The Old Homestead

I know folks back home want to know what it's like where I live. I live in Lions Park, which is a government housing area in Tafuna. No, it's not Section 8 housing...it's a bunch of houses that are owned by the government and that government employees live in. It's on the western half of the island on the south side right next to the airport on Pala Lagoon. The houses vary between 1, 2, and 3 bedroom versions. I have a 2 bedroom version (hint, hint...there's room for visitors). On one end is the living room that connects to the kitchen. Most of the houses are open between the living room and kitchen with a large island that separates the two. Mine has somewhat of a wall that divides the spaces with an opening in the middle. It's kind of nice because it means I have a built-in bookcase on the living room side and a built-in pantry on the kitchen side. There is a small room with washer/dryer hookups on one side of the kitchen and then a hallway that runs the length of the house on the other. From that hallway, you can access the bathroom, the guest bedroom, and finally the master bedroom on the other end of the house. The place comes furnished, although the furniture isn't very comfortable--think dorm room. There are doors on either side of the house about where the kitchen is, and mine has these beautiful vaulted wood ceilings. The houses here are also not built like you are used to seeing back home. Instead of regular walls and windows, many houses walls ARE windows; floor to ceiling slatted windows, which provide the ventilation that cools the houses when the winds blow through from one side to the other. A great concept, but it doesn't make for a very clean or secure housing environment.

The other nice thing about being in Lions Park is that most of the people we know and hang out with also live here. That makes socializing much easier especially considering how long it takes you to drive anywhere on the island and the fact that gas is nearly, if not over, $5 a gallon here. I live across the street and a couple of houses down from LTM and there are 2 other AG's on our street as well. One of the judges' actually lives at the end of our block.

Despite the fact that I'm talking about my "street", I don't have a formal address because none of the roads are named here. My house number used to be T-86, but now it's 287; at least that's what is painted on it. When I went to the power company to get things set up in my name, I didn't know anything about the old T-86 number. Here was the exchange:

ASPA Lady: What's your house number?
Me: I think it's 287.
ASPA: You sure it isn't T-86?
Me: I don't know. The number painted outside says 287.
ASPA: Oh, did Scott Sweet live there before you?
Me: Yeah.
ASPA: OK, this is the right one.

I'm telling you, it's a small island. Here are some photos of my pad:


And here's my view from my front yard:
Not bad, eh?

I'm in the process of picking out colors to paint the inside of my house. Once that's done, I'll upload pictures of the inside.

CONTACT INFO...

Also for those of you who want to get ahold of me, here is my info:

P.O. Box 4178, Pago Pago, AS 96799
684-770-0272 (cell)
684-699-3506 (home)
claudia.kelly.dixon (Skype)
ckdixon20@hotmail.com

If you want to call me, don't just dial me direct because chances are you'll be charged for an international call. Go to speedypin.com and buy a phone card; I got one to call LTM with before I got here that was $6 for 120 minutes. You can use it from either a cell phone or a land line. Remember, there is a 5 hour time difference between here and Colorado, so if you want to call me at 9am your time, don't; because it's 4am for me and I probably won't answer the phone. Also, if you are planning on sending anything down here (care package or whatever), I highly suggest you send it priority mail unless you want it to arrive 2 to 4 months later. The post office has these flat rate priority boxes that are a great way to ship things here.