PNG Islands and Highlands: Madang

Welcome to our last blog post for this trip! I can't believe we've finished already.

We flew from Mt Hagen to the beautiful coastal town of Madang. Every time we've flown in PNG we've had to go via Port Moresby, even if the destination isn't far away, and this time was no exception. We got to know our way around the domestic terminal at Port Moresby very well!

The place we stayed in at Madang was wonderful. We had a room overlooking the sea (the sea was surprisingly rough and wild while we were there) and the place was set in manicured gardens. It was soooo hot again though.

From our balcony we could see just how many guards the place had. There was a guard box where they could shelter from any bad weather but mostly the guards would sit at various locations checking things out. We could see three just along the front of the hotel - there were more at the back. Every hotel we stayed at had guards. Mostly they were older men and they didn't seem to be armed in any way so I'm not sure how effective they are but guarding is a huge business here.

We explored the town. There was a lovely walk along the coast into town and these beautiful water lillies were in a dam at a golf course. I was selective with my photography position here though - the golf course was strewn with plastic bags and other rubbish from people picnicking on the beaches opposite.

Nearby was this amazing banyan tree. Someone said it was 300 years old, although who knows how old it really is. It was incredible.

This was John's first dive for the whole trip. He hadn't dived for a long time and the dives he did this day were quite easy so they were perfect for him to get the feel of it again. I snorkelled while he dived.

Divers have to rest for an hour between dives so we pulled up at a beautiful beach on an island. The others stayed on the boat but I got out and explored. I loved the fact that mine were the only footprints in the sand.

I snorkelled around here and saw this fish. I'm not sure what it is - it could be a filefish. It was swimming vertically. 

There were the densest clusters of Christmas tree worms here that I've seen the whole trip. They were spectacular! I wonder why they always seem to grow in pairs.

We moved a bit further along Pig Island, the island we'd been diving around. The coral and fish life here were amazing. Sadly, the weather was a bit unsettled and the day was overcast so visibility wasn't perfect.

Right near the end of my last snorkel I saw a black-tipped reef shark - my first for this trip. Five minutes later I saw another one.

After we finished snorkelling and diving, for the first time in the lowlands, I was cold. John went hunting for food at the local fish market. I think he bought out half their produce!

They fry up fish, squid, different bananas, yams, sago cakes, breadfruit, sausages and potatoes. It was a coronary nightmare but this is staple take-away fare. The plastic bag on the stick is the fly-swisher.

Something that we've seen in every country we've visited this trip is people checking each others' hair for lice. It's just a part of life in many countries.

In the huge old trees that line some of the streets in Madang, fruit bats have moved in. They're huge! We didn't see them fly out at dusk but it must be quite a sight.

There was a butterfly sanctuary near Madang that I really wanted to see so we took a short tour there. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to get close to the butterflies as they just fly around a garden. Instead of getting great photos all I got was attacked by mosquitoes.

We then went on to a lovely village right on the beach. The thatched buildings were gorgeous once again.

We saw this huge, hand-made boat. Apparently it was just made for one anniversary celebration then never used again. I couldn't quite understand how this boat worked until I saw something about it at the local museum later that day.

This is a photo at the museum of the same boat. An entire structure had been built on top of the boat that people could shelter under. It was amazing!

Back at the village we got chatting to the locals and they were lovely. On the left is our guide - his name is Busy Bee! The guy on the right was a villager whose teeth were so damaged by betel nut that they were more black than red.

At another place they found the caterpillar of one of the larger butterflies. It looks dangerous!

We also saw where part of the movie "Robinson Crusoe" was filmed in the '90s. This is Man Friday's grave.

At the same place there was a sulphur creek flowing out of a cave. The cave had formed in a huge sheer wall that was an old coral reef many years ago. The sulphur creek smelled bad but it looked pretty!

The tour wasn't really anything very exciting but Busy Bee happened to mention that he was going to feed the cuscus and tree kangaroos back at the hotel he worked at. We keenly followed along.

The cuscus wasn't too keen to come out of its little house but food brought him partly out. This is the first one we've seen, although we've seen many skins of them on costumes! How adorable is that face?

Next door were two tree kangaroos. Yep, these are related to Aussie kangaroos but they live in trees.

Back at our hotel we found these crowned pigeons. What spectacular birds!

There was also a pair of parrots but the female was sitting on eggs.

So we didn't finish our trip on an exiting note but it was lovely all the same.

PNG was one of the most amazing countries we've ever visited. The people are so friendly and so happy. They're always smiling and laughing. We could start talking to anyone and soon we'd all be laughing about something. The only country we can think of where the people are so happy and funny like this is Ghana, in Africa. No other country comes close. I suppose we're biased towards the English-speaking countries, though.

The strong culture throughout this country is unsurpassed. We've never experienced anything like it. The way people are so much in touch with their traditions is so unusual in the 21st century. Kids are being included too so there is little risk of many traditions being lost. Regional variety in costumes, beliefs and rituals is enormous. Seeing a cultural show has to be one of the most amazing experiences we've ever had. Keep in mind that these shows are for locals, not tourists. Yes, shows can be put on for tourists, but the regional shows are for the people and are absolutely amazing.

PNG is such a unique country. It's not cheap though. Expect to pay about Aussie prices. I would highly recommend it to anyone that doesn't necessarily need flash transport or accommodation. Be prepared to rough it a bit as the whole country, especially the Highlands, is a bit rough around the edges. Some places are like a real-life last frontier and that is an experience in itself.

The lack of tourists, particularly Aussie tourists, is amazing. I can only assume that the reasons for this are that it is perceived to be a dangerous country and that it's expensive. It's also hot in many places and not easy to get around sometimes.

Seriously, these are not good enough reasons to stay away! This country has to be seen to be believed. Of course, you should be aware of where any problematic areas are, bit we didn't even feel unsafe let alone experience any problems.

So it's time to head home again. We're very much looking forward to catching up with family and friends. We're coming back in time for the Tiges to be in the finals so it'll be an interesting September. We're not looking forward to the weather though!

Thanks to those of you who followed our adventures and kept in touch. It was great to hear from you.

'Til next time.
Heather and John

PNG Islands and Highlands: The Highland Shows

Hello again.

Picking up from my last blog post when we were at Goroka, we checked out the local museum. It was pretty good. There was one small section showing items that are worn for special occassions. There were some cuscus scrotum necklaces worn by women for marriage! Also on display were some necklaces worn during periods of mourning. In some regions, fingers are cut off the dead person then smoked over a fire. They are then worn by the person in mourning for a few months until the mourning period is over. They then stop wearing it - and we were told they then forget about the person and get on with their lives! This clashes a bit with the concept of worshipping ancestors though. We often find that information is unclear.

The most interesting part of the museum though was the huge photo collection taken in the 1930's by Mick Leahy, one of the Australian brothers who first explored the Highlands. It was amazing to see locals in their native costumes which look just like they do at the shows today.

We were given a short tour around the town which strangely included a close inspection of the local university. I think they're pretty proud of it. We all laughed at this sign inside the uni - this wouldn't last five minutes in an Aussie uni!

We also checked out the Goroka Market. We had seen a lot of markets by this stage so we weren't too fussed about it but I dragged Luke, our main guide, to the clothes section. We had to have a guide come along with us - it was 'too dangerous' to go by ourselves, which was rubbish but we went along with it. We were walking through the clothing area when Luke suddenly said it was dangerous and we had to leave. I thought he was over-reacting, as this seems to happen a lot, but we suddenly smelled marijuana. That must be what concerned him. I know they have to look after us but they're almost paranoid about any small thing that might harm us. I guess we are their responsibility though.

The small of marijuana drifted through the colourful clothing section.

A woolly-hatted maket seller.

Just some random guy who wanted to meet us and say hello. I love his grizzled face.

Thomas, Claudia, John and I decided to have a night out at a nice hotel in town. We almost had to hide the fact from our over-protective guys that we were going to walk two blocks in the dark to get home afterwards. We had a lovely night and of course it was as safe as anywhere else when we walked home. In fact, the streets were almost deserted. We had a wonderful night out with good food and wine. Claudia and Thomas are great people and we have a lot in common.

The next day we drove back up the beautiful, but rough, Highlands Highway to Mt Hagen.

Back at Mt Hagen, we had a 4am start the next day to go birdwatching. We joined a Chinese group of passionate bird photographers, plus a group of three people that I mentioned in my last post that we dubbed 'the whingers'. These are people who booked through the same one-man company as us who have complained about everything possible since they arrived. We climbed up a steep hill in the dark. Near the top, one of the whingers complained to our lovely guides and the Chinese birdwatching group that this was a birdwatching trip and they needed to be quiet. As if the birdwatchers needed to be told this! When they did it again, John couldn't hold back any longer and gave them a piece of his mind. Needless to say things were a bit tense but we just kept out of each others' way and it was fine.

We were up on the mountain to see birds of paradise. It was freezing to start with but we could hear the bird calls around us. Soon a bird of paradise came within photographing distance and the Chinese cameras went berserk. We thought the gear they had was incredible.

Some of the Chinese seemed to have porters to carry all their gear around. Some of these 'porters' were actually taking the photos for them as well! We watched in amazement as one porter/guide set up the camera and tripod, found the bird and took the photos. When the girl owner came to see how he was going he had the camera set up in exactly the right position and she just pressed the shutter. When she played back through the photos that the guide (and she - kind of) had taken she was so excited she was almost crying with happiness!

Having said that, the Chinese were lovely. They showed us the photos they took and we had a few very stilted conversations, sometimes through translation apps on their phones.

Paul, our birding guide, fixing a broken tripod leg, PNG style.

After about 5 hours or so we saw two birds of paradise. They were nowhere near close enough for me to photograph with my little camera but we saw them through binoculars. I've pinched these photos from the internet.

King of Saxony. If you look closely at the head-dresses at shows you will see plenty of those long feathers. They're quite distinctive. You'll also be pleased to know that those head-dresses are very valuable and are handed down through the generations, so new birds are not killed each time. The locals here are now starting to understand the importance of birding tourism and aren't killing so many birds either.

Princess Stephanie. This bird's distinctive tail made it easy-ish to spot.

Paul's son, Jonah, was great. At 12 years old he knew all the birds and their calls and he was a bright kid. He only wore a t-shirt and shorts though and no shoes, so he froze as we stood on the mountain so I lent him my coat.

On the way down, we passed this house with unusual colours on its woven walls.

The next day was the Paiya mini-show. Paiya is the village our tour guy, Pym, comes from so he organises a small show the day before the big Mt Hagen show. The village is beautiful - all neat lawns and flowers surrounding gorgeous thatched roofed houses. It sits on a peninsula overlooking beautiful valleys.

We arrived in time to watch the preparations happening. It was interesting to see people start off looking 'normal' then transform into stunning tribal dancers.

I'm not sure these tattoes are very traditional!

The head-dresses were spectacular.

There was a row of pigsties nearby. The pigs were very friendly!

Note the feathers through the pierced nose.

A lady 'in mourning'.

This group of boys were striking. Their paint was a mix of burnt tyres and oil!

It's great that kids get involved.

A mumu (meat and vegetables cooked under the ground) was being prepared for the workers and smoke drifted over a group of performers.

Another cool costume.

These skeleton dancers were very different to ones we had seen before.

We stood near a very quiet tethered bull while we ate some corn on the cob and the bull did everything it could to get at the corn! We gave it the leftovers.

At every show or performance we see, they are always selling stuff like masks, bags etc. I assumed this was only for the tourists until I saw these wigmen buying a new shell necklace.

They had a few traditional things set up in the village for us to see. This house held skulls of ancestors.

The village chief.

This wigman showed us how he makes a wig with his own hair!

After the show there was a demonstration of how a bride price is worked out. First of all they showed two rival groups 'fighting' over some land. It was agreed that the way to settle the dispute was to arrange a marriage between the tribes. A suitable bride and groom were found, then the groom's family had to supply pigs and shell money in exchange for the bride. 10 squealing pigs were brought out plus special shell money. The local actors spoke in the local language, so we couldn't understand what they were saying, but apparently they were arguing that the bride was worth more than 10 pigs and the offered shell money. Apparently what they said was very funny!

For all Pym's organisational faults, he did try hard to please. When we couldn't see the football on the TVs at our hotel, he took us down to the fancy hotel and picked us up again at 10.30pm, even though he had just had a huge day organising the mini-show. And yes, the Tiges won again!

The next day was the famous Mt Hagen Show. Again, we got there early to see the preparations. There were maybe 50 groups on display. They all marched into the arena in spectacular style but didn't stay long. I've tried very hard to limit the number of photos here so I don't bore you!

It's easy to forget that all these performing women have babies and children that need attention!

One group had decorated arms and legs.

Part way through the face painting.

Arriving at the show in style.

This group looked like shrubs from the back.

This group of small boys was hilarious. They had their heads shaved to look bald then had hair glued to their faces to look like beards. The result was so funny!

A lady tried to sell me some bird of paradise feathers. Of course I didn't want them but it was the first time I had looked closely at them. To my amazement, the rest of the bird was still attached! Somehow they dry the whole bird! After that I paid attention and realised that many head-dresses had whole birds in them. Ewww!

Two mudmen groups were there. This mask had human teeth.

Chicken feathers and curly wire.

This group had a unique head action!

There were paintings on sale. The topic of the ones in the centre was unusual!

A nose-plate and King of Saxony feathers. 

We hadn't seen this sort of dance before.

Unusual head-dresses....

Lots of chicken feathers.

This group had the best face-painting and brightest colours.

The whole show was a riot of colour.

Stripey people. 

As the stripey people passed me, I realised that some of them had fires on their heads! I later heard an amazing story about this group. A friend saw these people on the showgrounds. They were cooking live spiders on those fires on their heads and eating them! Our friend refused their offer to join in at first but eventually did it! He took a video of it. I was almost sick just watching. I went back out to see them but they had already left. Most groups didn't stay long at all.

More amazing colour.

Two groups that stayed longer than the others were the 'string bands'. Yes, they had guitars but the amazing thing was that they had bamboo poles cut into specific lengths that they hit with thongs! The results were amazing. 

If you listen closely to this you can hear the sound of the thong-pipes. They sound like a walking base.

 Other sing sing groups joined in the fun and so did we. What a great way to end the day!

Typical of the lack of organisation of this 'tour', we had two buses to take us all out to the show but only one to take us back. People had different ideas about what time we were supposed to leave and the Chinese started getting grumpy. Luke, our main guide, turned up just as we were trying to squeeze us all into the bus. He immediately pulled 'his group', Thomas, Claudia, John and I, out and we went in the staff car. It turned out to be a good thing. Apparently, some of the others had arranged to see tea and coffee plantations while others thought they were doing different things. When they realised the bus was heading in the wrong direction for them, the Chinese went berserk and there was a huge argument on the bus. It was very unpleasant for those caught up in it all. Meanwhile, we were happily singing songs in the Landcruiser with the staff!

It was our last night in the Highlands so we decided to go to a flash hotel as it was the only place in town where we could have a drink. We had met many wonderful people on this Highlands trip - Andrea and Karen from the US, Gareth from Canada, Ellie from PNG (the only PNG tourist we met!) and Romaine from Jamaica - and we wanted to say goodbye. We were joined by a few of our local crew and had a good night. We still spent most of our time with Thomas and Claudia but they were doing something else this night.

On our final morning we said a sad goodbye to our local crew. Luke had been our guide for a good chunk of our trip. He was a bit of a serious guy but we got on well with him. 

We also will miss Andrew, our driver, and Wannie and Joshua, the great cooks. All of the staff were great. I don't know why they never smile in photos. Andrew was great value.

The Highlands was an incredible region to visit. The towns are dirty and dusty. Mt Hagen has to be one of the most unattractive towns we've ever visited. Rubbish is strewn everywhere, pigs and dogs roam the streets, scavenging through the rubbish, and nothing is ever clean. Thes photos are taken along the main street of Mt Hagen.

Our accommodation was built around a central car park so the cars would always be guarded. (Every place we've stayed in has guards.) Many people were getting up to go birding or doing other activities very early in the morning though so it was not a great place to get a decent sleep. Our accomodation was surrounded by a high fence topped with razor wire. Alcohol and drunk drivers are a problem. One evening while we were talking in the car park we suddenly heard an awful screeching noise. A drunk driver had turned into our gateway and sideswiped his car along the gate. He then couldn't work out how to reverse out of the problem and caused more damage to his car. Pym didn't bat an eyelid about the damage to his gate though.

Get a few kms outside of the towns though and the land is transformed. Pretty, clean villages nestle in lush green settings. Gardens and crops dot the land and thatched roofed houses are the norm. It is truly beautiful and spectacular country.

No matter where we go though, the people are amazing. They are probably the most friendly people we have ever met. This is in stark contrast to all the safety warnings we hear. Everyone is so helpful and welcoming yet they keep warning us about 'raskols' and tell us not to walk after dark. We certainly saw no sign of trouble. Tribal warfare is certainly still an issue and to get caught up in that is definitely a problem.

Our Highlands adventure was truly amazing. The shows were incredible, the people were so warm and welcoming and we had fun meeting other tourists with similar interests to us. We had such a great time!

Cheers,
Heather and John