Traditional Tatau at Tisa's

Today was a great day.
Not only are we in the middle of a 3-day weekend, but I got to spend today with some cool people out on the east side at Tisa's barefoot bar.

I may have mentioned Tisa's before...A few months ago Amber and I went there but were not able to swim because of the small reef sharks that we saw close to the shore. (we also saw whales in the distance!)
This time however, we were able to swim...which I did, and it was wonderful.

But the reason we drove out was for my friends, Dave and Mr. T to get their tattoos. These were not regular tattoos that you can get in any tattoo parlor in the states, but a traditional Samoan tattoo (or tatau). These are done not with a tattoo gun but with the traditional tools and tapping method. I've heard that it is also much more painful than a regular tattoo.

tools used for tatau

Mr.T getting his done

Uma! Finished!

Dave's turn

Turtle and shark!

I was really excited to see this process, especially since I had just read about it. One of our VocTech students wrote her History Day research paper on the history and modernization of Tatau, and I was the one to read over and revise the essay. So I knew the story and legend behind the old art form. I am so glad they let me tag along and take pictures and videos of the whole thing. Both of their tattoos turned out amazing, so detailed.


Other highlights of today:: We found a stick bug! This may not seem like a big deal to most people, but I don't think I've ever actually SEEN one. So I picked it up and played with it. They're bigger than I thought they'd be! And they kind of tickle when they climb up your arm...

Also: meeting some guys from my home state, Washington! They are down here doing construction work for a month.

FOOD:: Not only did we get some amazing pina coladas (made with fresh coconut!) but we also had breadfruit fries...which is a breadfruit (taken from a tree across the road), sliced thin and cooked like fries, with lots of salt! So good!!

All in all it was a fantastic Sunday...and the best part? No School tomorrow! Yay for President's day!!