrets. Find out what the strategies are to ensure a welcoming and financially rewarding stay.
Masai Mara Reservation, Masai Land Travel, Kenya, Masai Convivial
Safari
Masai Mara, Kenya

A Journey Through the Masai Lands

The Mara savannah became famous for the confrontation between millions of herbivores and their predators. But, in a reckless communion with wildlife, it is the Masai humans who stand out there.
Thorong La, Annapurna Circuit, Nepal, photo for posterity
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna Circuit: 13th - High camp a Thorong La to Muktinath, Nepal

At the height of the Annapurnas Circuit

At 5416m of altitude, the Thorong La Gorge is the great challenge and the main cause of anxiety on the itinerary. After having killed 2014 climbers in October 29, crossing it safely generates a relief worthy of double celebration.
hacienda mucuyche, Yucatan, Mexico, canal
Architecture & Design
Yucatan, Mexico

Among Haciendas and Cenotes, through the History of Yucatan

Around the capital Merida, for every old hacienda henequenera there's at least one cenote. As happened with the semi-recovered Hacienda Mucuyché, together, they form some of the most sublime places in southeastern Mexico.

Salto Angel, Rio that falls from the sky, Angel Falls, PN Canaima, Venezuela
Adventure
PN Canaima, Venezuela

Kerepakupai, Salto Angel: The River that Falls from Heaven

In 1937, Jimmy Angel landed a light aircraft on a plateau lost in the Venezuelan jungle. The American adventurer did not find gold but he conquered the baptism of the longest waterfall on the face of the Earth
Ice cream, Moriones Festival, Marinduque, Philippines
Ceremonies and Festivities
Marinduque, Philippines

When the Romans Invade the Philippines

Even the Eastern Empire didn't get that far. In Holy Week, thousands of centurions seize Marinduque. There, the last days of Longinus, a legionary converted to Christianity, are re-enacted.
Resident of Dali, Yunnan, China
Cities
Dali, China

The Surrealist China of Dali

Embedded in a magical lakeside setting, the ancient capital of the Bai people has remained, until some time ago, a refuge for the backpacker community of travelers. The social and economic changes of China they fomented the invasion of Chinese to discover the southwest corner of the nation.
Meal
Margilan, Uzbekistan

An Uzbekistan's Breadwinner

In one of the many bakeries in Margilan, worn out by the intense heat of the tandyr oven, the baker Maruf'Jon works half-baked like the distinctive traditional breads sold throughout Uzbekistan
Vairocana Buddha, Todai ji Temple, Nara, Japan
Culture
Nara, Japan

The Colossal Cradle of the Japanese Buddhism

Nara has long since ceased to be the capital and its Todai-ji temple has been demoted. But the Great Hall remains the largest ancient wooden building in the world. And it houses the greatest bronze Vairocana Buddha.
Reindeer Racing, Kings Cup, Inari, Finland
Sport
Inari, Finland

The Wackiest Race on the Top of the World

Finland's Lapps have been competing in the tow of their reindeer for centuries. In the final of the Kings Cup - Porokuninkuusajot - , they face each other at great speed, well above the Arctic Circle and well below zero.
cheap flights, buy cheap flights, cheap airline tickets,
Traveling
Travel does not cost

Buy Flights Before Prices Take Off

Getting cheap flights has become almost a science. Stay on top of the basics why the airline fares market governs and avoid the financial discomfort of buying at a bad time.
Native Americans Parade, Pow Pow, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Ethnic
Albuquerque, USA

When the Drums Sound, the Indians Resist

With more than 500 tribes present, the pow wow "Gathering of the Nations" celebrates the sacred remnants of Native American cultures. But it also reveals the damage inflicted by colonizing civilization.
ice tunnel, black gold route, Valdez, Alaska, USA
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

Sensations vs Impressions

Candia, Tooth of Buddha, Ceylon, lake
History
Kandy, Sri Lanka

The Dental Root of Sinhalese Buddhism

Located in the mountainous heart of Sri Lanka, at the end of the XNUMXth century, Kandy became the capital of the last kingdom of old Ceylon and resisted successive colonial conquest attempts. The city also preserved and exhibited a sacred tooth of the Buddha and, thus, became Ceylon's Buddhist center.
The inevitable fishing
Islands

Florianopolis, Brazil

The South Atlantic Azorean Legacy

During the XNUMXth century, thousands of Portuguese islanders pursued better lives in the southern confines of Brazil. In the villages they founded, traces of affinity with the origins abound.

St. Trinity Church, Kazbegi, Georgia, Caucasus
Winter White
Kazbegi, Georgia

God in the Caucasus Heights

In the 4000th century, Orthodox religious took their inspiration from a hermitage that a monk had erected at an altitude of 5047 m and perched a church between the summit of Mount Kazbek (XNUMXm) and the village at the foot. More and more visitors flock to these mystical stops on the edge of Russia. Like them, to get there, we submit to the whims of the reckless Georgia Military Road.
Cove, Big Sur, California, United States
Literature
Big Sur, USA

The Coast of All Refuges

Over 150km, the Californian coast is subjected to a vastness of mountains, ocean and fog. In this epic setting, hundreds of tormented souls follow in the footsteps of Jack Kerouac and Henri Miller.
colorful boat, Gili Islands, Indonesia
Nature
Gili Islands, Indonesia

Gili: the Indonesia's Islands the World Calls “Islands”

They are so humble that they are known by the term bahasa which means only islands. Despite being discreet, the Gili have become the favorite haunt of travelers who pass through Lombok or Bali.
Sheki, Autumn in the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Autumn Homes
Autumn
Sheki, Azerbaijan

autumn in the caucasus

Lost among the snowy mountains that separate Europe from Asia, Sheki is one of Azerbaijan's most iconic towns. Its largely silky history includes periods of great harshness. When we visited it, autumn pastels added color to a peculiar post-Soviet and Muslim life.
Bather, The Baths, Devil's Bay (The Baths) National Park, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
Natural Parks
Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands

Virgin Gorda's Divine “Caribbaths”

Discovering the Virgin Islands, we disembark on a tropical and seductive seaside dotted with huge granite boulders. The Baths seem straight out of the Seychelles but they are one of the most exuberant marine scenery in the Caribbean.
Puerto Rico, San Juan, walled city, panoramic
UNESCO World Heritage
San Juan, Puerto Rico

The Highly Walled Puerto Rico of San Juan Bautista

San Juan is the second oldest colonial city in the Americas, after the Dominican neighbor of Santo Domingo. A pioneering emporium and stop over on the route that took gold and silver from the New World to Spain, it was attacked again and again. Its incredible fortifications still protect one of the most lively and prodigious capitals in the Caribbean.
Visitors to Ernest Hemingway's Home, Key West, Florida, United States
Characters
Key West, United States

Hemingway's Caribbean Playground

Effusive as ever, Ernest Hemingway called Key West "the best place I've ever been...". In the tropical depths of the contiguous US, he found evasion and crazy, drunken fun. And the inspiration to write with intensity to match.
Swimming, Western Australia, Aussie Style, Sun rising in the eyes
Beaches
Busselton, Australia

2000 meters in Aussie Style

In 1853, Busselton was equipped with one of the longest pontoons in the world. World. When the structure collapsed, the residents decided to turn the problem around. Since 1996 they have been doing it every year. Swimming.
Kongobuji Temple
Religion
Mount Koya, Japan

Halfway to Nirvana

According to some doctrines of Buddhism, it takes several lifetimes to attain enlightenment. The shingon branch claims that you can do it in one. From Mount Koya, it can be even easier.
Train Fianarantsoa to Manakara, Malagasy TGV, locomotive
On Rails
Fianarantsoa-Manakara, Madagascar

On board the Malagasy TGV

We depart Fianarantsoa at 7a.m. It wasn't until 3am the following morning that we completed the 170km to Manakara. The natives call this almost secular train Train Great Vibrations. During the long journey, we felt, very strongly, those of the heart of Madagascar.
Society
Markets

A Market Economy

The law of supply and demand dictates their proliferation. Generic or specific, covered or open air, these spaces dedicated to buying, selling and exchanging are expressions of life and financial health.
Saksun, Faroe Islands, Streymoy, warning
Daily life
Saksun, streymoyFaroe Islands

The Faroese Village That Doesn't Want to be Disneyland

Saksun is one of several stunning small villages in the Faroe Islands that more and more outsiders visit. It is distinguished by the aversion to tourists of its main rural owner, author of repeated antipathies and attacks against the invaders of his land.
Boat and helmsman, Cayo Los Pájaros, Los Haitises, Dominican Republic
Wildlife
Samaná PeninsulaLos Haitises National Park Dominican Republic

From the Samaná Peninsula to the Dominican Haitises

In the northeast corner of the Dominican Republic, where Caribbean nature still triumphs, we face an Atlantic much more vigorous than expected in these parts. There we ride on a communal basis to the famous Limón waterfall, cross the bay of Samaná and penetrate the remote and exuberant “land of the mountains” that encloses it.
Bungee jumping, Queenstown, New Zealand
Scenic Flights
Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown, the Queen of Extreme Sports

In the century. XVIII, the Kiwi government proclaimed a mining village on the South Island "fit for a queen".Today's extreme scenery and activities reinforce the majestic status of ever-challenging Queenstown.