We went into town for lunch. One of the staff members was nice enough to give us a lift for the first day. I can’t quite remember where we ate lunch but I do recall it being a cafe of sorts. Not even sure we had anything that could be described as “traditional” food. I think it was sandwiches or similar, maybe something cooked.
It was then that we tried paying with the cash that we got from the bank. Turns out the paper money we were given was being phased out and was no longer considered proper tender. Fortunately the national bank was literally across the street from the cafe, and we did manage to exchange most of it for new polymer notes. But foolish me kept some of my cash in the hotel room safe as a “backup”, meaning that I had only about half the cash on hand to exchange. I told myself that I’d come back to exchange the rest another day (I never did so).
We may have had a bit of a walk around but I don’t recall us seeing to much of Apia that day. What I do remember was just how colourful the busses were. They’re quite prominent around town, and despite being the same make and model, no two looked alike. Each was decorated with amazing murals or abstract designs (this was not ordinary graffiti either; there was obviously care put into it).
Once the working day was over, we returned to the hotel and pretty much rested. Dinner was at the hotel restaurant, which featured al-fresco style dining by the pool. The restaurant was about half full with other hotel guests, most of them I suspect there on holidays, and the atmosphere was quite lovely. A good time to enjoy the surroundings, and also battle with the Bluetooth to share the days photos with each other (my boss bought along his SLR camera, which was miles better than the crappy phone camera I had).
