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byebyelingual · 3 years ago

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HELLO BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. Today's post is about:

🇼🇸🌴Samoa🌴🇼🇸

If you didn't know, Samoa is a State made of a group of 💫paradisiac💫 islands in Polynesia, near New Zealand and Australia, riiiiight here:

The best place for a vacation, right?

Samoan people are bilingual (speaking English and Samoan), so if you happen to be in Apia (Samoa's Capital) and want to make friends, you can say:

Hello = Malō (informal) / Tālofa

How are you? = Ua mai oe?

Thank you = Fa'afetai

Please = Fa'amolemole

Yes = Ioe

No = Leai

Sorry = Fa'amalie atu

I don't know = Ou te leiloa

Have a nice day! = Ia manuia le aso!

I understand = Ua ou mālamalama

I don't understand = 'Ou te lē mālamalama

Help! = Fia ola!

Excuse me = Tulou lava

I miss you = Ou te misia ia te oe

I love you = Ou te alofa ia te oe

One language is never enough = O le gagana e tasi e le lava

Source:

👉 You wanna learn the Samoan writing System? No problem.

The Samoan Language uses the latin alphabet plus 'Okina, the symbol (') used in writing to represent a glottal stop, similar to the sound between the syllables of "oh-oh", and kahakō, which when written over a vowel indicates that the vowel is long.

Samoa's Capital, Apia

🌴But let's look more into Samoan Culture

Samoan culture is based on Faʻa Sāmoa, the 'Samoan Way'.

It includes the behavior and the responsibilities that spell out all Samoans' relationships to one another and to persons holding positions of authority.

Faʻa Sāmoa includes the way one stands, walks and speaks, for example by saying "tulou" when one walks in front of someone who is seated. Likewise, it is extremely disrespectful to eat or drink when walking through a village.

"Family" in samoan is ʻAiga.

'Aiga consists of a wider family group of blood and marriage or even adopted connections who all acknowledge the matai (head of the family) who can be either male or female.

All members of the 'Aiga don't have to live under the same roof or even in the same village but it will assemble when the occasion requires it, generally at the residence of the matai, to discuss family affairs, deaths or weddings.

Samoan matai protestors outside Aotearoa New Zealand's Parliament. On 28 March 2003, this group of 3000 Samoans, among them hundreds of transnational matai, protested against the Citizenship [Western Samoa] Act 1982 outside Parliament. Image: Mark Mitchell

🔥Dancing is a huge part of Samoan culture.

There's many traditional samoan dances:

The Fa'ataupati, or "Samoan Slap Dance". Only performed by males, it's the only dance withouth music but with the clapping of the hands and stomping of the feet.

The Maulu'ulu. Literally it means "light rain" - due to the refreshing movements and style, as a "light rain" would cool the stifling tropical heat of a summer day.

The Sasa can be performed by both males and females.

The Siva Afi, a ceremonial dance using the fire knife.

The Manu Siva Tau is a Samoan War Dance, performed by the Samoan sporting teams before each match.

The Taualuga, considered the apex of Samoan performance art forms.

🌈Lgbtq+ in Samoa

Even though same sex relationships are illegal, Samoa has a large transgender or "third gender" community called fa'afafine.

Faʻafafine are people who identify themselves as having a third gender or non-binary role in Samoa.

They are assigned male at birth, and embody both masculine and feminine gender traits. Their behaviour typically ranges from extravagantly feminine to conventionally masculine.

A curious fact about Samoa is that male relationships are forbidden, while female ones are not.

A book about this general topic was written by the Samoan artists Dan Taulapapa McMullin and Yuki Kihara.

🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️🌴☀️

If you read until now and learned something new, I'm proud of you!

And so are some Samoan characters you didn't know were Samoan, like:

And last but not least,

If you want to learn Samoan or just want to look more into its culture, check this:

Nafanuatele Lafitaga Mafaufau, the creator and writer of O Le Aiga Samoa comic, is the passionate founder and teacher of the Nafanua Communication and Culture Samoan language classes.

This comic helps to make the Samoan language accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds, and its goal is to make especially young people engage in Samoa's beautiful culture.

https://www.boosted.org.nz/projects/o-le-aiga-samoa

#It took me the whole day to make this post and I'm kinda proud of it #All sources are linked #I hope you enjoy it and please if I made some wrong statements correct me in the comments #Samoa #Samoan #Samoan language #Hunk garrett #Moana #Oceania #Languages #Culture #Polyglot #Vld #Voltron #Lgbtq #World #Language #Country

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tawshlav · 7 years ago

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#samoan #samoa #polynesia #polynesian #islanders #pake #drumming #original #beat #fireknife #fire knife #dance #cheehoo #siva afi #sivaafi #hawaiian #afatasi #tongan #fijian #tahitian #music

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urbannesian · 8 years ago

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My @hydroflask decorated with UrbanNesian decals #UrbanNesian I've got a few decals left for purchase at www.UrbanNesian.com #hydroflask #art #artwork #decal #stickers #decor #decorate #samoan #fineapple #samoa #tuiga #taupou #samoanheaddress #siva #sivasamoa #pineapple #siapo #tapa #pasifika #tatau

#taupou #tatau #stickers #pasifika #decorate #artwork #fineapple #siapo #art #samoan #samoa #tuiga #pineapple #siva #decal #samoanheaddress #tapa #urbannesian #sivasamoa #hydroflask #decor

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seriouslycromulent · 5 years ago

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Hobbs & Shaw review (Yeah, this is going to be long)

The Preamble (feel free to skip)

I was on the fence about going to see the new Fast & Furious spinoff, Hobbs & Shaw. Why? Because I’m a legit fan of the F&F franchise, and I was none too happy about the fact that Vin Diesel invited Dwayne to be a part of the franchise as they were friends at the time, but Dwayne’s fans -- mostly denizens of The Rock who think he can do no wrong -- preceded to treat Vin like he was second fiddle to Dwayne ever since Fast Five. Dwayne, then over the course of 3 films, preceded to get the big(ger) head and show his ass on the set of the last film, and usurped Vin’s franchise right out from under him.

What pissed me off more than that was the fact that after Dwayne and Vin got into it, the public not knowing any details or verification on what specifically happened on the set, decided to automatically take Dwayne’s side because ... “Hey! He’s the Rock and we like it when he plays characters that are only a slight variation on his persona when he wrestled full time in the WWE.” There was no concern for right or wrong. No desire to ask both of these Alpha males to put their egos aside. No inclination to actually wait and learn about what really went down. No, the general public has since decided to brand Vin Diesel a joke with no acting skill or talent to speak of.

Gone was Vin’s reputation as a scriptwriter, a producer and as a man who helped reinvent this franchise to turn it into something beyond simple street racing and a small found family making it happen in a hostile world. Honest Movie Trailers mocked Vin for taking the franchise seriously and actually putting time, love and effort into making sure each film had heart, not just great action scenes that defy the laws of physics and common sense.

Dwayne has become a better actor than he was 15 years ago. I can name about 4 or 5 movies where his performance is pretty good. But Vin was always a good actor. Not great. But definitely stronger than he was given credit for once people started associating him with nothing but action films. On top of that, he was a writer and he knew how to create an environment that people of disparate personalities loved working together and being a part of the franchise.

Flash forward to Hobbs & Shaw. There are no members of any of the F&F’s previous films in this movie. Tyrese called out Dwayne on social media for being selfish and greedy, because all of the other cast members were offered spinoffs too. But they turned them down because they wanted to work as a team. That’s how much the franchise means to them. Dwayne clearly had no sense of that loyalty, and obviously his biggest fans don’t have any expectations of him to have any either.

I’m still a fan of Dwayne Johnson, but not as much as I used to be, say 6 or 7 years ago. I still think he’s an immensely generous person when it comes to his fans, and he is a hell of an entertainer. But this situation involving Hobbs & Shaw, combined with some of his comments and behavior regarding sociopolitical events taking place in America over the last 5 years have reminded me that he is not without flaws, and should not be regarded as if he is above impunity.

So Then What Happened?

Despite my misgivings about how the Hobbs & Shaw spinoff came about, I finally decided to go see it at the last minute for a few reasons:

I’ve had a particularly hard week and I needed to do something to blow off some steam.

I’m a huge fan of Jason Statham. I mean huge. I’m an action film fan in general, but Jason is one of my favorites in the genre. And it takes a lot of negatives to make me not go see one of his films.

I adore Helen Mirren. Even if I knew her part would be small, I also knew I would love seeing her play off of Jason again. Their scene together in Fate of the Furious/Furious 8 was the highlight of the film for me (followed by the brief return of Luke Evans).

I like Idris Elba. And he’s proven that whether playing a good guy or bad guy, he goes all in. Plus, I like him best as a bad guy.

I like Roman Reigns, and I wanted to be supportive of his first time on the silver screen.

So there it is. I’m a woman of integrity, but apparently, my integrity fades at the thought of actors I like getting to share a screen together. Feel free to judge me.

Now ... to the review

Hobbs & Shaw is exactly what you expect it to be. It doesn’t feel like it’s a part of the Fast & Furious franchise at all, but maybe that’s intentional. I think at the end of the day, audiences expect a F&F film to involve a cohesive, diverse team and something happening that changes your perspective about what you thought was going to happen. At least that’s been the franchise's m.o. since the fourth movie.

But Hobbs & Shaw keeps a lot of the other elements of the F&F franchise alive. Namely, a solid mix of comedy and action, at least one woman who makes you feel both inspired and afraid, and just a lot of action sequences that test the suspension of disbelief. Oh yeah, and at least one kickass car chase. And that’s exactly what we get, plus a little more.

Here’s what I think worked, what didn’t, and what I loved (Warning: spoilers below):

What Worked For Me

Hobbs & Shaw is first and foremost an action film, but keeping with the Fast & Furious theme of family, the heart of the film takes us back to the connection and power of family. Unlike the original series, where family was defined as the people you find along the way, Hobbs & Shaw is more about bloodline and reconnecting with estranged family. For Hobbs, his family in Samoa. For Shaw, his relationship with his sister, Hattie, who believed that he had betrayed his country and his brothers- and sisters-in-arms. I’m glad they kept that aspect in, even though I liked the F&F’s original theme a little better.

I don’t know if it’s fair to call them cameos because they have more than one scene in the film, but the addition of Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Hart was a great move. Both are in the film long enough, but not too long. And each are given enough room to deliver what they do best.

The opening sequence showing Hobbs and Shaw starting their day is the perfect introduction to this spinoff. I loved the juxtaposition. If I had to choose a preferred lifestyle, I’d go with Shaw’s routine, but in sunny California.

Ryan Reynolds’ character’s name is Locke. I see what you did there. ;-)

Mama Hobbs throwing her flip flop at Cliff Curtis and hitting him in the face. What is it about brown mamas whipping shoes at their kids? LOL!

What Didn’t Work For Me

Was Brixton’s ambush of the CIA black site (which didn’t look too black to me) and kidnapping Hattie by running down the face of the building really the most efficient plan and escape? He literally picks her up, carries her on his shoulders, and runs down (with harness attached) the face of the building. It just seemed like it provided way too much of an opportunity for Hobbs & Shaw to catch up to him and for them to get her back. I love a great action sequence, but this one really makes the villain look impractical and hella extra.

Soooooooo, when Hattie is hooked up to the device to extract the virus capsules from her blood, the countdown shows it’s going to take 30 minutes. At that time, it’s dark outside and Brixton hasn’t arrived to start the final showdown. Fast forward to Brixton’s men driving up, The Rock doing that slow-mo walk out to meet them with no shirt on (gulp), and the other usos doing the Siva Tau while Brixton’s men realize their guns don’t work. Then the fighting starts. The sun starts to rise, and everyone is kicking ass and taking names. We see Hattie fighting 2 of the bad guys before Shaw shows up to help. At this point, the countdown on the device says she has 21 minutes to go. We’re supposed to believe that everything that just happened between the device starting the extraction, Brixton showing up, the Siva Tau before the fight, and the sun rising high enough for us to see Roman Reigns fighting alongside The Rock only took 9 minutes? ... Yep. Why? F&F Laws of Physics.™

I stayed until the credits finished -- if you do, you’ll see why -- and I was a little disappointed that they used the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i as a stand-in for Samoa. I imagine it might’ve been easier to get permits to shoot in Hawaii, but a part of me feels like it’s a major missed opportunity to not shoot the Samoan scenes in actual Samoa.

Soooooooo, we’re supposed to believe that Roman Reigns (or any human being) could just land 2 large metal hooks on to the front joint axles of a truck speeding along in a life-threatening pace while he’s standing on the back of another truck racing ahead of it in one easy throw? ... Yep. Why? F&F Laws of Probability.™

Sure, Deckard Shaw was framed when he didn’t join Etion’s cabal of world domination, but again, he still killed Han. And at no point do we see him held accountable for that in Furious 8 or in this film. And there’s no allusion of him doing anything to atone for it in between the films. I adore Statham, but in the end, Deckard is still not a good guy in this franchise until he says or does something to address that terrible act other than “You guys put my brother in the hospital clinging for his life after some psycho made him do terrible things that killed a lot of people.” This detail still doesn’t sit well with me.

Soooooooo, we’re supposed to believe that the key to defeating this super soldier Brixton is by having Shaw and Hobbs work together. But didn’t the MI-6 officers that Brixton takes down in the beginning of the film work together? Were their team as petty as Hobbs & Shaw and failed to work together like a cohesive unit when fighting an enemy on a mission? I highly doubt that. The concept at the end is lovely and signifies growth in our leads’ relationship with one another, but it doesn’t quite hold mustard if you consider that the other teams of people Brixton’s battled throughout the film are plenty cohesive and get killed quickly.

I kind of wish The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) were in this film too. :-( That would have made it even more special given Dwayne used to work with their dad, Junior (aka Rikishi), in the WWE at the same time.

Sooooooooo, we’re supposed to believe Hobbs -- a non-genetically enhanced man -- can grab a huge chain with his bare hands that is connected to a helicopter and pull it close enough to wrap it back around a pulley system and keep that helicopter steady? ... Yep. Why? F&F Laws of Human Anatomy.™

What I Loved

All things Helen Mirren. Seriously, I would watch a movie just about the Shaw family. The mum, the sister, the brother and Deckard. This film didn’t have enough Helen Mirren, but every scene she was in was a delight.

That little wink and nod to the audience when Shaw, while walking Hobbs and Hattie through his hidden lair, makes a reference to driving a Mini Cooper for “a little job he did in Italy.” I see what you did there. ;-)

Any scene with Jason Statham behind the wheel tearing up the streets of a city in the most impossible manner will always be gold. Always. Be. Gold. And that slide underneath the 2 semis by the car, and later, by the motorcycle, made my stomach clench so hard I think I might’ve pulled something.

Anytime Locke refers to his relationship with Hobbs as being close friends or family. Ryan Reynolds is absurd. Never change.

The entire conversation between Shaw and Hobbs on the plane. All of it. All. Of. It. It’s the funniest scene in the entire film. And a great callback to the display of chemistry they had together in Furious 8.

Using a society’s history, where they did a helluva lot of damage without high tech weapons, to take on an enemy with high tech weapons, who without those weapons, couldn’t hold their own quite as easily, was a beautiful moment and ... great social commentary on the history of colonialism. (::cough::)

Cliff Curtis. He so rarely gets to play a character of Pacifika descent in American films. I’m happy this movie gave him a chance to do so.

Even though this is a part of their conversation on the plane which I already mentioned was awesome, I loved it when Hobbs reminds Shaw that this is not 1955, and he needs to relax about the idea of Hobbs making a play for Shaw’s sister. If she wants to climb that mountain, he’s going to let her climb it. LOL! It’s her decision, not her brother’s.

Roman Reigns getting to spear someone! Even though the camera cuts off the full beauty of it by switching to another angle 2/3 of the way through. I don’t care what anyone says, Joe Anoa’i’s spear is a work of art. (::phrasing::)

Hattie escaping from the virus extraction room’s chair and taking down her guards without any help made me want to stand up and cheer. You go, mama!

OK. That’s all I can think of for now. But given how long this post is, I’m sure anyone still reading at this point would say that’s more than enough.

With that in mind, if you haven’t seen Hobbs & Shaw yet, or you did, but you left before the credits finished, I wanted to let you know that there are 3 -- yes, count ‘em 3 -- scenes in the credits.

The first is a scene with Ryan Reynolds, the second is one with Shaw & Hobbs, and the third, which comes at the very end, is another scene with Ryan Reynolds.

Enjoy!

#hobbs and shaw #hobbs & shaw #dwayne johnson #the rock #dwayne the rock johnson #joe anoa'i #pacifika #jason statham #fast and furious #fast & furious #deckard shaw #helen mirren #vanessa kirby #cliff curtis #roman reigns

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sunflowerinsamoa · 2 years ago

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Tasi

I never planned on being a good girl. I just was.

Screw being a senator's daughter, even if I didn't grow up being a faifeau's kid, I knew I always had the "teine lelei" genes in me.

Nice, kind, sweet, respectful... until I left Samoa three years ago.

--------------------

"Na, why don't you ever fight for our relationship? Why do you always run away when things get difficult between us?"

We sat in the back of Malaia's truck, Maimau's uncle who just got out of the Army. They keep saying he was honorably discharged, but Facebook screenshots confirmed he had cheated on his wife of 12 years.

"Are you listening Na?"

Maimau's eyes started getting watery. I had grown numb. This was all a final attempt to make sure we would continue on to a dead long distance relationship until he found another girl to entertain his shallow needs.

Cheating is not difficult, I wanted to say, but I was more than a broken record by now.

My own best friend was secretly in love with my boyfriend of 9 years. All it took was one night at the movies. I had a bad fever. I found their secret text messages he forgot to erase in his Trash folder.

"What am I supposed to do?"

I had recently found out his so-called "first love" was his own next-door neighbor, a woman twice his age, through some throwback pictures of his youth group. He had me believing his first love was some girl that helped him study for his Science test in elementary school.

But I guess he didn't want to get the lady into any trouble. She was a widower who volunteered as a mentor for teens after losing her husband.

He was only a 7th grader at the time.

"I will never love anyone else. Not ever. Why are you doing this? Please Na, talk to me."

The last time we broke up, more or less 8 months before I made this decision to leave the island, rumors had been buzzing louder than flies about a baby.

"Should I wait for you? Please tell me what you want me to do. How could you not see that I'm trying to work things out with you?"

Peti, one of his uncle's bus driver employees had a daughter who recently graduated from college. Pretty girl, of course, starting out her life with a degree in Business and a job lined up for her at the local bank. Siva had been pregnant for 5 months and didn't start showing a belly until 7 months.

"Remember our pinky promise."

Poor baby boy died two hours later. Maimau was one of the potential sperm donors. Apparently, he wasn't the only one she had sex with during her graduation week.

It was 8:34 pm, Nuiloa Airways opened their gates an hour early for passengers to start making their way to the gate.

Everything Maimau said was slipping away.

I had loved him through and through, still, it wasn't enough to make him faithful.

It was time to leave. My heart had overworked itself.

#writing #samoanfic #long reads

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