During part of the program I'm taking part in, the School for International Training (SIT) group and I traveled up the rural mountainside of Samoa for our four-day and three-night homestay in the Amaile Village. I was a little bit nervous about this experience because I wasn't sure what my host family would be like or what to expect of a village lifestyle. However, by the end of my time at Amaile, I realized just how silly those anxious feelings were! My family was more than welcoming and loving towards me. Plus, the Amaile village lifestyle, although very different from what is considered ordinary American daily life, was not as different as I thought it would be.
Within my host family, I stayed with my host mother, Apollo, along with her other family members Ana, Paselio, Sose, Apolonia, Po’o, Manuel and Valu. One thing I am still not used to is the size of the families that many Samoans have. As the youngest child in my biological family, it took me a little bit of time to get used to having younger siblings! However, I thought it was very nice to be an older sibling to three kids for four days!
The Amaile Village is a community that is strongly united by the church, which teaches people values like love, respect and care for all people.
