It may have been 10am in Samoa but it was after 5pm for New Zealand University students, Henry and Caitlin. 

The students were enjoying some nice cold Vailimas by the pool at Tanoa Tusitala Hotel when Dear Tourist joined them for a chat.

The pair are friends from New Zealand. They are here to celebrate a milestone every uni student dreams about – their graduation.

According to Caitlin, their travel group was supposed to resemble a Spring break at Palm Beach rather than a quiet getaway for two.

“I’ve never been to Samoa before but what had happened was I tagged along with my friend who was studying to be a vet,” Caitlin said.

“When he graduated he and his friends decided to have a celebratory weekend somewhere so I’ve tagged along on that occasion really, but the funny thing is, there was a large group to begin with but then lots of the students pulled out…

maybe because of placements and stuff so it’s just ended up being me and Henry. But that’s alright by me.” 

Dear Tourist could have sworn we heard crickets chirping at this exact moment but Caitlin added in the short time they were here they had been relaxing and taking advantage of the downtime before going back to reality in New Zealand.

“When we got off the airplane and drove to our hotel, I was just looking at all the plants and things,” she said. 

“I took in the all the different trees and the nice color of the water and it’s quite different from New Zealand obviously.

It’s been really good here at the Tanoa, I’m enjoying it and the service has been great here with so many friendly people.”

No one ever accused a uni student of being organised and Caitlin and her friend are no exceptions.

Caitlin regretted that they did not plan very well because it was hard to fit in any sightseeing in just five days.

Instead the pair decided they would enjoy the tropical beauty of their hotel interior and swapped exploring for chilling.

“We’re probably not going to do much because we’re leaving on Tuesday. I think we weren’t very organized.”

“But if we were organized we would have booked on tours and stuff but to be honest, I just want to lie by the pool.

Luckily the weather had been really good so far; I thought it was mostly going to be raining because I heard a few thunderstorms. It’s been quite muggy and that’s alright.”

Would Caitlin return to re-do Samoa all over again?

“Yeah definitely. But I would be more organized next time. We’ve been really boring here and we haven’t partied much but we have had lots of beers every day. Henry really rates the Vailima here.”