School and PNG area

Friday we stayed nice and close to the Bible college, so the driving (less being in the back of a very hot vehicle) was short. A definite bonus! We stopped by a school. Was it 9 mile, or 14 mile? It is run by the church, and has just started recently. They have kindergarten, grade 1 and 2. I think they were hoping to add grade 3 next year. The classroom is also the church.

Classes are taught in English (this is very typical for PNG) so it was neat to see some familiar books on the table! Because the school is for lower grades, it is closed for Friday, as the work for the younger grades is done by Thursday. I think Timothy then does gardening work, but maybe there was something else that he takes care of, he keeps busy, either way!

The teacher (Timothy?) sleeps in the tent, so he is ready early to clear out the pews and pull in what is needed to turn the church into school.

 It was neat being able to look through his supplies. He sure has very little to work with, and must really maximize his materials! He was very excited to tell us about his work.

 The garden there by the church and school

This house next to the church may belong to a church going family. We chatted a while there. I was still feeling a bit off, and Melanie wasn't tops. So I sat down and read the bag of chicken feed that was laying there...wondering if it was there for some local chickens, or the sack being hung on to for lugging goods. I guess it would still be held on to for future use, things get reused a lot in PNG!

We also visited a coffee shop. It was very interesting to go to after having been at the school. First of all we get ushered into the parking spot by no less than three guards...and the parking lot can fit at most 5 cars. Then we get in the entry way of the coffee shop, and once we are passed this additional barrier we are in a cool and relaxed climate that could be a coffee shop just about anywhere else. Such a contrast from where we were 20 minutes before. Like when we were in the restaurant, we wonder, where do the locals who work in these fancier places live? Are they working in here and then going home to bare walls and a dirt floor...maybe not even a mattress? It was hard to leave the coffee shop back into the heat, but we managed it.

 The local market was a must to go visit. Here was the selection of colourful "meri blouses" that I'd wished I'd had days ago. They are very light functional shirts that breath very well in the heat. They were made popular by missionaries back in the day when tops were not to be found on most local women. Having them bright and not too overbearingly stuffy to wear made it less of a challenge for the women to adopt them as daily wear.

 So many beautiful shirts! I regret only buying one. I was trying to be modest. (haha)

 There were lots of cool handmade products here. So we picked up a few so that we had a few touristy things to take home.

 Our next stop was the local fish market. It was very neat to check out. I wonder how expensive it would be to get fish here on a regular basis.

 This whole building (you can see about half of it) is full of tables with fish and other seafood for sale. And every person at the stand has a leaf or fan to keep the flies off of their goods.

 Across the water are some fascinating houses on stilts. Must feel nice and cool on the hot days...but when storms come in, I'm not sure I'd want to be living there.

 At the entrance was a group of guys singing. It sounded really nice!

 The local kids were smart to jump in and cool off. But I wasn't' as sure when I saw all the garbage that was floating around where they were swimming. But then again, tomorrow I'll think that this was clean water, comparatively.

Just past the swimmers is a row of men who are ready and willing, for a small price, to scale your fish for you. There is a steady stream of water flowing over their work surface, washing away the scales into the water. It probably drifts right to where the kids are playing in the water. Maybe they go home smelling fishy.

 It's a busy place inside.

Such a lot to see!

 These fish may have been swimming freely among coral reefs a few hours ago...or maybe a day or two. I am no expert at telling the freshness of fish. I swam next to fish like these! They didn't look so brightly coloured then, but now that they are out of the water you can tell how vivid they are.

 It's fascinating to see such a lot of variety.

 What a variety of tastes you must get from all this different selection. Too bad I wouldn't know how to cook any of it!

 Along the coast a few minutes drive we go.

 Here is a beach that the college students go for outings occasionally. The sand is trucked in, apparently. We've never seen anything like it anywhere else in PNG (not that we've travelled over much of it, though). What an expense...we can think of a lot better uses for the government to spend it's money on. We discuss this with the very new APEC building gracing the background. I'm not sure it was quite complete for the summit it was built for. And it was used (in grandeur) for, at most, a week. Now it is empty. Another tragic waste of money...a frustrating lack of vision on long term functionality. We are thinking or road works, hospitals, more education....so many places where money would bring back long term benefits.

On the beach are some traditional boats that were made and set up for a festival that passed recently. Traditionally the people from PNG would take a long trip to some islands nearby (maybe the Solomon Islands?) to trade for food. The festival is a celebration of their safe return home. Since the weather is risky and the natives on other islands potentially hostile, it is a great relief and celebration when the men return home. The food is needed badly by the time they arrive back too!

 

 The apartment style buildings look so odd next to the smaller shack-like houses. Sharp contrasts are everywhere, the rich are very rich, while the average PNGer is getting by with very little.

 We stopped by the Kokoda Trail Memorial Cemetery. Lots and lots of crosses. It's maintained beautifully.

What a lot of people died along the trail. It is humbling to think of how these men gave everything. It was a very tough fight for them through very rough conditions. And here I am feeling that a loss of some of my comforts (like cooler air and improved health) is so important.Perspective.