Silent Sunday because the people are all in church – the Samoans are great church goers and they love hymn singing.

This is a typical Samoan dwelling, open to the elements and to the curious gaze of passers-by. They like people looking in and stopping to gaze at their possessions. In some houses you will see maybe 6 or 7 mattresses piled one atop the other, a sign of wealth, but wealth does not much matter here – or it didn’t when I visited many years ago – as the villages live as real communities and help each other, sharing food and resources as needed. If a storm is approaching they cover the openings with large banana leaves and suchlike .