A visiting New Zealand resident is in awe of the Catholic Church’s Mulivai cathedral, especially its interior design.

Joseph Peters, who was originally born in India and moved to Auckland where he has stayed for over 20 years, told Samoa Observer that he enjoyed seeing the interior design of the church when he visited the cathedral.

"Last Wednesday I went down to the cathedral for the Ash Wednesday mass in the afternoon, and I really admired the art in the cathedral," he said.

Currently a guest of the Taumeasina Island Resort, Mr Peters accompanied his wife who is duty travel to Samoa for a foreign embassy.

He said he is enjoying his stay at the resort due to the hospitality of the staff.

"I know most of these employees and they have been very helpful to me, they are very friendly.”

A devout Catholic, he said he did the church’s ‘stations of the cross’ ceremony while he was at the resort.

The Auckland resident said he is fascinated with how Samoans are family-oriented.

"Samoa is such a beautiful country, I love how it is family-oriented and also the big houses (faletele) in front of some family homes is just fascinating to see, really love it," he added.

Mr Peters said he has made a lot of friends and met new people which has made his one week stay in Samoa memorable.

The Mulivai Cathedral or Immaculate Conception Cathedral was built on the site of the original Catholic Church which was constructed in 1857. The current church was damaged in an earthquake in 2009 and underwent a three-year restoration and extension program and was reopened to the public in June 2014.