Samoa is an island kingdom in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the region of the world known as Polynesia. It is a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand. The islands have narrow coastal plains with volcanic, rocky, rugged mountains in the interior. Samoa is composed largely of two islands, Upolu and Savaii. These islands are the result of countless volcanic eruptions, leaving easily visible volcanic cones all over both islands. None of the volcanos are currently active, but small earthquakes often rock the island, reminding people of their presence. The last eruption was in 1911, on Savaii. The eerie, lifeless lava fields that remain from this event can be visited easily, since the only sealed road on Savaii goes right through the middle. Both islands are almost entirely covered by lush vegetation, although almost none of it is the original rainforest that covered the island before humans arrived. Most of the land area is given over to plantations or semi-cultivated forest, providing food and cash crops for the locals. Since Samoa has been inhabited for over one and a half thousand years, the cultivated lands around villages can often seem like deepest, darkest jungle to a foreigner(palangi). Relaxation, if that is what the visitor is seeking should not be difficult to find as the Samoan way...more
New Zealand occupied the German protectorate of Western Samoa at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It continued to administer the islands as a mandate and then as a trust territory until 1962, when the islands became the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The country dropped the "Western" from its name in 1997.
