We booked a bus tour on line with "Aiga Bus Scienic Tour" and were rather surprised when we saw the bus.

The guides were very friendly and helpful but the weather let us down.

The sky opened, half way through the tour and we saw very little for the next half an hour.

Arriving at Pago Pago, American Samoa

Looking down the end of the airport runway.

Entering the harbour.

Pilot boat and tug boat.

Part of Pago Pago

We were on the commercial wharf at Pago Pago.

This was Terry, one of the tour guides on our bus tour. She was working part time while studying.

The road leading up to the old cable car base station, which was the first site that we visited.

Wow!

We drove up to a viewpoint above the harbour.

This had been the base station of a cable car to give access to the TV transmitters on Mount Alava on the other side of the harbour.

Our new bus. The bus part was newly made locally in timber, but the chassis was far from new.

The old cabin.

Information board.

Looking across to Mt. Alava

and the remains of the cable car and TV transmitters.

The cable car was damaged in a hurracane and never rebuilt.

Hibiscus.

Covered lookout.

Looking across the harbour to Rainmaker Mountain.

Elisabeth with Art and Ursula.

The WW II Heritage Trail

The start of the trail.

Our bus again.

Left front wheel - No comment!

Special architecture, built to resemble a turtle.

The turtle again.

This fellow seems to have been parked here for a while.

The inside of our super bus.

The coachwork was built like a boat.

This ketch had been moored here for a while too.

The local fish cannery.

Looking back across the harbour to the Regatta.

A nice little beach.

One of many churches.

Real estate would be hard to move here. The grandparents are buried in the garden and not cremated!

More family graves.

Looking up to Rainmaker Mountain. Our drive will pass to the left below the cliff face.

The view of Pago Pago Harbour from Alfono Pass, 250 meters above sea level.

The Americans took over the island, mainly for the harbour, but little has been invested here in the last decades!

Rainmaker Mountain from the pass.

Terry doing a bit of advertising.

Just to be sure!

From the pass looking north to the ocean on the other side.

Wild Ginger

Our group returning to the bus.

Rainmaker Mountain living up to it's name.

We travelled down to the north coast and were to view this island, but due to heavy rain, we saw nothing.

We then arrived at Vatia on Vatia Bay.

When we returned to Pago Pago it seemed that they had also had quite a bit of rain.

Two special islands at Fatumafuti

Again no comment!

Terry and Elisabeth

We were able to sample some local fruit, including breadfruit.

Another polynesian canoe.

Another interesting shingled roof.

Our guides.

Good bye and good luck.

We then visited the Jean P. Hayden Museum, which was small but had a few interesting exhibits.

The shark catchers.

A bamboo instrument. We had similar in PNG, but with many more tubes.

These were caved from whales teeth.

Another interesting carving.

This governent building had been damaged in a hurricane and not yet repaired.

Another church

This type of gong was also familiar from PNG.

A trade store.

Inside another church.

It is American Samoa after all!

Sadie Thompson Inn, historically significant for its association with Somerset Maugham.

Elisabeth with the head waiter from the Toscana Restaurant on the Regatta.

He looked very different in civi's.