CAPITAL APIA - POPULATION 176,910 - AREA 2944 SQ KM - OFFICIAL LANGUAGE ENGLISH
Verdant rainforests, thundering waves and blindingly white beaches – is it any wonder Robert Louis Stevenson said goodbye to dreary Scotland to move to Samoa? The advent of the 2007 South Pacific Games allowed Samoa to clean up its act (including a wild-dog cull), though the loss of King Malietoa Tanumafili II in the same year brought great sadness. The new king, Tuiatua Tupua Tamasese Efi, was elected for a five-year term and has begun ushering in a new era. As much as for the stunning beaches and dive sites, visitors come to be a part of Fa'a Samoa ('the Samoan way'), which observes a serene Sunday and celebrates cheerful community.
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