IF Not Thailand: Then Pago Pago?

[GammaGlobulin]

Has anyone here visited Pago Pago?

Has anyone lived on Pago Pago for some time?

Would Pago Pago by a good Plan B if Thailand became, for whatever reason, untenable?

 

Remember, my friend Somerset lived at the Sadie Thompson hotel on Pago Pago for 16 weeks, and he seems to have been quite taken with the place.  Nothing to think about there; just eat fish and fruit from the trees, and be happy.

 

Pago Pago Plusses for Me:

 

1. Pago Pago has a fairly large tuna cannery on their rock. I have flourished, during recent years, on little else other than canned tuna, rice, omelets, and chicken breasts. On Pago Pago I could add cheap  tropical fruit to my diet.

2. I have lived in a fishing village for years at a time on the east coast of Taiwan, without often venturing from my small village inhabited by only about 50 very old people and several younger fishermen. I have endured steady rain for months! Maybe even more rain than on Pago Pago, and I enjoyed it. I lived in a concrete hut surrounded by little  other than elephant grass, and was thrilled by it.

3. Pago Pago has steep mountains rising straight out of very deep waters, and this is the topography of the east coast of Taiwan.

4. The weather is usually extremely hot and humid, just as I like it.

 

Pago Pago Problematic Points:

 

1. Lack of very fast internet, and expense of slow-speed internet

2. The women on Pago Pago are not appealing to me.

3. I would miss Thai culture

4. No Pago Pago genius women…of this I am convinced.

5. No Ivy League universities, and very few Preppies or Preppy Clothing Stores

6. No Smoking Season, as I am used to

 

What got me thinking that maybe Pago Pago might be better even than Japan as a Plan B retirement destination is having just watched the wonderful restoration of the amazingly spectacular 1932 film Rain based upon the short story written by the King's College grad Maugham.

My thinking is that once I get to Pago Pago, if I Go to Pago Pago, I might not be able to return, since I don’t enjoy commercial flight, and there are far fewer steamers plying between Pago Pago and Sattahip than in previous years.

 

Still, I think I might go because I have only one life to live.

 

Any thoughts about this Plan B of mine are most welcome, and encouraged.

 

I like girls in grass skirts, but there are none of these on Pago Pago, according to my research. Still, with enough money, I might get some of the native girls to dress up in nothing but grass costumes in the evenings. Money Talks on Pago Pago, I am sure.

 

Regards,

Gamma

 

NOTE:  Wherever I might go, I won’t actually go unless there are plentiful Tuna Packers readily available.  And, on Pago Pago, you got Samoa Packing! 

 

NOTE2:  Much more concerning Pago Pago can be gleaned from this article....   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pago_Pago

 

Edited January 21 by GammaGlobulin

[Crossy]

Sounds like a plan (for you), you could start "AmericanSamoaVisa.com".

 

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

12 minutes ago, Crossy said:

Sounds like a plan (for you), you could start "AmericanSamoaVisa.com".

 

 

 

 

Good Idea...

 

1. Can I depend upon you for both Moral Support and Technical Support?

2. If I get a shack by the sea, will you join me on your holidays from TV?

 

3.  IMPORTANT:  For an American Citizen, there is NO VISA required to go to American Samoa !!!!!!!!!!

 

4.  Yes. You are correct.  This IS a good Plan B for me. Definitely!

 

 

Edited January 21 by GammaGlobulin

[Old Croc]

I'm not even sure whether you currently reside in Taiwan or Thailand let alone if Pago Pago would be a good fit for you.

 

All I really know of Pago Pago is that there was a racehorse of that name many years ago.

[Dan O]

This in the same category as your move to Japan for a genius girl and never coming back. That last what 10 days?

[Crossy]

American Samoa apparently has the most expensive internet in the known universe. The whole country has an international bandwidth of 200Gbs which may cramp your posting style somewhat.

[GammaGlobulin]

Just now, Dan O said:

This in the same category as your move to Japan for a genius girl and never coming back. That last what 10 days?

 

Who's counting?

 

[Fat is a type of crazy]

If you like rugby and drinking kava it might be your cup of tea. 

[GammaGlobulin]

I'm thinking...

 

If I decide to move, for good, and FOR THE GOOD, to Pago Pago....

 

I could just put all my stuff in on shipping container and ship it to Pago Pago.

I doubt there are any import tax/duty on personal belongings, such as 4 microwave ovens, and 2 refrigerators, etc.

 

Once I go, I will never return, obviously.

I could not make this long move two times in my life.

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

6 minutes ago, Crossy said:

American Samoa apparently has the most expensive internet in the known universe. The whole country has an international bandwidth of 200Gbs which may cramp your posting style somewhat.

 

Absolutely.

This is a major consideration for me, and might represent an absolute deal breaker.

 

In Paradise, I guess, nothing is completely perfect.

Perfection on Earth is always an unobtainable dream.

 

[scottiejohn]

11 minutes ago, Old Croc said:

I'm not even sure whether you currently reside in Taiwan or Thailand

None of us know which Country he is living in at the moment but one thing is for sure is that he is living in "Cloud Cuckoo Land"!

[GammaGlobulin]

2 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

None of us know which Country he is living in at the moment but one thing is for sure is that he is living in "Cloud Cuckoo Land"!

 

For years, and even ever since my youth, I have wanted to retrace the footsteps of my friend Somerset.

Maybe this is my best opportunity,....

Before it's too late.

 

[GammaGlobulin]

16 minutes ago, Crossy said:

American Samoa apparently has the most expensive internet in the known universe. The whole country has an international bandwidth of 200Gbs which may cramp your posting style somewhat.

 

What about the near future, maybe with companies such as StarLink...?

Might not Starlink solve this internet bottleneck soon?

 

 

 

[Crossy]

9 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

What about the near future, maybe with companies such as StarLink...?

Might not Starlink solve this internet bottleneck soon?

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

2 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

 

 

Great info for those considering a move to Pago Pago!!!!!

 

[Crossy]

1 minute ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Great info for those considering a move to Pago Pago!!!!!

 

You mean you are not?

 

[GammaGlobulin]

4 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

You mean you are not?

 

 

No. I mean that I definitely AM thinking of moving to Pago Pago.

 

a. I have never been affected by "island fever", and would never be bothered by it, providing I had very fast internet.

b. My only hesitancy might be my fear of losing contact with my beloved Thai Culture. That, and my even greater fear of Internet Latency.

 

[Crossy]

I reckon the ladies are just your type.

 

[GammaGlobulin]

Just now, Crossy said:

I reckon the ladies are just your type.

 

 

The one on the far right appears a bit iffy to me...for sure.

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

12 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

You mean you are not?

 

 

And then, of course, there is the issue of Health Care and the resulting peace of mind I get from living very close to Chiang Mai Ram Hospital.

 

I sometimes enjoy visiting Ram, with the nurses there, who are definitely kind and most attractive.

 

Years ago, while thinking of moving to either Guam or to Myakojima, I reconsidered due to the lack of proper healthcare in the Ryukyu Islands.

And, I imagine the same holds for Pago Pago.

 

 

[Prubangboy]

Went to Samoa. Like a dirty Hawaii.

 

 

[KannikaP]

1 hour ago, Crossy said:

American Samoa apparently has the most expensive internet in the known universe. The whole country has an international bandwidth of 200Gbs which may cramp your posting style somewhat.

Thank goodness!

[GammaGlobulin]

Before Moving to Pago Pago:

 

It is most important to...Know Thyself....

 

And, I do.

 

a. I hate shopping and shopping malls.

b. I don't enjoy traffic jams or vehicular congestion.

c. I am one who appreciates, most, just communing with Nature.

d. If I can see the mountains and the sea, uncluttered, then I am happy.

e. I prefer to meet people on line rather than up close and personal, in which case negative traits and foibles become quickly overwhelming. Distance from People makes my heart grow fonder.

f. I have already lived many years in isolated places, and this has always had a positive and rejuvenating effect on me.

g. I have never been caught up in conspicuous consumption mindlessness, and I do not like to live around people who flaunt their Mercedes Benz autos, and their Rolex watches, and their HUGE McMansions.

h. On the contrary, I prefer to live in nothing more than a large concrete box with open windows, and maybe just a trusty mongrel to keep me company.

I.  And, finally, I believe that through my upcoming permanent move to Pago Pago...I will finally find my true Sadie Thompson to share the final chapter in what has been, for me, A Wonderful Life....

 

 

[degrub]

I hear on another expat forum that Guam is the place to be for serious medical issues.

[GammaGlobulin]

4 minutes ago, Prubangboy said:

Went to Samoa. Like a dirty Hawaii.

 

 

 

Was that American Samoa?

Did you visit Pago Pago?

Tell us more, please.

 

[GammaGlobulin]

6 minutes ago, degrub said:

I hear on another expat forum that Guam is the place to be for serious medical issues.

 

Yes...maybe now....perhaps...

 

But, when I was there, for any serious medical issues, they required the flight in of some better doctors, from time to time.

Or, one needed to be flown out for major procedures...UNLIKE CM, where we have access to Ram Hospital, and the like.

 

Thailand is DEFINITELY better for medical...according to what I heard in the past, while on Guam, for a short time (not Short Time, by the way).

 

I may have been mistaken.

Or, the situation may have changed during the past twenty years...since I was last there (Guam).

I did not like Guam, by the way!

Very overcrowded.

Very low class type people milling about, all over the island.

And many other negative aspects of life on Guam.

And, too Americanized for my tastes.

 

 

 

Edited January 21 by GammaGlobulin

[Dan O]

1 hour ago, GammaGlobulin said:

I'm thinking...

 

If I decide to move, for good, and FOR THE GOOD, to Pago Pago....

 

I could just put all my stuff in on shipping container and ship it to Pago Pago.

I doubt there are any import tax/duty on personal belongings, such as 4 microwave ovens, and 2 refrigerators, etc.

 

Once I go, I will never return, obviously.

I could not make this long move two times in my life.

 

 

You said the same thing last time you left

[GammaGlobulin]

32 minutes ago, Dan O said:

You said the same thing last time you left

 

As has been frequently stated here by TV Members, and wisely so, is that all Farang retirees living in Thailand should prepare a Plan B, lest they get caught short due to lack of planning.

 

Thailand is the best place one could retire if one is of my bent of mind.

 

However, I have been listening to the Members on TV, and so I have begun a bit of planning for myself, too, in case of some unanticipated eventuality.

 

I had not even considered Pago Pago until, two days ago, I watched the film Rain.

And suddenly, half-way through the film, or probably during the glorious first minute of the movie, it hit me that Pago Pago is really the place for me, or the next best place for me.

 

My concern, just like any retiree from the West who thinks about making a major move to Thailand, is what might go wrong, or what would I do if I found that Pago Pago might not be to my complete liking?  It would not be so easy to make another move returning to Thailand.

 

Therefore, at the moment, I am trying to investigate ways that I can first test the waters of Pago Pago without fully committing myself to a decade of hell if Pago Pago might not suit me.

 

For example, what is the best way to get to Pago Pago for a month or two?

Are there any fast boats to Pago Pago?

Or, would I need to fly commercial, which I hate, due to the riff-raff one is forced to sit with in the Aluminum Tube?

 

What would be the cost of testing the waters in terms of money, effort and time-spent?

 

Are there any cheap direct flights from CM to Pago Pago?

 

The above prices are for round-trip fare.

But, I could cut the cost if I opted for just ONE-WAY...

And throw caution to the wind...

But, No, because I will always be back, I think....

 

I Will Be Back!

 

 

 

 

Edited January 21 by GammaGlobulin

[Baht Simpson]

You could have Tuna in Manua or tofu in Ofu.

 

But my advice is Pago Pago, nogo nogo.

[GammaGlobulin]

Just now, Baht Simpson said:

You could have Tuna in Manua or tofu in Ofu.

 

But my advice is Pago Pago, nogo nogo.

 

Thank you.

Do you care to elaborate?

Hope you will....