June 1 – Independence Day in Samoa

nPostednon June 1, 2015

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Threenis a magical number in stories (from Goldilocks’s three bears to thenThree Little Pigs, from the Three Stooges to the Three Amigos).

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nAndnSamoa, an island nation in the South Pacific Ocean, decided that onenday to celebrate independence just isn’t enough – so the nationncelebrates for three days straight! n

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nThreenthings you should know:

nSomen of the Samoan islands are not part of the independent nation ofn Samoa, but instead are part of “American Samoa,” a territory of the United States.

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nThen division of the Samoan islands happened back in 1900 – the U.S.n making the eastern islands into a territory (as they still are), andn the western islands becoming German Samoa. However, when World War In broke out fourteen years later, and the Brits and Germans begann fighting, British ally New Zealand took over the islands of Germann Samoa, unopposed.

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nSamoan (the independent nation) became independent from New Zealand onn January 1, 1962. I’m not sure why the Samoans celebrate in June!

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nLikenany tropical island, there are some pretty gorgeous beaches on Samoa:

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nLikenHawaii, the Samoan islands were underwater volcanos that eventuallynrose high enough to become a chain of islands. When you explorenSamoa, you might see hardened lava fields…