Apia is the capital of Samoa, an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. Located on the northern coast of Upolu Island, it is the country's chief port. The city's commercial activities center on the export of copra (dried coconut meat), bananas, cocoa, and coffee.
Photograph:Vailima, former home of the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, in Apia, Samoa.
* Vailima, former home of the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, in Apia, Samoa.
Vailima, the former home of Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, sits on a hill overlooking Apia. It now serves as the residence of the head of state. Stevenson is buried at Mount Vaea, on the southern outskirts of the city. The Apia Observatory and the legislative council chambers are on the Mulinuu Peninsula, which divides Apia Harbor from Vaiusu Bay.
Apia developed into a port after the arrival of European missionaries and traders in the mid-19th century. On March 16, 1889, a severe typhoon destroyed three German and three U.S. warships at Apia. During World War II, United States Marines were stationed in the city. Apia was made the capital of Western Samoa in 1959. (Samoa officially dropped “Western” from its name in 1997.) Population (1999 estimate), 38,000.
