The September 2009 Samoa Tsunami took 143 lives but changed many more – including mine – as I found myself caught up in post-Tsunamu restoration. This after providentially booking our holiday a week after the big waves.
In early 2010 I sold-up and relocated to Samoa establishing the SWAP Foundation and after a series of false starts, have learned how (and more importantly how NOT) to do business in ‘Paradise’. In a nutshell: Don’t trust ANYONE here and . . . it all comes from the man at he top.
My blog, the The Samoa Files has recorded the experiences of this Palagi [Whiteman] engaging with post-tsunami Samoa. It’s currently 80,000 words of raw experience – open and honest, always thought-provoking and sometimes deep. It’s not for the norrow-minded or shallow or for the faint-hearted as the words can engender hatred in those who would prefer I speak about some things only in private.
I‘m currently working with the Prime Minister to develop a decent web and social media presence for himself personally and then we’ll work from there out to the rest of the country, helping them get active on the Internet – not so much just getting connected, but more helping them to actually use the Internet for marketing Samoa and communicating with the rest of the world where they are at – online of course!
I invite all my friends, clients and acquaintances to join me and really experience post-Tsunami Samoa. Should you wish to visit Samoa, drop me a note or call. I would be pleased to escort you through the Tsunami affected regions, introduce you to rural villagers, show you the Samoan islands and culture and generally give you an experience of a lifetime! If you want to get your hands dirty and have some Internet skills – journalism, videography, post-production, SEO, marketing and want to have some fun in the sun, check out S.W.A.P. Samoa.
We’re located at SWAP HQ (Google Map):
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