It's off to Apia, the capital and largest city of Samoa.

The pictures are: 1) Apia Harbour at dawn, during the independence celebrations of 2003; 2) the Samoan government buildings in Apia; 3) a Samoan police brass band marching on the main street; 4) the Apia courthouse; 5) the Apia clocktower; 6) the Apia cathedral (the Immaculate Conception of Mary Cathedral); and 7) the Bahá'í House of Worship, Tiapapata, 8 km from Apia.

Apia is the capital and the largest city of Samoa. The city is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second largest island. Apia is the only 'city' in Samoa and falls within the political district of Tuamasaga. The geographic boundaries of Apia Urban Area is mainly from Letogo village to the new industrialized region of Apia known as Vaitele.

Apia was originally a small village (1800 population is 304[clarification needed]),[3] from which the country's capital took its name. Apia village still exists within the larger modern capital of Apia which has grown into a sprawling urban area with many villages. Like every other settlement in the country, Apia village has its own matai chiefly leaders and fa'alupega (geneaology & customary greetings) according to fa'a Samoa.

The modern capital Apia was founded in the 1850s and has been the official capital of Samoa since 1959. The harbor was also the site of an infamous 15 March 1889 naval standoff in which 7 ships from Germany, the US, and Britain refused to leave harbor while a typhoon was clearly approaching, lest the first moved would lose face. All the ships were sunk, except the British cruiser Calliope, which barely managed to leave port at 1 mile per hour and ride out the storm. Nearly 200 American and German lives were lost, as well as 6 ships sunk or beyond repair.

During the country's struggle for political independence in the early 1900s, organised under the national Mau movement, the streets of Apia became the center of non-violent protests and marches where many Samoans were arrested. In what became known as 'Black Saturday', a peaceful Mau gathering in the town resulted in the killing of paramount chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III by New Zealand constabulary on 28 December 1929.

Apia is situated on a natural harbour at the mouth of the Vaisigano River. It is on a narrow coastal plain with Mount Vaea (elevation 472 m), the burial place of writer Robert Louis Stevenson, directly to its south. Two main ridges run south on either side of the Vaisigano River, with roads on each. The more western of these is Cross Island Road, one of the few roads cutting north to south across the middle of the island to the south coast of Upolu.

Apia features a tropical rainforest climate with consistent temperatures throughout the year. Apia's driest months are July and August when on average about 80 mm of rain falls. Its wettest months are December through March when average monthly precipitation easily exceeds 300 mm. Apia average temperature for the year is 26 degrees Celsius.

Apia is part of the Tuamasaga political district and of election district Vaimauga West and Faleata East. There is no city administration for Apia. Apia consists of some 45 individual, independent villages. Apia proper is just a small village between the mouths of the Vaisigano (east) and Mulivai (west) rivers, and is framed by Vaisigano and Mulivai villages, together constituting "Downtown Apia".

The Planning Urban Management Authority (PUMA) Act 2004 (amended in 2005) was passed by parliament to better plan for the urban growth of Samoa's built-up areas, with particular reference to the future urban management of Apia. The city's historical haphazard growth from village to colonial trading post to the major financial and business centre of the country has resulted in major infrastructural problems in the city. Problems of flooding are commonplace in the wet season, given the low flood-prone valley that the city is built on. In the inner-city village of Sogi, there are major shoreline pollution and effluent issues given that the village is situated on swamplands. The disparate village administrations of Apia has resulted in a lack of a unified and codified legislative approach to sewerage disposal. The relatively high growth in vehicle ownership has resulted in traffic congestion in the inner city streets and the need for major projects in road-widening and traffic management. The PUMA legislation sets up the Planning Urban Management Authority to better manage the unique planning issues facing Apia's urban growth.

An area of reclaimed land jutting into the harbour is the site of the multistorey government offices and the Central Bank of Samoa. A clock tower erected as a war memorial acts as a central point for the city. The new market (maketi fou) is inland a bit at Fugalei, where it is more protected from the effects of cyclones. Apia still has some of the early, wooden, colonial buildings which remain scattered around the town, most notably the courthouse, with a museum on the upper floor. Recent infrastructural development and economic growth has seen several multi-story buildings being built in the city. The ACB/NBS building (2001) houses the Accident Compensation Board, the National Bank of Samoa, and some government departments. The mall below it is home to shops and eateries. The Samoatel building (2004) which is the site for Samoa's international telecommunications hub was built inland at Maluafou, again to protect it from the effects of seasonal cyclones. The newest addition to Apia's skyline is the DBS building (2007) which houses the Development Bank of Samoa.

Writer Robert Louis Stevenson spent the last four years of his life here, and is buried on Mt. Vaea, overlooking both the city and the home he built, Vailima, which is now a museum in his honour.

Apia Harbour is by far the largest and busiest harbour in Samoa. International shipping with containers, LPG gas, and fuels all dock here. Ferries to Tokelau and American Samoa depart from here.

Apia is served by a good road network, which is generally kept reasonably well maintained. Most of the main roads are sealed; the unsealed roads have lower use. Vehicles drive on the left-hand side of the road since 7 September 2009.[9] Speed limits are 25 mph (40 km/h) near the centre of town and 35 mph (56 km/h) in the rest of the country with a 15 mph (24 km/h) limit in special circumstances. The country has no trains or trams, but is served with an extensive bus service. People commonly walk around the town, or even for some distances outside it. There are few bicycles and motorcycles, but increasing numbers of privately owned cars which cause traffic congestion in the inner city. Taxis are a common form of transport. The small airstrip in Fagali'i, which was used for internal flights and some international flights to Pago Pago in American Samoa has now been closed. The main international airport, Faleolo International Airport, is a 40-minute drive west of the city.