212: The Time Episode
2022 brings you ! You can sponsor an episode by giving us a word to inspire our new episode!
For the next month or so, Lulu & Alison have chosen the theme word for the week and we’ll all be surprised together to see which exciting cities they choose!
Then YOU will get the chance to sponsor the theme word of the week! So, stay tuned for more info on that!
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Lulu is obsessed with Give Kids the World, the 89-acre, nonprofit "storybook" resort in Central Florida. There, children with critical illnesses and their families are treated to weeklong, cost-free vacations. She is inspired by the job they do, year-round.
Alison is obsessed with playing records on her record player at night to wind down with her husband. Nothing beats dropping that needle and listening to that first crackle!
Always up for a fantasy wish, Lulu wishes for an extra 24 hours to use at her disposal throughout the year in order to get more done, use for sleeping, or if you’re late, etc.
Event though this wishlist app would possibly put Alison out of business, she wishes for an app that would hear her sing a song and then suggest similar songs for her that would suit her voice. I mean, students would still need her to coach them, but still…
Well, if you haven’t listened to this episode yet, you’ll realize that Lulu and Alison, super-besties have done it once again! Despite the new theme word that they used to inspire their individual week’s city choice, they both ended up choosing cities that don’t observe daylight savings time! Super twins, I tell ya!
Lulu chose Pago Pago, American Samoa this week and although her accommodations at Vaoto Lodge weren’t expensive, the rest of her day was! Please excuse that she calls it the Valton Lodge. Proofreading copy when you’re batching this many episodes in a row is overrated, I say! For breakfast at Ruby Red Restaurant, Lulu enjoyed the PB & Banana with all-natural peanut butter on a multigrain bread topped with fresh local bananas and locally made siamu popo (Samoan coconut jam) and the Cheat day signature brownie. Yum! I wanna try that Samoan coconut jam!
Off she popped to the The Jean P. Haydon Museum which is dedicated to the culture and history of the United States territory of American Samoa. It contains a collection of canoes, coconut-shell combs, pigs’ tusk armlets and native pharmacopoeia. It also houses exhibits on natural history, tapa making, traditional tattooing, as well as a collection of war clubs, kava bowls, and historic photographs. The building in which it is located, formerly Navy Building 43 of Naval Station Tutuila, is itself historically significant as one of a few surviving buildings constructed by the United States Navy in 1917 with locally fashioned rusticated concrete blocks. This museum was dedicated by anthropologist Margaret Mead, who had returned to American Samoa to visit Ta'ū Island, where she wrote Coming of Age in Samoa.
Anxious to brush up on Ms. Mead’s famous book, Lulu purchased a copy of Coming of Age in Samoa for just under $200. She skimmed the classic while having lunch at Koko Bean Cafe. Then it was off to the National Park that consists of land on Tutuila, Ofu and Ta’u, but maintains trails in areas outside the park, too. The National Park of American Samoa is unique in that the land is leased to the NPS by the families who own it, rather than being owned by the federal government. It’s a system that respects the traditional familial land ownership of Samoans—the backbone of Samoan culture—and it means that the NPS works on conservation very closely with local villages. Locals still use park land for fishing, harvesting and other activities they’ve traditionally done there, and the NPS looks to village chiefs for permission and cooperation with park activities.
Now, here’s one way to know that Lulu believes in magic, and that is the fact that she insisted on calling the DJI Mavic 3 drone that she purchased for half of her 10K budget, the DJI Magic 3 drone. Who am I to tell her it’s not magical!? With this ‘magical’ Mavic 3, Lulu was able to “capture stunning imagery with a legendary Hasselblad camera and enjoyed smooth flight with omnidirectional obstacle sensing.”
Forgetting that she had originally wanted to use a helicopter in this adventure, she had to suspend her disbelief and shared that she also purchased a Caving Ladder and a Softie backpack parachute with their unique crossover style Aerobatic Harness is designed specifically for pilots doing high NEGATIVE G aerobatic maneuvers. Exhausted from all the aerobatics, Lulu went to Tisa’s Barefoot Bar to ‘bare’ a little more than her feet! There she celebrated Po Ula night at Tisa’s. It is an ancient Samoan Party event celebrated on Full moon nights. And they say it is worth staying overnight to greet the sunrise with an organic breakfast and our 5 star Pina Kolada. Oh…and it’s also NAKED! Yup, she decided to bear it all with the locals!
Choosing a Samoan Feast for 25 people, Lulu was able to invite 24 people she’d be comfortable being naked around for a feast and a pub crawl around town! And that, my folks is the only way to close out your day in Pago Pago!
Well, wouldn’t ya know it…Alison ALSO chose a city that doesn’t observe Daylight Savings Time! Great minds think alike! Alison chose to stay at the Constance Hotel resort in the North Beach Villa. She started her day by visiting the magical Baobab trees. They are are massive trees that can grow 98 feet tall and 36 feet wide and can live up to 1,000 years (perspective: that’s about the height of an eight-story building). And Baobabs are completely unique to Madagascar.
Alison found out that one of the many reasons why the Vezo women in the southern coastal areas of Madagascar paint their faces is not just because it’s beautiful (elaborate patterns) but also it’s to protect the skin from the damage of the sun and keep insects away. This led her to see the impressive body painting art work of Guido Daniele via the photos by Lee Howell who did a collaboration with Guido. So inspired, Alison decided to have Guido paint her like the trees in Madagascar.
Lunch was at the Fishing Residence on the large patio dining room right on the beach and enjoyed stuffed whole lobster, crab cakes, and seafood terrine are favorites. The ginger sauce zested grouper filets and black sesame sounded completely scrumptious!
Next was the adventurous trek to the Île Sainte Marie, which is the Pirate Cemetary! Today, 30 headstones remain, including a few sketched with a skull and/or cross bones, the international symbol of piracy. Legend has it that the notorious William Kidd is buried in a large black tomb in the cemetery, sitting upright as punishment for his dastardly deeds. She purchased an underwater metal detector, the JW Fisher PT-1 and hired an expert William Kidd, to help her out and then they’ll split what treasure they find.
Dinner was at La Marais Restaurant where she enjoyed some of the never-ending creative recipes Chef Lalaina has created. This included roasted large prawns with citrus fruits caramel, a duxelle of mushrooms and green peas, grapefruit pulp and a fresh pepper emulsion. All that tasty food was washed down with the Voyages menu of 3 wines. Dessert was the chocolate explosion made with pineapple and basil sorbet and flambéed with local rum.
To close out her 10K day in Madagascar style, she went to Lemur Island, which totally makes me jealous! I want to go to Lemur Island!
Lulu is happy that she went to a dance call and learned all the moves! Happy feet! Like so many of us after 2 years of pandemic, she was happy her brain is still working!
Alison is happy that she is 10K away from being debt free! You can do it, Ali!
CHECK OUT THE CHARITIES WE FOUND IN THE CITIES WE VISITED:
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