It was time to leave East Timor and head to Papua New Guinea. To get there we had to take the most ridiculous series of flights. First we boated from Atauro to Dili, then flew from Dili to Darwin to Brisbane to Port Moresby to Rabaul to Kavieng! The flights took about 25 hours including stops. I got a few hours sleep, John got none. I had a rotten cold, which developed into a chest infection. The flights were not good on my ears. As soon as we landed in Darwin I spent a fortune buying almost every decongestant in the airport (it's a small airport). It was just enough to get me through the flights.
As we flew from Rabaul to Kavieng we had great views over volcanoes, active and dormant. The active one is the burnt hill on the left of the photo.
The sun set as we headed along the coast of New Ireland.
We have come to PNG for a number of reasons - for the snorkelling, the people, the strong cultures and the famous cultural shows in the Highlands. One of the reasons we came to Kavieng was to ride bikes down the Boluminski Highway. This is a fairly flat, little-used road that runs down the length of New Ireland, one of the main islands here. It's supposed to be great.
We landed in Kavieng in the evening. We stepped off the plane at the small airport and were almost knocked off our feet by the heat and humidity. I think it took about two minutes before John and I were both thinking the same thing - how on earth are we going to cycle a few hundred kms in this heat? We soon learned it has been unusually wet. It rained most days we were here.
Our accommodation was basic but good. Our room was comfortable enough, except for the bed. I had to wriggle into the spaces between the springs in the mattress. We tried the bikes out on our first day and they weren't great. My chest infection wasn't improving plus I then got my first dose of travellers' belly for the whole trip, so it was a pretty simple decision to abandon the bike ride. Fortunately, other things we wanted to see were still happening so we re-jigged our plans and set about exploring our first experiences of PNG.
First up was the market. We soon realised how friendly everyone is - and they speak English! We thought we'd have to learn Pidgin, but English is widely spoken here. Within minutes of arriving at the market we had made friends. This group of ladies were such characters.
John asked about buying a t-shirt. We didn't buy one but did make another friend!
I love the way that everyone uses baskets and bags made from palm leaves and other natural products. These are sweet potatoes for sale in their own baskets.
The market was bright and colourful.
These bright hand-made hats were for sale but we didn't see anyone wearing them.
I had been looking for a sarong ever since we started this trip and I finally found some! I bought the blue and purple one second from the left.
This guy was selling tobacco. Many people here just love getting their photo taken. I asked this guy if I could take his photo and soon he was dragging his friends in to get their photos taken too!
We left the market and explored the local European cemetery where Boluminski, a German local district officer and builder of the highway, is buried. While we were there we found this grave below. I would love to know Sarah's story!
John's phone won't work here so we bought a sim card for my phone. This meant I could keep in touch with mum about dad. As I write this dad is still in hospital. It took them ages to find out what was wrong with him - he had an infection inside his knee! I've been umming and ahhing about going home to see him, but my chest infection was the deciding factor. Dad couldn't afford to catch my cold. Both mum and dad have had a pretty tough time over the last month or so and I just wish I could have been there.
We had some easy days while I got better (plus we had couple of huge days which I will cover in a separate post) then we decided we would still see the Boluminski Highway, only this time by car. The guy who owns our accommodation, John Knox, also runs simple tours, so he took us for a drive down the highway in his old 4WD.
We started down the old highway first, where a beautiful dirt road wound along the coast, passing through gorgeous simple villages along the way. Most villages were really just a cluster of houses belonging to one extended family. They often had huge, shady trees to relax under.
Nothing spells tropics like palm trees.
Houses were made from a mix of natural products and sometimes had corrugated iron roofs. Those close to the beach were built on sand and those a little further away had neatly kept grass around them. Most places were really tidy and clean. There were few fences. If any border was required between the road and the houses it was usually a row of red, yellow and green croton plants which was lovely.
On the main highway, we stopped for a look at The Tree House. Built by a New Zealander, this was an amazing construction built right into a huge tree. Sadly, it's falling down now.
Our destnation was the eel lady. We weren't too excited about paying to see eels but Noxie told us it was good so we did it. First we had to buy three tins of fish to feed them. We waded into a crystal clear river then a lady swished the fish around to attract the eels. Sure enough, huge, fat eels started appearing from under logs and branches. They were strange things - fat with large heads. One rubbed up against John's leg like a cat. We both touched them. They felt incredibly smooth and slippery (a lot like those stingrays in Caye Caulker, Courtney and Connor).
We got talking to the old lady who started this up. She used to travel a lot when she was worked for Air Nauru and was telling us about her favourite places in Melbourne to visit!
Noxie then took us to the cave where his father was imprisoned during the war. There are war stories and relics all through PNG. His father was half white so for that crime he was rounded up and imprisoned in a Japanese camp. The campground is now a palm oil farm. To get to the cave we had to go through really muddy, jungly stretches.
We then got out and continued on foot. To cross a small, muddy stream we had to drop wooden planks across.
We used vines to pull ourselves up slippery hills and clambered through the lush, green undergrowth. I felt like it was a real jungle adventure! Finally we reached the cave.
Noxie told us his father's story. After he was imprisoned, he was accused of stealing a pistol. He was sentenced to be beheaded the next day. Somehow, he managed to escape and ventured into the cave system to hide. He had no idea where the caves led to but he had to take the risk that they led somewhere. He eventually found his way out and was looked after by villagers.
It's hard to see in the photo below but there's a flat rock jutting out over a small drop. This is where prisoners were executed. They were blindfolded and stood on the rock. The Japanese would chop their heads off with a sword. It's such an awful story in such a beautiful location.
We left the cave and Noxie told us more about New Guinean culture. New Guineans are very superstitious people. Plants are often used to ward off evil spirits. This particular plant below has great significance. If it's tied into a bundle and hung somewhere it means that nobody else is allowed to go there. It's a very powerful symbol. John Knox was once helping some people clear some land to build a house. They turned up one day and there was a bunch of this plant hanging from a tree. Somebody else felt that this was their land. The house never got built.
Mining is a huge industry in PNG. When the giant Lihir gold mine was expanding, workers turned up to work one day to find a bunch of this plant hanging somewhere. They all refused to work, and there were hundreds of them. It turns out that there was an ownership dispute over part of the land. This plant shut down the entire mine until the duspute was sorted.
We had lots of fun at our accommodation. The staff and fellow guests were good value. On our first night we met four English medical students who were there to work at a local hospital as part of their studies. The were lovely girls. From left to right, Hannah, Tatenda, Aruni and Bethany.
The staff were great. Sadly, I didn't get photos of people like Nicky (the driver and night guard) and Thomas (the day guard). This group of ladies were such fun.
The internet has been terrible here but I'll be back soon with a post about a couple of very special days we had. These have been a highlight of our trip!
Bye for now.
Heather and John
