Some Random Nath in PNG

Endings

2009-02-14T19:48:00.001+10:00

ANO_End3, originally uploaded by nathpng.

Went back to PNG last year for a bit. Went some way towards settling some of the restlessness I feel about the place since leaving. Some photo's still get'chya when you look back though! This was a good one after a year on the compound with these kiddles.

Slack!

2006-11-24T20:54:00.000+10:00

Back in Melbourne town, all goes so quickly.

Some ups, some downs - but mostly just a bit weird for a bit.

Winding up in the blogsphere for a little bit (next adventure in a few months methinks).

For all who read/read - - stay in touch on nathanmorsillo@yahoo.com.au

usual Media + PNG -

2006-09-08T08:31:00.000+10:00

but very well put in this particular Crikey linked article:

[Edited portion - by Chris Harries originally]

Let’s make one thing clear. Without question, PNG is afflicted with enormous development problems, amongst them the alarming spread of HIV-AIDS featured on the ABC program. Add to that a level of political corruption, uncontrolled exploitation of its resources by foreign multinationals, and many other problems experienced by developing nations everywhere. Exposure of these problems should not be censored.

Australian media stand accused, not of telling the truth about PNG, but of telling only a small fraction of the truth. The bits that titillate. The bits that feed our overbearing sense of cultural superiority. The bits that spare the Australian nation the knowledge of its own role in exacerbating, if not causing, many of Papua New Guinea’s development woes.

To put this tarnished image-making into perspective, imagine for a moment that media from a dominant foreign power, say Japan, came to Australia and reported on our nation to the world. And imagine if that reporting (done without sensitivity) honed in on the "stolen generation", the mindless ways we have destroyed our soils and river systems, the drug culture amongst youth in our cities. And imagine if this was the total image of our nation, projected to the entire world. No ability to redress or balance such a jaundiced, distorted image.

so melbourne

2006-09-07T17:09:00.000+10:00

so melbourne
Originally uploaded by alandot.

thanks for taking the photo Alan - excellent as always. Home soon...

Slack on the posts again...

2006-08-30T17:24:00.000+10:00

but only because I've put the pedal to the metal on the house-moving and workworkwork during the day. I'm across in my best-mate's place house-sitting with Lorena, a phd student studying some anthropolgy/development stuff. Work has less than 3 weeks to go now... which is surreal. All good however - even if there's no chance of getting everything you'd like to get done... well... done!

In between all that I've still managed the Mt Hagen show with a bunch of work/friends/etc. - staying with the Anglican wantoks up in Hagen. Aside from a 6 hour delay in the airport leaving to Hagen, it all went realy smoothly. Some pics up in the usual place (linked on the right of here). Also managed to spend 3-4 days solid battling one nasty malicious computer virus across all 7 workstations here in the office.

Back to work...

Peter T, son Ben & Wantok - Simon

2006-08-16T18:46:00.000+10:00

Peter T, son Ben & Wantok - Simon
Originally uploaded by nathpng.

Some people around my compound that I'd speak to pretty much every day.
I like this shot - these guys watch out for each other, and watch out for me a bit too. Simon (also day security) will innocuously (sp?)follow the occasional character into the office front counter, Peter T works across all our service areas, and Ben is Peter's son - good guy - helped me with translation of highlands-pidgen now and then.

Ever get an sms like this?

2006-08-16T16:23:00.000+10:00

[word for word]
---

From: **** **** (my accts clerk)

Hi gutmonin,a troubl-e occured last night & is tense. Its risky 4 me 2 walk 2 da bus stop--plis sent Gay if possible--

---

Turns out there was another killing & subsequent revenge killing last night, and was an extended family member of one of my staff. My Haus Meri came in and told me almost the exact same story (from the angle of someone living in the settlements, rather than one of the family members as accts clerk #1 is). Sent Gay this morning, I'm dropping her back tonight again.

The main reason that I'm writing this down now is that reading the sms's contents, and sending Gay, seemed like a pretty normal thing to have happen. Hmmm.

Seeing Red -: "How are the Neighbours doing"

2006-08-14T14:41:00.000+10:00

World Vision report thing is linked here.

4-corners tonight linked here.

That Red PNG line not looking too healthy.

[News Report] PNG failing on poverty targets

2006-08-14T08:52:00.000+10:00

[sent around by a friend earlier today from SMH]

Mark Metherell
August 14, 2006

PAPUA New Guinea, Australia's most pressing foreign aid priority, is the least likely of any country in the Asia-Pacific region to meet international goals to reduce its endemic poverty, disease and illiteracy.
A report published today by World Vision says PNG is unlikely to achieve any of eight targets set to halve extreme poverty in developing nations by 2015.
On five of these goals - poverty reduction, primary education, reduced child mortality, reversing HIV/AIDS and other diseases and access to clean water and sanitation - PNG is "significantly off track", the analysis shows.
In addition ABC's Four Corners will screen a program tonight that details how Papua New Guinea has one of the fastest-growing infection rates of AIDS/HIV but shows that vital drugs, bought by the World Health Organisation's Global Fund, are soon to expire and are sitting in a warehouse run by the Papua New Guinea Department of Health.
World Vision, Australia's biggest non-government aid organisation, has assessed the performance of 22 regional countries against the Millennium Development Goals established six years ago.
PNG has the highest percentage of 15 to 49-year-olds with HIV/AIDS and the lowest proportion of the population with access to clean water, 39 per cent.
Unlike virtually every other country in the region, the rate of primary school completion has declined, and at under 60 per cent is the lowest.
PNG, administered by Australia until 31 years ago, depends heavily for foreign aid on Australia, which gives about $350 million a year.
That figure has remained largely unchanged in nominal terms since the late 1980s, meaning its real value has been heavily eroded by inflation.
The World Vision report, How Are Our Neighbours?, found that all 22 countries were failing to meet some goals, and eight countries, including PNG, Laos, Cambodia and East Timor, needed priority assistance.

argh - feeling sick today

2006-08-14T07:56:00.000+10:00

Saturday night power down...

2006-08-13T10:22:00.000+10:00

Now it may seem that I’m going on about this power thing a bit, but don’t read any of these as a “whine” – maybe more as a reflection on how much electricity is taken for granted. It’s a novelty the first 5-10 times it's pitch black in Lae... then you get over it.

When you’re living by yourself, and the power is shut off on a Saturday night – certain things run through your mind. First, you listen out for the sound (sometimes belated) of generators starting up around the neighbourhood. This is important – as you want to know that (a) you haven’t just forgotten to put enough pre-paid units in this week to the power machine or (b) some bright spark hasn’t cut your power line whilst digging a hole on your compound or (c) raskols haven’t cut the line to your house (extreme, but I’ve been told the story). Then you do the pitch-black-I’m-still-in-the-downstairs-office shuffle trying not to trip or drop this laptop on the way. Laptop screen stays open, as it’s the only light source you have. [I used to keep a torch downstairs at the end of last year when black-outs seemed more common. Mental note to start that again]. Then you open the downstairs door to your office, laptop and crap underneath arm, and start the locking up. Remember not to flick the alarm switch on – as alarm will go off when power returns if you do. It’s (almost) pitch black, but good enough to distinguish the bunches of keys and key-hole direction. There’s a sound behind me, and I automatically swing around. It’s Peter Junior (6yo) – walking back towards the house in the dark, can hardly see him at 7 metres. Deep breathe. St*pid… haven’t had any real problems since arriving to PNG, but both previous GS’s did have ‘difficulties’, and you can’t get the stories out of your head when it’s dark and there’s no fences around your makeshift compound. Heart racing for no logical reason. Shuffle back upstairs and figure out the keys to get into the house part – turn off the switch to the rice-cooker which would have been half-way through. No dinner menu for me now – not keen to finish roasting/frying by candle-light for dinner. Hungry. Find matches. Light pre-arranged/placed candles in kitchen. Go to fridge, open fridge, take beer, open beer, sit in front of candle.

Fast-forward a half hour – it’s still v.dark, but mood is helped by the remaining candles (must remember to buy more) and the flickering light of the laptop computer in the middle of my dark living room.

Sms a friend with a message “You out of power as well?”. Undertones not necessarily identified, - regardless, friend immediately replies with “not sure, on the way home now though and about to cook – come around anyways”.

Electricity... alone in the dark is OK for a bit – but not whilst hungry on a Saturday evening.

The name is Bond, Daniel-Craig-Bond?

2006-08-12T09:59:00.000+10:00

Somehow I've been cc:ed on the rage built up about the new incarnation of the sleazy, slick, misoginist, sexy, un-killable (my) faviourite secret agent movie series. It made the Age the other day as well. Check out this Anti-Daniel-Craig website here... people going to some trouble. Anyone seen the more recent movie? (is it even out in Oz?). *cough* hasn't quite hit the "big screens" of Lae as yet...

And then you start looking again at Oz

2006-08-11T12:18:00.000+10:00

politics and such. With pieces of dirt legislation like this, one hopes that this will be successful as a campaign to stop this legislation...

Senator Fielding met with the Prime Minister to discuss the Bill this morning, but says he has not struck a deal with the Government.

"Australians want a strong system for determining who comes to Australia and who doesn't," he said.

"But also Australians want a fair system in that everybody is treated fairly and they're the issues that I'm weighing up, and also making sure that I've spoken to the key players on this issue."

Senator Fielding also met the Indonesian Ambassador this morning, a move that has angered Greens Senator Bob Brown.

Senator FF-Fielding (insert own acronyms match) should talk to the majority of the church groups who have been dealing with the repercussions of this (and previous) governments stances on Asylum seekers. The minimalist approach to the UN Refugee treaty we're in is a flaccid, nasty option to take.

Back without power again...

2006-08-11T11:58:00.000+10:00

Friday morning, around midday, and we've had power for about 1 hour this morning... that makes for a week of about 50/50 on the power-during-working-hours front. Have sent the staff off again for an early lunch, no use kicking around here, as have done most of what can be done without good light/electricity/ computers/phones/ faxes/etc.

Preparations continue apace for exit-Anglican Church of PNG and re-entry-Australia. Even find myself watching a little more 7:30 report and checking the Oz papers as well as the PNG ones again. Back on the ground and around in October to Melbourne.

Sunset off Loluatu

2006-08-08T06:59:00.001+10:00

Sunset off Loluatu
Originally uploaded by nathpng.

Did I mention that I was on an island for 3 days the other week? Paid for by Ausaid, 40+ PNG volunteers all in the same place for a bit. Niiiice place, good bunch of volunteers. Here's the coastal sunset no-one could resist taking a few shots of.

Anyone ever play SimCity where

2006-08-08T06:59:00.000+10:00

you didn’t plan enough power plants…? Lae has been like that for the past day or so. Word is that there are landowner issues (and people taken hostage?) out at one of the hydro-power stations – demanding more compensation. Yesterday morning around 3am the power was cut. I program an old alarm clock near my bed each time there’s a power cut, so that I can tell how long the power has been out when I wake up (usually a few minutes – blinking 12:03am). Then it came back in time to try using a toaster (then stopped – my toaster must have pushed it over the edge) – and was then off for all except 1 hour (or so) in the middle of the day. Now it’s gone off again at 5:30am whilst I was getting my NZ visitor onto the balus bus out of town - - and at 7am it’s not looking like a productive day coming up!

Makes for a long day of filing and cleaning up after the laptop batteries finally die for the day. Next developing country stint I am certainly, certainly lashing out on the bigger/longer battery life - - + a spare battery.

Right, less than 30 minutes battery life left on the laptop, and a few emails to pop out before then..

Oh yes -: BIRDMAN’S CREST!!!!!!!!!!!

More photo's up and about...

2006-08-07T09:29:00.000+10:00

Here!

Nath&Joyce

2006-07-23T09:27:00.000+10:00

Nath&Joyce
Originally uploaded by nathpng.

Joyce Pinia - superstar new accounts clerk who we've been training up in the office. Joyce always shows up for the extra trainings and stuff. If something had happened to her in that post about 5-8 posts ago... hmmm... anyways, staff are a little like family over here!

Nath&SimonMichael

2006-07-23T09:24:00.000+10:00

Nath&SimonMichael
Originally uploaded by nathpng.

Simon is the day security guard - I've posted about him before. He's a very good guy. Security guards up here make around K90 per fortnight. At 10hrs per day, and 14 days a fortnight, that's 0.64t - or approx. 30cents Australian an hour. Have become quite close to Simon, poro bilong me. Every single day of the week, he's outside or around - playing with the kids or chatting with the lads around the place. Taught me a good whack of my (halting) pigen also. Met the family and hopefully get to see his village if/when I get to Goroka for a final Jase/Eden go-finish soiree later in August.

(PS - that's the other side of my house/compound you can see in the background...)

back to it...

2006-07-19T16:01:00.000+10:00

Entering into the last few months is proving more difficult than getting through the previous 5. Little bit of lack of sleep via Cairns and Airlines PNG, but really to do with having reconnected “into” Melbourne – and it’s relationships, friends, family and lack of potholes - now psyching up for more busy-ness.

Plus it always s*cks a bit coming back from a holiday with a beautiful girl.

It’s the last lap – at least for 2007’s overseas jaunts. With 2 months or so left in the job and with people all around – lots of questions, and only some answers. These questions seem to apply equally (most times) to some work decisions coming up, and also to some other decisions en route to Melbourne again. But mostly I agonized quite a bit about coming back to Oz – based on some of these.

[Paraphrased from a little Edward Craig book]
Should you do “A” or not? Well… what will the consequences be if you do? What are the consequences for friends, family, and others, as well as those for yourself? And what if you don’t? How do the consequences compare? Alternatively, never mind the consequences for a moment, can you do “A” consistently with your own view of yourself – would it involve betraying ideals that till then you had valued and tried to live up to? How will you feel about having done it? Or again, however pleasant the consequences may be, would it run contrary to some duty, or some obligation you have incurred? Obligation to whom? – and might you be in breach of other obligations if you don’t do it? Do obligations towards friends and family take precedence over duties towards the State or vice versa? And if you have a religion, what might it say about the choice?

Luckily the Q&A’s about catching up with good friends for a beer back in Lae aren’t complicated! Best drop the think’in for a bit and get onto that now...

Some pics

2006-06-17T13:32:00.000+10:00

from that trivia night a whiles ago...

Still here...

2006-06-17T13:24:00.000+10:00

Just (feeling!) too busy to get anything down on paper! Monday of next week will be the first time in 2+ weeks that I will not have house guests. Having people around is great - but sometimes (when it's sooooo busy during every day) you need some quiet time away from it all.

So - Provincial (National) Council is now done with, 40+ Anglicans have been shipped across the country and back to attend... there are hand-written minutes to write from x3 meetings for which I find myself minutes secretary, actions items, 10+ letters to be written on behalf of various groups/people/bishops, now into the National Court with some other stuff, ausaid's year end is fast approaching - - and plenty, plenty more fun besides!

Anyhoo's - slack on the blog (but caring less and less) and up to date with the emails. I'm back visiting Oz (Melbourne + Syd briefly) in the 1st 2 weeks of July - hopefully catch some of you Ozzie-bound peoples then!

Sealab 2021

2006-06-03T15:10:00.000+10:00

Right. So I’d watched maybe one or two of these in the past at a close friend’s place. Now I’ve been given lots and lots and lots of the them by great mates in Goroka. For some reason I’ve avoided the TV for the past 3 weeks or so – but have watched 3 or 4 of these little 12 minute Sealab episodes… They are funny, funny stuff!

Trivia – What was that question?

2006-06-03T15:09:00.000+10:00

The annual Soroptamist (argh – more sp questions) Lae Trivia night was held last Saturday night at the Lae international Haus-Win. A larger than life trivia night was had by all.

Some pics to follow – there was red wine, friends, fun and freak’in hard questions. I think I helped with about… 2 of them. As a piano played I was once again stumped by the question about the white keys on a standard piano (*cough*), though I’m sure I’ve had to say ‘dunno’ at at least 3 trivia nights in the past.

Our team was beaten by 2.5 points across 20-odd tables, and we won some very warm sleeping bags for everyone. But did most people care much about the result by the end of the night?? Nah… good times with good peoples. Bigger nights out with a good crowd can be hard to come by in Lae – this was one of them!

And thank god we had Roger on the table.

The little customs…

2006-06-03T15:07:00.000+10:00

Today two of the mothers came to my door with some food (kukim bananas – (sp?), a hunk of pork and some fruits). I looked at them askance and said “thanks!, what’s that for?”.

The Mothers (senior women in the Mothers Union) explained that they were delivering the food on behalf of J who was stabbed last week. The family that has had some difficult times will normally get a large amount of food sometime afterwards. This will then be split up and distributed to those “who helped out/visited” during the tough times by some of the Mothers.

No idea if this is something Milne Bay (the wife), Oro (the husband), or just PNG. But I like the custom...

MAF_Mike&Cathy

2006-05-28T14:20:00.000+10:00

MAF_Mike&Cathy
Originally uploaded by NRMgoesPNG.

Mike & Cathy Jelliffe are running MAF out of Hagen at the moment... I've posted on MAF before, they do an amazing job for prices which (commercially) almost shouldn't be possible to places no-one else will fly. They put on a lovely meal and chatted with a (relative!) newpela to PNG. Hope to catch you guys again soon!

These are The Best Bit

2006-05-20T12:35:00.000+10:00

I just came back from a graduation last night of another 6 people from our little MYOB course (1 week).

OK - so because of power shortages during the day, the certificates for the end of the course graduation couldn't be printed until later in the afternoon. So it's now my Friday night that will be holding graduation. Have to say, I was B*ggered from the week of work/auditors/etc - so I was a little testy, but anyhoo's - drove out there (just past dark - out to 9 mile) in the Anglican Bus and sat down to dinner with the bunch.

They had LOVED the course. Lapped it up. 3 of them were up until 2:30am on the Thursday night finishing a larger excercise. For a few of them, of course, having power and a computer for more than 3 hours in a day (ie. when the generator is running at night) was a huge bonus.

How much do you think to run x2, 1 week courses for 13 people (altogether)?? Well. Let's just say it's well more than K20,000 when you add up the plane fares, boat fares, PMV, accom., meals, course fees, pick-ups form the wharf etc. It's a LOGISTICAL NIGHTMARE actually - and we only had x2 people over the course of the 2 sessions pull out/not be able to make it at the last moment. x3 of the Pariticipant were advised via Radio that the course was on - and to go to the airstrip at such and such a time. Annnnnyways - for those in PNG, will be going "yeah - so?" - but in Melb, you'd call all 14 on their mobile phones, give them a time, and hey-presto, you've got a training session. But as usual I digress.

I did some slik lik speech, and chatted some more with them all.

One of the bursars for a large highschool in the highlands had been working for 8 years with the Anglican Church/Matyrs - - this was the first time he'd been given training.

3 of the people at the course are bursars for schools of 600+ students. None of them are really using MYOB (one tries). I'm all for being careful about "appropriate technology" etc. - but for school's this large, there's no questions.

IT WAS SO GOOD THAT THEY GOT SO MUCH OUT OF IT. Really. Hmmm... hard to capture.

more random pickings - Burma

2006-05-20T12:21:00.000+10:00

Anyone stop by the Age and read Saturday's article on Burma??

Argh.

Excerpt:

Locals refer to living in Burma as being "on the inside", as if their whole country was a prison. Since 1988, at least 127 democracy activists have died in prison, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma).

This is Burma in 2006. When they talk about Big Brother here, they don't mean a television reality show. There are at least 1156 political prisoners, child labour is everywhere and the military regularly uses forced labour to carry supplies and munitions.

Where is Ms Suu Kyi in all this? Since 1989, she has spent a total of 11 years under house arrest. Her current detention, since 2003, is the strictest yet, isolated from all but her maid in the family home in Rangoon.

In the West, questions are raised about how relevant Ms Suu Kyi can be, locked away as she is. A road trip through Burma answers that question. The Lady, as she is known, because to speak her name aloud is dangerous, is the one figure who unites the rural poor and the urban elite. Leaders of the ethnic minorities respect her.

There is no other political opposition. Prior to the huge demonstrations of 1988, when more than 3000 civilians were massacred by the military, there had been periods of unrest every three or four years. Since the election and subsequent bloody crackdown, there have been no significant protests.

Lik Lik story from another AVI

2006-05-18T20:29:00.000+10:00

Another AVI in Lae that I've only managed to catch up with a few times posted a story on his website today that I thought I'd link to. It's about the passing away of a friend's eldest son.

Ummm - I wont say more than that, except that it's written fairly personally (it's his own mail/website) - so keep that in mind. I'll say no more, as it's not my story!

Here tis...

AAAHHH!!!!!!!!!! 2 robberies in 2 days of MY staff/people

2006-05-17T07:50:00.000+10:00

Joyce (accounts clerk, hired her in Jan of this year) and Stephanie (auditor just arrived today) were walking back from work towards Eriku together last night and were robbed. Just outside the Aviat Club there on Huon Road. Another (relatively) busy, open street – well before dark (around 5pm).

Right. So for those following the blog-sphere, you’ll have seen the previous post. I visited J yesterday and he’s sitting up and talking away, though very ‘stiff’ around the midriff. I’d say at least around 30 other people came to visit over the course of the day (I can see the cars going backwards and forth from my work window). Mother is still a bit unsettled, but it alright as well now.

So J’s getting better. X-rays showed that knife didn’t hit intestines or any other important bits swimming around in there. Thank God for that…

I spoke to Joyce last night... and she’s alright, though Stephanie has scratches on her face (?) and a few other minor injuries.

AAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

Retail Dangers – Lae

2006-05-15T16:22:00.000+10:00

I get a call this morning around 10:30am from the local parish priest (on my compound) saying that my next door neighbour/friend of mine has been shot.

“SHOT!?!?!?” (I said…)

[He’s alive/ok – I’ll get to that in a minute tho.]

Mental Aside: [I got that sick/sinking feeling in the stomach straight away. I’ve had “that sinking feeling” a few times in life – but this was another level again. Because this time it was also anger and frustration… Thinking: he’s got kids and he’s a nice guy and he’s a local business owner and he’s a good employer and, and, and… it’s just not fair!] Arrrrrgh! Right – off to the hausik.

Anyways, this guy is a good friend, a current cheque signatory for ACPNG, early 40’s, came to the work chrissy party lives in the next house to me on the compound - I work with him quite often. In fact, he’s one of the few people who (for example) was helping me somewhat with the last 6 months of legal shenanigans.

I just got back from the clinic where he’s at now. He was being sewn up when I went in the first time, and he was droopy, but complice the second time. Had a brief chat. Then I went and bought doughnuts for the 15 friends/family standing around outside the clinic and came back to work.

Right – so it turns out he was coming out of his business (he’s part owner of a 2nd hand clothes store) down at Eriku, and getting into the van out the front. Three guys came around the side all shooting pistols into the air. Eventually, one of the raskols has stabbed him once near the car – but thankfully not very deeply. I learned later this was during the snatch-and-grab of cutting his clothes/bag away from him. By the time I was called by the parish priest (20 minutes later or something), the story was that he’d been shot. Typical chinese whispers. But understandable since everyone heard shots, then there’s a guy bleeding from the stomach getting rushed away in a van. But he’s going to be OK.

Of course, the raskols made off with some cash.

If anyone was reading my Retail Therapy blog a week or so ago – that was the same strip, and Value City (that same store) was that store where I got the books and shoes the other week. Good store. Good man. Crazy b****rds...

A half decent West Papua article

2006-05-15T16:13:00.000+10:00

Check it out:

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2006/05/14/1147545204362.html

Or click here.

Christian Revivals, BBQ’s, Da Vanda and all sorts...

2006-05-14T11:57:00.000+10:00

Just Diarising again...

Reading for the week: Zadok & re-reading of “A Burnt-Out Case”. Exxxxcellent book. ppls – it’s on my shelf and finished if you want it.

Music for the week: Compliments of high-quality Gorokan AVI mates I have another 5GB+ of classic tunes to play with. Highlights include, but not limited to, RobD-Club to Death; Basement Jaxx; some Barry White; INXS; MoS (Hard NRG – black cover I bought ages ago and had stolen from car); Counting crows; more Daft Punk. Yay!

Sunday – PMV ride back from Goroka Coffee festival… then once back had a guy from our largest funding body (bar Ausaid) staying o/night with me for a few nights.
Monday – Dinner & chats with this same very nice guy from Oz. We cooked kau kau in coconut milk with highlands kumu (anyone in PNG know it’s English name?) + tuna steaks and talked work till late.
Tuesday – Yoti as usual. Pan fried Red Emperor with a side of SP.
Wednesday – Talked into drinks with a mate from 4pm with some of his business partners. Progressed into many drinks followed by 3-course dinner at the most expensive place in Lae with his boss and an Ausaid procurement/shipping guy. Big, big night.
Thursday – BBQ at a mate’s place. Steak & mash. Mmmm… red meat.
Friday – Worked late then a little escapism with WC3 (campaign on hard) & Scorched Earth (remember that one Anf?!?)
Saturday – made up numbers for a friend of a friend on a table for the “Christian Revival Centre’s” fundraising dinner (K100 per head which I didn’t pay). Actually was a well run dinner (200+ people). The new church they’re building will seat 2000, and will have accommodation and all sorts of things there. Must ring the head-pastor and ask what HIV things they’ve got going… or whether they need/want help. I have to look up on the web just what the CRC is all about generally… but nice crowd.

Heh – a good week of extra-curricula’s. It’s a tough volunteer life at the moment!

However interspersed with yet another overbearingly tricky week at work. Darn. Had a large… legal thing that’s been taking up all my time work-wise (but not something you’d blog about) which was decided against us last week – means more work and some other things. Still wrestling with this one and staff shortages, though lots of our partners overseas have been very good at helping in our recent recruitment drive.

The new AVI in-country manager is taking us out for dinner on Sunday evening – more chance to talk about the whole staff shortage thing then…

Heh – and finally tonight Muandu (night time sec. guard) is liking my guitar playing. Whenever I play 12-bar-blues he says it’s like how they play in Chimbu. Perhaps it’s the New Orleans of PNG up there? :-)

Goroka Coffee Festival-: Bilas & Balls

2006-05-11T15:50:00.000+10:00

Those zany Gorokan's...

The coffee festival draws a huge crowd and a large number of sing-sing groups (traditional dance/ceremonial groups). There were stands set-up by local schools, private companies, NGO's, medical research institutes... all sorts.

I was actually up there to (really) visit with AVI mates - but there was a ball and a festival with market stalls (yes! I wore black shoes and black pants for the 1st time in 6 months... not counting Flan's wedding perhaps).

Crazy weekend... the festival was half a foot deep in mus in parts and it was fun just trying to get around without going face-first into the mud. Had a tour guide (thanks Eden!) for the Sat.

Some great wekeend action amongst too much work otherwise! The photo's are up at the usual place if you're keen.

Hard to know which other bits to Blog... more about the mud?? 21 Nukes - just in case?? *grin* PMV ride back down the mountain in the pouring rain (x3 land-slips)?? Bilas, bilas, bilas... the photo's will have to do most of the work for now. Though the trip back was special in it's own PMV-like way:

Spent 1 hour or so finding a PMV on a Sunday morning around the Goroka market in the
heat (cold overnight, hot the next morning); 17 people squeezed into a van the size of mine; rained most of the way back (4+ hours); x3 land-slips since the Friday when I pmv'ed up there which brought the highway back to (barely) one muddy lane against the mountain-side all three times; driver smoked extra long spears and chewed buai (a process involving much hand-movement) the entire way whilst driving one-handed down some of the steepest bits of PNG. There was a kewl highlander dude from Kainantu who had some broken english next to me, and he took great delight in teaching me a little more pidgin for most of the trip back. Alllll good. Though the next day was a struggle!

And here was me thinking I'd get some catch-up sleep on the ride home...

I'm in the Paper!

2006-05-11T15:44:00.000+10:00

They got my position kinda wrong, and picked the worst bits of the speech i had to give, and didn't mention that it was the Church Partnerships Program (which is Ausaid, but they could have plugged our program)... but still!

Go you Anglicans...

Happpppy BIRTHDAY Mrs Caroline...

2006-05-04T16:18:00.000+10:00

Msg (minus extraneous bits):
[Thank you for the call. Sorry to miss you. I was inside the Tax Office building. That's me in front of their building now. Will be here for the whole day for a whole day on tax on superfund.]

Close friend's birthday today.

I rang her via skype on a lunchtime thing, and it went to messagebank... here's the picture I got back from her phone-camera thingy (and the message) - all over the cyber-space, and all in the space of a half-hour to PNG...

HAPPY BITHDAY FROM PNG CAROLINE - tax office all day for your b/day??? Harsh!!

Retail Thrapy – Stylus Lae lah

2006-04-30T08:01:00.000+10:00

Requiring some clothes for next weekend’s coffee ball up in Goroka – I hit the streets of Lae in search of a few necessities. Little things like dress shoes and such.

Armed with a PNG eftpos card, K30 cash and the Anglican Bus – I made a beeline to Eriku’s Andersons, and wandered every shop on the strip up to Value City (for those who know Lae at all). Seems most of the trade shops down there are run by Philippino’s/Malaysians, but hard to tell. They were certainly all doing a cracking business on a Sat. morning.

As with all good shopping, I came back with only a little to do with the original purpose – but very happy. Picked up a nice Guitar for K80 (I’m trying to make my way through that black book properly now Jen); nabbed a new clock for the wall for K9 (it works even); bought some more short-socks for squash (back to most nights now, getting a fitness bug again); bought a whole Red Emporor Fish for K6 (yum – lunch later today); a shockingly gold tie for dressups next week; and best of all I got a selection of books from a second-hand clothes store for K15.

For K15, found-: The God of Small things; Africa - on a shoestring (6th ed, not too bad); Australian short-short stories collection; Bridget Joneses Diary; another Cookbook (tho realised nau that it’s a microwave cookbook – urgh); Spadework (I keep hearing about Timothy Findley – is he actually that good?); and a Tim Winton (The Riders). The Tim Winton book was K1.50. Bargains! So now I am officially 10 books behind PNG ppls – if you need a decent book, come see the (small, but growing) shelf of Nath.

*cough* of course, buy enough bargains and you’ll not eat out of the house for a week or two, but that’s cool. My fingertips are already feeling blistered from the nasty steel strings of the guitar, and Jane came around for a quiet night last night keep’in costs down (ta for dinner Jane!).

6 MONTHS of NATH BILONG PNG – Oh My…

2006-04-27T16:48:00.000+10:00

[Sunset late-dusk - coast of PNG]
Has it been 6 months? This week it felt like 3 years, but sometimes it feels like life is (often in a series of clichés) flying on by.

6 months. Well. I don’t think I’ll “reflect” too much on the 6 months – at least not this week! It’s been kinda weird having the blog on for that long. You look back over all the posts (first time I’ve tried this sort of thing) and realise you build up quite a little story-book of things. But then it also misses more than it “gets” for what’s going on. Hehe – some people have said to me (3 or 4 of the ‘cool internet ones’)-: “you’ve got a BLOG!?!? Hahahahah”, but then every now and then someone says they check it now and then for a story… hence I keep on putting crap up here. But more and more it’s something a lot of the other volunteers I get on with(almost all?!?) do up here regularly. The other day when I said I was feeling crappy I had x2 emails and a phone call from within PNG. And that was by the end of the morning!

6 months of Anglicans. 6 months of being in charge (urgh – anyone wanna be my boss?). 6 months of gin. 6 months of the Yoti. 6 months of Maundu & SimonMikael (night & day security). 6 months of potholes. 6 months of thirty-four keys to locks. 6 months of meeting new people. 6 months of attempting lik lik tok pisin. 6 months of cooking for myself (well – trying). 6 months of TOO MUCH FREAK’IN WORK. 6 months of scammers & dirty-old-men. 6 months of my mostly cool little team in the ANO. 6 months of newness/adventure. 6 months of making occasional excellent, excellent new friends. 6 months of PNG.

Well – to finish this one I’m going to steal words again from a friend in Goroka, (I hope you don’t mind extra publishing Robyn!). Because I like them, and because it captured something I was thinking this week. The original post is linked here (worth a read in it’s own right), but here’s the words from a small part of it:

I pause before I pick up my book again. I wish I could gain the objectivity and insight of the anthropologist, and write a witty and yet insightful novel about experiences in today’s PNG. But a logical narrative thread eludes me. More and more, this is just life: some things are understood, some are not. What I learn does not add up; it just contributes to this vary varied thing I am living. And in this sense, all anthropology and ethnography is as if a novel; artifice trying for more coherence than the unfashionable real provides.

Goroka-style ANZAC day (Guest Linked Entry - Jason Kovacs)

2006-04-26T11:01:00.000+10:00

Hehehe... i just finished reading a good mate's description of the ANZAC morning in Goroka.

Here it is linked - click here.

It's well worth a read - a little about some local "friendly" (not!) missionaries and some Goroka land-scaping. Make sure you get through it up to breakfast of the same day!

Sunrise on a new day...ANZAC Day

2006-04-25T13:11:00.000+10:00

This morning was originally going to be a 5am start. Still having sleep problems a bit, so after passing out around 2am, I was woken by a knock at the door at 4:45am. +Joe had forgotten to pick up the carton of wine he was taking back to the bush – and all downstairs was alarmed/locked up still. You can’t miss opportunities to get things out to locations, so – in a towel and t-shirt – (looking the goods), I stumbled down to sort that out.

But I digress.

5am start – 5:30 service at the Lae War Memorial for ANZAC day. I’m not a regular yearly memorial service person – but the lest we forget ode, and the simplicity of a dawn service was moving… to say the least. It was down at a large park, which had a large memorial. Maybe 160 people or so – with elements of the PNGDF there in the uniforms/etc.

Partly insomnia, partly a hoooge week of stuff, but the sun came up to an immaculate (and large) memorial. It was very, very moving – and had lots of quiet time. Another close friend here in Lae had his father pass away overseas very recently (and all too quick for him to get back to the other side of the world for the funeral) – and he said over brekky that he used the time for a bit of personal reflection time. Well, I’m in a different league of “stuff to ponder” at the moment, but otherwise ‘Ditto’. I’m amazed still sometimes how much those reflection/think’in times (of course, I might call it prayer) can help…

The free buffet breakfast at the Yoti straight afterwards with everyone helped lots too. Mmm… bacon & egg goodness. All I needed was hollandaise & real coffee *sigh*. It was one of those clear, clear mornings where you could see from the yoti the mountains fading back across the Huon gulf. Kicking myself for not having taken a camera to the whole morning. I’ll blame that on the total darkness when I awoke.

PS – HAPPY BITHDAY JULES!!! Great to talk to you today... love ya lots.

PPS - [“+” is the shorthand in Anglican-ism for bishop...]

Storm clouds gather…

2006-04-24T07:23:00.000+10:00

Well. Apparently ‘they’ say that tricky stuff comes in 3’s… then why have I run out of fingers to count them on at the moment!?!?

Staffing probs, health (thankfully nothing too bad), interviewing, public speaking, training, o/s reporting, flying, security, sleep… and all of them have had a ‘tricky’ bit to them - - or have a particularly tricky bit coming up in the next few days.

That’s not even close to the half of it! All adds up to signing-out from time for this blog again... hopefully back again after a bit.

Nath

Madang – Is – Beautiful

2006-04-20T15:42:00.000+10:00

Just spent the Easter weekend in Madang with some cool other AVI’s (same one’s from Goroka). Had a blast, snorkelled off a tiny deserted island, fished, chased dolphins & whales, hung out, talked cr*p, and generally got a “reset” from the usual Lae run of things.

Madang is something else. It’s beautiful enough to be a tourist Mecca – but is still a relatively relaxed little town with a few resorts kinda-places and good 2nd hand clothes shopping.

Excellent weekend in Madangerz – good work Goroka crew.

Photo's to come... once I dig through the large, large pile on the desk.

Just another week…(Public Hospitals, Marketing, Training, Send-off’s, Volunteers & Evictions)

2006-04-05T16:35:00.000+10:00

Mmmm, just another week. Be warned - this entry is a bit of a diary…

Friday night was shaping up to be a few quiet beers at the yoti & dinner – however the security guard came around 5:30pm with the message that one of Peter’s (a staff member) kids had hurt himself. So I headed over to have a look. Turns out that Peter Junior (5yrs old) has done a right job on himself falling out of a coconut tree. He was one or two metres up (not far, but far enough when you’re 5) and gashed his face on the way back down on some sharp bark which points exactly the wrong direction for a falling 5 year old. Blood going everywhere, though bandage pressed, and mum (Etta) looking slightly distressed. Peter (Snr) was already away in Goroka for the weekend. The gash ran from about a centimetre below Peter Jnr’s right eye (thank god), covering a decent portion, quite deep without any skin there, of his cheek. So it’s back to the house where I quickly grab the latex gloves n bandage-y things those travel doctors foist upon you, get the keys for the Van and off we go to Angau Public Hospital (Lae’s public hospital with an Emergency department).

The hospital is… terrible. I wasn’t expecting Royal Melb or RDHM or St. V’s – sure. Sometimes it doesn’t matter about your expectations, there’s just the reaction when you’re there. But perhaps I was thinking there wouldn’t be quite as much blood on the floor here and there… or quite as many of the ‘beds’ out of make-shift stuff down the hall-ways… or the smell. I paid for the K10 entry fee, and we (half the family has come – 6 of us all up), join the line we’re pointed towards.

An hour and a half later of waiting and observing the over-demand/under-supply that exists, a security guard and nurse guide everyone in that line back we’re in to the front of the hospital where there’s a room labelled “Triage” (but still no-one there). So we’re back to square 1. Many of the people in the line (it’s 7pm or so now) are in various states of dis-repair. The 5yr old is still standing up after 1.5 hours. I wouldn’t sit on this floor either.

I give a K10 phone card to the eldest of the brothers there, and we go hunting for a public phone – so they can call me again when they’re done and I’ll come get them later. Find phone on other side of grounds, doesn’t work. So I lean heavily on a person in an admin room exacting promises that they’ll let this guy call from their phone (with phone card, still wont cost them anything) when they’re done so I can pick them up. Ok. Back to the other side of the hospital again. Check on little kid & mum again. Little 5yr old still standing up. Bleeding stopped fully a while ago, still holding the big wad of tissues to his face. No triage person has yet seen anyone.

Off home. A fellow volunteer gives me a call and says “feel like a few quiet one’s at your place?” – happy days…

Later on in the evening (somewhere around midnight) I’m doing usual coffee/biscuits for security, and one of the younger of Peter Jnr’s brothers is hanging around and says “Yumi go bai hausik” and points at the van. Well. Can’t argue with that. No call back yet to the house, but off we go to check on the family.

By midnight down there Peter Jnr has had some sort of shots (antibiotics I assume?) and has now been waiting (standing) around 6+ hours. Now they’re waiting for the sewing and the dressing. The hospital has deteriorated further into Fri night (not unlike Melb in some respects). There’s now shots being given in the hallways by a few doctor like looking people, and there’s now people lying on stretchers in the original room we were lining up in (ie – more crowded than before). In the next 35 mins or so of waiting, I hear two separate wailings (can’t think of another word) of family members – where upon the little 7yr old (I brought him with me) tugs my sleeve and translates the pisin from the nearby other room that “him bai dyim nau”.

I’m not sure- but perhaps with the only white guy at the hospital for the whole night – but after a while Peter Jnr is then taken into the waiting mini-surgery room and sewn up/dressed. 9 stitches later.

Overall – the kid did get seen, and did get treated. But still an experience.

Getting up to do your marketing for the week at 7:30am on a Sat. after a 2am sleep time was a little tricky. Managed that once out in the sun after a necessary, medicinal, double-strength coffee. K25 for more vegies than I could carry.

Went back to bed for a power-nap of about an hour till 9:30am. Then up, shower and back downstairs to the office for the inaugural ANO Saturday training session. Had these informally and in pieces over the past 3 months, however this was the first time we’d marked off a time out of hours and said “we’ll learn THAT today”. I kinda ‘waited & hinted’ for the training to be ‘asked for’ (rather than making it a mandatory all-staff session) – which seems to have paid off a bit too. Today was Excel 201 – borders, i-f statements, absolute values, graphs & pivot tables. I made up the materials on the run with exercises & examples, and 3 hours later we were still going strong, though I was starting to wilt a little. Fun, fun, fun.

Saturday afternoon was a lovely lunch with J&A & family, and then dinner with some people from ADRA (Adventist Development Relief Agency) – vegetarian and ‘dry’, of course. Adra has it’s development work game together in many respects here in PNG – as much as you can anyways. I learnt lots more about Sanitarium (sp?) - - did you know that Mr Kellog(s) was also an Adventist?? - - and had a good natter about work’in in PNG.

Sunday morning was sllllleeping in. Sunday afternoon – working n squash. Gay’s baby has scabies (again) – which has been happening on and off for months now. Sunday night was out to the Lae Inter to say “seeya!” to J&A --- off to Melbourne to be married. My wedding present at the moment is to look after the cat & security guard most nights! It was also the first time we got all the AVI’s together (in one room) since Jeremy (inspiration for me trying this blog thing out) headed out of PNG. Goodly catch-up with all the Vols. There's something about catching up with all the vols - - though the closest friends are amongst the ex-pats (the best expat friends are alllll ex-volunteers) - there's extra common ground with the vols.

Monday morning staff meeting & work as usual. Squash at night. Tuesday court case, and tonight just played my first competition squash game (Wins = 1, Losses = 0). Thursday morning off to Hagen! Catchya next week…

More fast facts – PNG

2006-04-05T16:19:00.000+10:00

I’m plagiarising again here – but was reading through my Lonely Planet ready for some travel and visitors coming up here. Travvvveellll – hurrah!

This was in the margin of the first few pages:

PNGPopulation: 5.7 million
GDP: US$3.6Billion
GDP Growth: 2.3%
Inflation: 7.5%
Languages spoken: 867
Language spoken per adult: 3
Land border with Indonesia: 820km
Parliamentary political parties: 18
Indigenous counting systems: More than 50
Number of airports: 559

It’s the same Lonely Planet which covers the Solomon Islands. Apparently the CIA phrase for government in the Solomons is: “Parliamentary democracy tending towards anarchy”.

I’m off to Mt. Hagen later this week with work – which I’m looking forward to greatly. Unfortunately John & Della aren’t going to be in town at the time, but should be good. Next-: Kimbe for the New Guinea Islands diocese – covering all those islands off north of mainland PNG. Coming up after that will be Dogura! (bonus points if ANY Aussie knows where that is in PNG).

Bad. Very, very bad. (Rats)

2006-03-30T13:54:00.000+10:00

A Highlands MP – has 7 official wives... and here's the rest of the story (linking/stealing from a friend's blog).

Argh!

Melbourne, C’wealth Games & PNG

2006-03-28T08:08:00.000+10:00

I’ve come home to the single free-to-air channel on a Sunday night (Em TV is the solitary broadcast PNG channel), and it’s playing the closing ceremony to the Commonwealth Games. It’s been a bit easy to be disparaging (white elephant etc.), but I must say, it looked pretty impressive on the teev tonight. I’m not quite sure what that version of ‘better be home soon’ was all about (she sang well – very low?). So anyways, there’s plenty that talk about how it’s a waste blah blah – but I find myself not caring too much about cynicism on a Sunday night watching my home town kick’in it on teev around the world.

When they show each of the countries in a row – all coming ‘together’ as such… it’s cool.

When they pay so many musicians and dancers n stuff in the arts – it’s cool.

The FIRST gold medal EVER was won for Papua New Guinea in the Men’s Butterfly. People here have been talking about it a fair bit (here in Lae, and when I was down in Popondetta) – and they’re (all 3 medals I think) national heroes now… something that (I think) is cool for PNG. The TV hasn’t stopped replaying it for a few nights now. The welcome back into PNG was worthy of the biggest winning grand-final parade I’ve ever seen.

Finally, the other surprising bit to me was when Ron Walker came on and introduced all the dignitaries (incl. Mr & Ms Howard/ etc.) and the Melb Lord Mayor John So got the largest applause out of all every time his name was mentioned! I mean, I’ve never had a thing with him one way or another (except the usual politics stuff) – but I didn’t realise he was *that* popular. They’re printing up t-shirts with “John So is my Bro”?

And India has the next games. 1 billion, and it’s the first ever commonwealth games in India. Bollywood is cool too.

Martyrs Memorial (High) School

2006-03-28T08:07:00.001+10:00

One part of the trip to Oro was heading out with Bishop Tevita to go and see one of the largest (and previously most prestigious in the country) Anglican high school – Martyrs (MMS).

This was the first of the large Anglican Church agency high schools I’ve managed to get to – as they’re all in the bush to a certain extent. Overall, including primary/community schools, there are over 200 Anglican agency schools… So I spent some time with the Principal chatting, spent some time with the Bursar checking out the accounts being run in Excel, and got an excellent walk around a section of the (huge) campus space with the Deputy principal.

The Breakdown – MMS Popondetta
Location -: about an hour drive towards Kokoda from Popondetta town*
Years 9 to 12
600+ Kids
Class sizes – average 40+
% of females – 40%
Boarding - 90% of all school children
Beds – not enough for everyone.
Computers – about 8 in total. I think 5 work properly, but not sure.
Electricity – no probs, generator runs OK
Gardens – plenty for the kids to work on to grow food.

* The road to Kokoda from Pop is sealed as far as the queen went on her last visit here…

I also spent 10 minutes or so with x3 Gap year students (just out of highschool – 18y.o. or so) from the UK who came over to teach for 8 weeks. Excellent program – they (the 3 UK’ers) learnt a lot whilst being supervised by teachers from MMS, and taught a lot. Try and get more programs like this up and running in the future methinks.

As usual – I snapped pics away here and there. Also as usual in PNG, there were whole bits I didn’t want to be waving a camera around.

You say Popondetta – I say Popondota – “Oro Oro Oro!!!”

2006-03-28T08:07:00.000+10:00

Oro Oro Oro – or “welcome” in the Tok Ples around here. It’s was a busy week of travelling n meetings n things last week. I only had a short time to see stuff, but Oro is another level again in the rural stakes – and visiting there gave me yet another small peek at life outside of Moresby/Lae/Goroka.

I had a week down in Oro Province – beautiful place. House of Bishops meeting was the first reason, so we get everyone together (after my office organises the 11 flights 5 transfers and one dingy/boat trip to get 6 of us to the airport in Pop), and held it at the Anglican Theological College – Newton Theological College (NTC). Partly it was held here to support to local community. A senior Lecturer (also a priest) for the college was tragically killed last year by a falling tree (along with 3 Four-square priests) hitting the truck they were travelling in. The lecturers injured wife, a primary reason to get all the bishops down there, is ‘Mother’ Rachel Demisi. Mother has lost half of one arm and three fingers on the other hand (which is still limp because of other damage). This is tough stuff, particularly if you’ve had a wander through what passes as a general hospital here in PNG. For something like this to happen to one/two promising leaders in the community is… beyond tragedy.

Ok. So Oro generally is a beautiful place, but makes Lae look like a metropolis.. and makes Morebsy look like New York. I’m not sure where Melbourne comes in there – but I think you get the point.

As usual, you can check out more of the latest piccy’s in this link here.

Popondota--: [[It’s a longer story than this - but basically a Bishop of Popondota Diocese down there in Oro Province was a linguist as well, and basically had the “correct” spelling and pronunciation as Popondota – not Popondetta… so that’s what the Anglican’s stick with! Causes all sorts of head-aches when people go to correct me/us… anyhoo’s.]]

Just a quick dash of poetry

2006-03-27T08:09:00.000+10:00

Great book I’ve just finished, leant to me by John Rea – a fellow worker for the Anglican Church. It’s called “The Time Travellers Wife” – and begins with the following poems. You’ll have to cut me a break alonesome with a gin on a Monday night in Lae – (they’re soppy) – the book was a quality novel (thanks John!)

Love after Love
The time will come
when, with elation
wou will greet yourself arriving
at your own mirror,
and each will smile at the other’s welcome

and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you

all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,

the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel you own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.

--- Derek Walcott

Big Game Fishing!

2006-03-20T08:06:00.000+10:00

Very cool.

I got invited along via a mate (Alex) to go out ‘fishing’ on a Sunday on his boss’s boat. Starting pre-6am on a Sunday morning, we got up to the Yacht club and get on the boat/ship/vessel – “Witchdoktor”. This thing is HUGE – with all the trimmings. Bob had earlier in the year driven it up from Sydney (where it was bought), stopping in at Brisbane/Cairns etc. all the way to Lae.

Of course, I was the newbie-nuffer for the first half of the day. Reel starts spinning and you’re supposed to get all the other lines fully out of the way before anything else happens (6 lines at least and x2 other trailing lures)… there can be hours of nothing – and then x2 rods start bending all of a sudden and it’s on.

Being the newbie also meant I got first crack when a reel went off. Earlier in the day I had the “big one that got away” – a decent sized dolphin fish. We all saw it jump out of the water at about 20 metres away, and I got it all the way up to the boat - - but the hook was too small and it bent & broke off the hook when yanked out of the actual water close to the boat.

Later in the day however we drove past a “boil up” (bird circling, and white tips everywhere where smaller bait fish have been forced to the surface by bigger fish) – and four of the lines all went off at once. It was allll happening. I had the biggest gauge reel (heaviest line), so I was supposed to fight hardest to get my fish in quickest. After much grunting and Lleyton Hewitt style “C’mon!!”’s – I had caught myself a 19.4kg Yellowfin tuna. Of the 4 lines, we managed (through skill of 1st mate etc.) to get 3 fish in. All around the same size…

Messy, hot, fun, excellent day out with some lads on a special boat. Big thanks to the friends (Alex), the first mate/teacher (Josh), Chef/2nd mate – (John) and of course to the Cap-i-tan. Top day out.

Some of the photo’s are up here.

Go you Anglicans (Condoms & PNG)...

2006-03-17T10:41:00.000+10:00

Bishop Peter is a cool guy.

[from PNG Gossip column & Post Courier]

The Government has asked the churches and all faith organisations to forget about their religious and moral biases and start endorsing the 100 percent use of condoms to help stop the spread of HIV/AIDS in the country. Churches have not given total support to the call. The Catholic Archbishop of Port Moresby, Sir Brian Barnes, has said that the call was rather insensitive to say not to worry about religion biases. Sir Brian has said that the issue was not one of condom use but rather one of the behaviour of human beings. Anglican Bishop of Port Moresby, Peter Fox, has said that the use of condoms was a matter of freedom of choice.

Air Niugini has just moved their Cairns, Australia office. The old office is tipped to become a condom shop so it is good to see Air Niugini helping out.

Madang MP - argh

2006-03-17T08:03:00.000+10:00

[From the PNG Gossip column]

The Madang MP and Governor, James Yali sentenced to a 12 year jail sentence for raping a young girl, his sister-in-law, has been enjoying several trips to Madang town much to the disgust of law abiding residents. It would seem that the MP is getting preferential treatment from the Correctional Services Officers. On a recent trip to town the MP visited the doctor and managed to see many of his supporters at the surgery after the doctor had gone to lunch.
The Correctional Services Commissioner, Richard Sikani, has said that Mr Yali will now be transferred to Bihute Jail in the Eastern Highlands Province to try and avoid some of the issues with relatives and supporters meeting Mr Yali while he is attending the doctors etc.

A Dry Hagen… x2

2006-03-12T14:17:00.000+10:00

Mt Hagen is PNG’s 3rd largest city. The road from Lae (coastal up north in the middle where I am) to Hagen (centre of the mountains bit) was closed for a week or so due to land-slips recently. So they were without fuel there for a little bit – and a few other exported produce things weren’t making it through.

Hagen is also a "dry" alcohol town. A friend who’s been living up there for the past 2 and a half years put it "that alcohol and the sometimes belligerent attitude in the highlands" don’t tend to mix well. I don't know how accurate that generalisation is... That said, apparently there's plenty of homebrews' or smoker of what is apparently top quality marijuana (PNG Gold or something). There’s also the “Hagen Club” – priv. club full of expats and/or better off nationals. I imagine it’s a bit like the yacht club here in Lae – if smaller.

But the latest news was that for the last three days of this week (just finished), the town has also been without running water anywhere! A group of locals up the road decided that they weren’t getting enough for their land rentals (and a few other askims) and took over the pumping station – switching things off for a while – holding the whole town to ransom. Heh… somehow that appeals to my sense of humor – but it also meant that schools were all closed (none of the toilets worked), and everyone went without showers for a few days...

Dry, dry Hagen. But just now back to normal running water is back. I haven't yet read how many 000's of Kina they paid to the poeple who had occupied the pumping station thingy. Did anyone get that in the paper?

Better than I could put it [HealthCare - PNG]

2006-03-11T11:45:00.000+10:00

Fellow volunteer up in Goroka who writes regularly - thought I'd link up this post.

Of course... there's LOTS of good stuff up on her site.

Poser books – I love em’

2006-03-11T11:18:00.000+10:00

A close friend told me the other day they did this survey once of travelling backpackers – and asked what reasoning came into buying a book. One of the highest reasons was how it would look. I have no problem with this theory.

Witness.

This book certainly falls into that category. Check it out – “The end of poverty”. (!). I mean – my house will be chic, and there will be curio’s --cough-- Anyways, I’m half-way through it and I feel like I’m drowning in Keynes and hyper-inflated ego’s talking about success stories in countries torn at one stage by hyper-inflation – but places which are still experiencing bone-crushing poverty. I’m going to give this book till it’s end, then write a proper review. So far, I *might* find this useful if I was a 1st year Economics student who already thought he had it figured out... I’m hoping it will broaden out.

But I just had to get that off my chest – feeling much better now.

Bananarama Buns in My Oven…

2006-03-11T11:05:00.000+10:00

This is not a particularly interesting post. I have had muffin mania before, but now I'm have a short bread phase. I inherited a large, large, large bag of wholemeal flour from Martin & Aileen. It resides in a large, large, large sealable bucket in the corner of the kitchen. It is my mission to finish this bag of flour in the next 2 months.

Here’s the banana bread recipe:

Here’s midway:

Here’s the result:

Making tasty bread from scratch is pretty satisfying actually! Pity about the number of dishes it creates...

[Update] Made another batch the next night (last night) – and added chopped Dates to one lot and a cup of sultana’s to the other mix – hopefully noice.

Religion – at work?

2006-03-11T10:50:00.000+10:00

There are some topics in PNG, or perhaps anywhere, where it’s really hard to get started. But this one requires some further blogging. More than anytime before in my life, except perhaps as a PK in the early years - it’s all around me, day to day in work, home, compound… There are lots of things to say – but I keep feeling like it all needs lots of qualifications, otherwise writing it down doesn’t ‘get it’. But perhaps it’s not so different around the table in Melbourne when talking the church-y talk! Or perhaps it’s the same old insecurities.

So I work for the Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea – which is a kind of religious experience in itself. I work in a National Office responsible for many administrative policies/payments and stuff across the whole of the country. I don’t work specifically for the Diocese of Popondota (one of 5), which has specific responsibility to the 40+ odd parishes within it, so there’s not direct parish issues/contact very often (except on my compound – see below)… and I don’t work specifically for the Education Division, or for the Anglican Health Service, or directly for the HIV/AIDS programs - but have some finance & admin oversight/responsibilities with all of them –: that is, social programs and parish workings.

So I work for a church as it is in PNG – and (especially/even) as a Christian it was kinda weird to reconcile this in my head before coming over here – and even more so since. Mostly I’m getting at the fact that the church comes with a lot of baggage, particularly in a mission setting.

The major chunk of Overseas funding that’s coming through to the churches over here at the moment is Ausaid “Church Partnerships Program” funds. It’s come out a recognition that over here, a church can build a building for about ¼ or half the cost of government/private - - and that in many places, the church is the only organised “in” to rural communities which are without basic services.

So, sometimes it seems so positive. At a recent large consultation it was said that many people couldn’t separate the sacred from the issues surrounding these ‘non-evangelism’ issues like health/education/HIV. Sometimes there’s parts and times that make sense. I might have thought – but not so at all when I’m actually here… the funding differences, and the intertwining people and places of the church in PNG aren’t that straightforward.

But perhaps I’m being a bit esoteric n indulgent there!

Here on the compound at the All Souls Parish there’s a lot of church. There’s a Tuesday night mass, a Thursday night mass, morning prayers some days (not sure which) and x2 services on Sunday morning (first is at 7:45am – before it gets too hot). I go about every second week to one of these things... but at least twice a week (normally 3) in the Anglican National Office, the staff and I say the morning prayers as written in the Anglican prayer book – and read the bible verses as dictated by the lectionary – and say prayers for the world, specific parts of PNG, and the needs of the community (Friday’s are education for example – Monday’s are for those in the world struggling with Health issues and HIV/AIDS). I struggled to get into them in the beginning - - but then you start to get into the rhythm (and you get to know them very, very well) of this long morning liturgy. With the previous x2 bosses, they used to do this every day of the week. They take about 15 minutes each morning.

It’s very different to Oz. On and off for 5 years I used to get a lot from the 5pm services at Collins Street Bapo – though I had my moments of frustration there like anywhere. I certainly don’t connect intellectually with the sermons or even liturgy in the same way over here… but at the same time when you’re in a group of 300-400 PNG people singing acapella – well there’s something there also.

Of course, there’s a definite un-coolness factor associated with it too in Oz – where post-modernity and the enlightenment have had a few more generations to take hold (or somesuch bs). Lotsa people still give it a bit of respect – but most just think of Fred Nile (quick sorry to those who like him, but in the main I don’t), rather than Mandela – or George W instead of Martin Luther. Easy targets all of them, but so ridiculously different you wonder where the title/understanding of the word Christian gets you – and therefore where ‘working with a church organisation’ gets you. A group of friends I know are having a party soon where they’ll re-enact (for a laugh) people in different poses on a large wooden cross in their back yard on Easter Friday. I had to bottle it up a little when they were on about it, as I found myself (perhaps?) “doing a Muslim cartoon over-reaction” and actually getting a little angry about it – think’in about how bad taste it was to re-enact a death, let alone something held as important by so many people etc. etc.

[Insert later – on that topic of religo’s gettin there nigglers - did anyone watch ‘Insight’ on SBS on Tuesday night last about cartoons, race over-reactions and Cronulla/etc.?? – far out there were some t***ers in there]

Anyways – I’m off track – what I’m getting at is that you _wouldn’t_ do that here in PNG. What I’m also getting at is that in most of PNG (ex-pat community excluded from this comment), from what I can tell, you’d be on the outside if you _weren’t_ Christian. Where’s the coolness factor there? Well – it’s probably changing in PNG as well – but it’s well different to Oz.

What does this all mean?? Dunno. Extraordinarily rambling, perhaps overly personal blog late on a Tuesday night. I’ll just have get back to you!

Genius Ideas – A tribute

2006-03-11T10:39:00.000+10:00

There’s only one way to give a hint as to the contents of this once-per-year-Christmas-special CD/DVD that a friend of mine put’s out – and it’s here in this picture.

Jokes, pictures, videos, fan-films… kooky, crazy, horror… it’s all in there in one form of another. I’m only popping it up here now because the original post to me didn’t make it through the PNG postal service (or perhaps Aussie customs, who knows…). SO have only just had a look through.

Nice work Aaron.

Back Again – just a catch-up blog

2006-03-03T17:00:00.000+10:00

Been a slack month on the blog front. Funny how the busiest time (theoretically with the most stories and blog stuff) ends up being the one you end up writing down the least.

Roight – so I was ultra-mega-man busy in January with Anglican work stuff. Trying to kick in a new calendar year end across accounts, settling in two new staff members, having a drink now and then with friends in Lae (mostly Alex&Jonix)… Eventually after the last week of ‘just a few’ late work sessions I went to Oz (sorry to those I didn’t get to call/see) to see the lady (mostly), to make sure Flan & Cazz were safely married (yayayay – great day), and do some quick catch-ups. It was a bit surreal being back again (bright lights! bright lights!), but grrrrrrrreat to see everyone. Likely a lot longer than that 3-4 months before the next visit.

So I got back to PNG about a week ago – and had about half a day to catch my breath before trucking head-long into a 5 day meeting/workshop/consultation with about 42 Anglicans from around the country. Although the consultation was out at a pastoral training centre (place is run by the Catholics – nice, but basic stuff, reminded me of those church camps), it was also (9miles away) in ‘my’ home office town – so there were the inevitable runs back to the office and askims around town. The meeting overall was all about getting a feeling for the priorities over the next few years for a stack of Ausaid funding. Meetings/training during the day, dinner, and then more meetings/chats after dinner about the programs.

La de da – many-an-observation to make when the eventual topic of Ausaid funding comes up. Words like “capacity building/Institutional strengthening/sustainability” – but I probably shouldn’t prattle about work too much here. Suffice to say I’m amazed and humbled sometimes by how effective and useful aid can sometimes be – and amazed and humbled at how useless in the long term it can sometimes be. I think that’s a truism. But I’m not sure. On the topic, here’s a development poem a good friend working in the area sent around the other day on the email.

The Development Set

By Ross Coggins

Excuse me, friends, I must catch my jet-
I'm off to join the Development Set;
My bags are packed, and I've had all my shots,
I have travelers' checks, and pills for the trots
The Development Set is bright and noble,
Our thoughts are deep and our vision global;
Although we move with the better classes,
Our thoughts are always with the masses.
In Sheraton hotels in scattered nations,
We damn multinational corporations;
Injustice seems so easy to protest,
In such seething hotbeds of social rest.
We discuss malnutrition over steaks
And plan hunger talks during coffee breaks.
Whether Asian floods or African drought,
We face each issue with an open mouth.
We bring in consultants whose circumlocution
Raises difficulties for every solution-
Thus guaranteeing continued good eating
By showing the need for another meeting.
The language of the Development Set
Stretches the English alphabet;
We use swell words like 'epigenetic',
'Micro', 'Macro'. and 'logarithmetic'.
Development Set homes are extremely chic,
Full of carvings, curios and draped with batik.
Eye-level photographs subtly assure
That your host is at home with the rich and the poor.
Enough of these verses -- on with the mission!
Our task is as broad as the human condition!
Just parry to God the biblical promise is true:
The poor ye shall always have with you.

That biblical quote is entirely out of context, of course, but anyhoo's.

Sooooooo – will try and get some more of the photo’s n observations up again soon. Till then...

And one more for the long weekend…

2006-01-03T07:52:00.000+10:00

Proper soaking rain tonight for the past 5 hours – still going strong. Lightening all around. Cracking thunder. New security guard. Quiet house. Quality chocolate (ta Jen!). And one (just one tonight) cheap G&T. New Year’s weekend winds down to a very quiet ending... Oh well, at least there’s electricity tonight!

Back to the grind of the year-end (December) workings tomorrow – but another kinda short week. Getting some new staff members going over the next 2 weeks, which (very!) hopefully works out well.

Think I’ll go off the air for a bit whilst this bevy of accounting and (hopefully also time for) traveling to other diocese is in train over January - be good now y’all.

How to make a blackout work for you

2006-01-03T07:36:00.000+10:00

Or should I say… it worked out alright for me. Last night (which at the time was the evening of new years day) was one of the longer blackouts we’ve had for a while – power went off around 3:30pm or so, and came on for about 10 seconds at a time for the next 2 hours… I think we got another half-hour of power around 6:30, which charged the phone system here for a Sunday phone call (Sunday all day is the only ISD off-peak call-rates day – meaning you pay nasty rates, but not quite as nasty as usual). Still only managed a 10 minute call before the power cut out entirely again! So there I was, reading by my 2 candles for an hour or two – getting hungry, but I this night I couldn’t be bothered cooking in the dark. Just when I was starting to think “gee – I need to buy more candles”, Alex & Jonika dropped by on the way back from somewhere to invite me over to sit out the blackout. Huzzah!

So there were some batteries in my I-Pod still, and in an I-Pod that A&J had been given for Chrissy… and there was also a little hand-held radio-tuner running on batteries. An I-trip later, and there was party central by candle-light in central Lae on new years night. Heh… was the best dance I’ve had in ages! Not very PNG perhaps, but the i-pods made for a very, very good NY’s day dance.

Oh yeah – and the power came back on sometime inbetween as well.

((Jeremy, them’s a lot of good songs in that i-pod you’ve passed on there! - - Roger, the present was well used!))

West Papua - Just a footnote…?

2006-01-03T07:27:00.000+10:00

Just finished re-reading “Paradise Betrayed” (thanks for the loan A), one the good n toffee-like Quarterly Essay’s. I read most of this one ages ago and consigned it to a footnote, as you do. Once I’d started rereading it this time though, I couldn’t put it down... it’s very, very well done – and (in many ways) dispassionately written... like only some journalists can do.

There are some friends back in Melbourne have supported fundraisers etc. for some Free West Papua groups… but how much do we consign these struggles to a footnote? Probably ‘as much as we need to’ if you’re in a generous mood. And probably ‘as much as we can’ if you’re in a self-righteously-chardonnay-type angry mood like I find myself after finishing reading the essay. All that said, I’m not grandstanding, I still know very little, am no expert, and all that stuff. But here’s a quick blog.

Population of West Papua-: Maybe 2.3million
Cereal Box History-:
1960’s – Under pressure from Kennedy during the Cold War, West Papua ‘given’ to Indonesia – originally a Dutch colony.
1963 – broad based uprisings since the Indons arrived – somewhere between 80,000 to 200,000 people killed.
1969 – Indonesians chose 1026 representatives from an indigenous population of 814,000 people to vote for “The Act of Free Choice” signing them into Indonesia. Former UN dudes, and everyone else really, agree later it was a total sham.
1969-early 70’s – refugees arriving to PNG.
1977 – Uprising/unrest again (more so than usual), put down by Indonesians.
1999 – Arrival of troops in East Timor, September 1999.
2000 – Revenue from the West Papua Freeport Gold & Copper mine listed at US$1,868,610,000 – the largest gold and 3rd largest copper mine in the world… and Indonesia’s largest tax-payer.

Differences in history to East Timor? Well, besides the biggest mine in the world, here’s a bit as written by John Martinkus in that QEssay:

The repressive strategy being played out in West Papua by the Indonesian authorities is an intimately familiar one. Only the most blinkered and partisan supporter of Jakarta could refuse to admit to the culpability of the Indonesian military in 1999, an event that forced the Australian government in the end to act decisively to end to the violence under massive Aust. public pressure. Now, as the same Indonesian commanders… are moving towards a comparable goal in a province that also lies directly to the north of Australia, the line has been drawn and it seems we have no outrage left.

That’s a good line – “it seems we have no outrage left”. Time to keep talking about West Papua...

Check out this New Internationalist article from 2002.

And another link/info page here.

Finally, this is from the DevZone website-:

“Messages of solidarity for the people of West Papua

You are invited to send a message of solidarity to the people of West Papua. Add your voice to those of people all around the world who are calling for justice, peace and self-determination for the people of West Papua.”

http://www.dev-zone.org/cgi-bin/knowledge/jump.cgi?ID=9452

One kinda PNG Nuyia

2006-01-02T08:55:00.000+10:00

So Nuyia 2006 is on.

I actually had a good new years eve. It’s almost passé these days to say “I hate new years” – but I guess most of us still do and don’t in some way or another (or pretend not to care in one way or another). Maybe it helped that I wasn’t sure what it would be like, kinda like that movie you’re seeing that you haven’t read a preview of, so I was happy! Once again hanging with Alex & Jonika more that anything – months into hanging out and they’re still way cool.

People wise (national and ex-pat) things get quiet over here in Lae over Dec/Jan. For the next few weeks, think I’m the only AVI still in town (normally 4 or 5 of us)! So the group of buddies I’ve been tagging with generally was a little diminished – but we made up for it as best as possible on the dance floor of the Lae International Hotel. We started quiet with DVD’s n more relaxo-rancho. Eventually we trucked 1 minutes down the road to the Lae International, where everyone else had been having the large buffet dinner… maybe 150 people there or something. Following a 4 song set by 3 islander style-dancing ladies, people were up on the floor and dancing to a… variable mix of pop & rock. There was a beach theme, a countdown and hugs n kisses all round. Happy Dayz as an old friend used to say a lot - All good fun.

All good fun, but there were also oft moments in the night where I couldn’t help but think to those ppl in Melbourne I’m missing. Alot.

I woke up on New Years day a little sore and flicked on BBC World. Brandenburg Gate looked pretty cool, half-a-million in Paris at the Eiffel tower, 2 million on Rio’s Cocapabana (sp?) beach, two-hundred-thousand in Edinburgh, and thousands, of course, in Sydney for the Harbor bridge. New Years might be a bit of st*pid effort for some people, but it’s always kinda cool that it happens all round the world for 24-odd hours.

Viva la 2006 peoples! Hope it’s a good one for all...

MAF – flying where no one else will fly

2005-12-30T17:06:00.000+10:00

I’m still getting my head around how big MAF are – but knew something about them through family friends. Long time friends of the family have been in PNG forever, and are up in Mt Hagen at the moment as Managing Director (or something) for PNG of this flying organization.

However I’ve already lost count of the flights we’ve (Anglicans) put through them. And starting to lose count of the people who have said “we’d be stuffed without them…”

I did have one little story told to me of how it’s getting harder for the pilots – as when they have their leave, they need to go and speak to more and more churches to raise money in Australia/otherwise. Jeez – tough thing for your holidays.

This little article came through the other day-:

MAF Airfares Subsidised

The Western Province gas announced that they have allocated K500,000 towards subsidising airfares on the Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) airline service. This is to help the people who have to use remote airstrips no longer used by commercial airlines. Often the only other means of travel in the province were by walking along the waterways or by dinghies that were usually time-consuming when there was a matter of urgency. The airline services all the remote and central routes in the province including covering connections to Port Moresby and Mt. Hagen. MAF has had a long-standing commitment to servicing the remote areas of PNG but even they have to charge a realistic fare to recover operating costs.

Looking forward to getting to Hagen and saying hello!

Observations for Krismas time bilong PNG!

2005-12-27T13:28:00.000+10:00

A Merrrrrrry Christmas & Happy New Years.

For the family/friends back home who have been asking- here’s a super-Quick “Nathan’s first PNG Christmas” wrap-up:

Had a small little Work-Christmas gathering up on my 2nd floor balcony on Friday afternoon – a lovely little afternoon of it. There’s some photo’s of said event here... Closed the office early, did a little shopping, and we had some pizza, some sn-ausage rolls, some fried chicken, some fruit, some chippy’s… and lots more. But with this many kids around it didn’t last too long! The kids seemed to enjoy the chrissy crackers I had around the place. They’re a great bunch at the Anglican National Office. Photo’s tell the words best for these ones – I’ll get around to commenting (names etc) them properly a little later on this week.

Flowed on (after the usual Fri night at the yachtee) to Sat. night Christmas Eve dinner with Jonika, Alex, Roger (Jonika’s dad), Marian (visitor from UK/Moresby), and yours truly. Speshial, special food – lovely sweet potato & pumpkin curry, beans & cashews, fish… good company, good wine – purrrfect. Lovely little intimate candlelit dinner.

Christmas Day arrives! Had my own personal little opening of presents session (thanks Mum & Benny!). Then it was off for All Souls church, for all 300 people on Sunday morning @ 9am. Nice service, if a tad high-Anglican for my personal taste on Christmas day! Anglicans seem to “vary from a theme” for about 15 minutes (of a 2 hour service) on their special days. However the 3-part harmony choir was lovely, enough for a tear in Nath’s eye, and was great to see everyone and wish people a merry chrissy.

Then began-eth Sunday lunch at Lae International Hotel for a buffet around midday - - an epic campaign ensued, replete with heroes, villains, bounty and takings. There was also lots of seafood, champagne, turkey, seafood, salads, desserts & drinks. We had a table of 7, and there were around 150 (I think) total there in the hotel. Finally we ambled back to retire in the afternoon to J&A’s place for more drinks...

Once again – good company kept it together!

It’s kinda quiet around here (Anglican compound) the rest of the time. People seem to vacate Lae to the villages to a certain extent – maybe not unlike the pilgrimages of ppl in Melb to the country/coast!.

So - This is da first Christmas away from the fam-damily since I was 20yrs old. Back then, finished my 3 yrs at Uni, borrowed $10k from a bank at a nasty rate of interest and went to New York. Ended up arriving in Rome on Chirstmas Eve (and couldn’t find a hostel…) and hanging out with American backpackers I’d just met. Then on Christmas day was blessed by the pope (or at least standing in the Vatican with 15,000 other people)… But every year since then for yours truly has been Chrissy with basically only Mum & Dad & Ben.

Christmas 2005 bilong me was a nice one – thanks be-(eth) for gutpela peoples.

Some more regular places... long Lae Market

2005-12-27T13:18:00.000+10:00

This is the front of the local market – can’t see too much from this shot, but there’s the usual trucks chock full of people n stuff from the surrounding settlements – some buying, some selling. Floorplan wise, probably not as big as Vic market, but it’s all fresh food… lots of nice stuff.

Quick shot across the market – most of it is people with their plastic/tarp spread out on the ground with a little bit to sell. It's alright, but I didn't stand around with my digital camera in my hand for too long. Mostly ladies sitting there doing the selling. Usually I buy more than I can carry with K20 or so… depending on how much you can be bothered looking for slightly cheaper stuff. Just lately, though I still buy fruits on a Sat. morning with the rest of the ANO – I’ve been able to send Wendy (Haus Meri) to the market… who is much, much better at it than I am!

A couple more regular places n faces…

2005-12-27T13:01:00.000+10:00

This is Muandu – who I talk to every evening and/or for a while. Every night, Muandu is out there with the bow, arrows & bush-knife. I think he’s paid around 50Kina a fortnight for 7 days of 12-14 hour shifts. Night time security guard... he looks out for me and tells me some stories about people around the place, and I give him biscuits and water every night… sometimes panadol and/or a course of Malaria tablets.

Security has been blogged well by others - JCD and LittleP here and here - - and I’ll try and put some security observations down sometime... But for now, here’s Muandu.

Ho, Ho, Ho!

2005-12-23T08:14:00.000+10:00

Christmas time is here...

Have started the "christmas letter" blog thing - but doesn't look like it will be done in time for the last day of work. Super-busy week with staff not having baby-sitters, malaria (for the staff this time) and some other fun and games.

Also organising the mini-office chrissy party, which should be some fun this afternoon.

Merry Christmas to all! Missin' all you Aussie-types for the usual silly-season parties n cricket sessions.

Cronulla - wtf?

2005-12-18T15:33:00.000+10:00

Wonder how many blogs have been written on this topic over the past few weeks?

Even up here, where more of the news channels seem to be cable USA and/or BBC World Service, there was plenty of reporting about the other weekend in and around Cronulla... very bizarre.

Whenever the family used to go to Sydney, we'd swim at Cronulla beach there - and the grandparents/parents all grew up somewhere around that Sutherland Shire. The Mall there wasn't anything to rave about, but always an ice-cream to be had. The pictures from the other weekend were therefore, of course, a bit surreal.

When the mates in Melb emailed me about it - I initially said "surely it's not 000's, that's just a beat-up yah??". Apparenltly not so.

The random chatting at the yacht-ee up about it over a few SP's included people recounting little stories about the Moubra boys (or whatever they're called) n stuff, and some general Alan Jones ear-bashing. I'm always up for some AJ knocking-: all these late middle-aged white-bred fear-inciting shock-jock peoples are easy targets of the chardonnay sippers (and vice versa)... but they also rate heavily in Sydney. W*nkers.

Totally, totally non-PC, but one Aussie mate here in Lae put it something like this:
Him: "You know how you go through Thailand or Amsterdam or anywhere, and you see the Aussie or UK total yobs idiots having a big drinking session and making knobs of themselves??
Me: Well... Yah of course. Same as everywhere.
Him: "Yeah, well they're the step up from the drinking groups most of us never got into in the west of Sydney or the south of Melbourne - like the Cranbourne boys, or the Westies in Syd - those you saw o/s actually got up and _travelled_ overseas"

I don't know how accurate (or useful) that sort of pegging is, but I know I spent most of my hours in the inner-city of Melbourne, and that everywhere else we went for raves and/or pub nights and/or birthdays was a very, very, very different scene.

Not as diffferent as the Lae Yacht Club, but different. But enough random rambling on that subject. Hope it's not in the world-news again this week!

2005 according to CNNN

2005-12-18T15:13:00.000+10:00

CNNN made me laugh. Alot. In fact, it may have made me laugh more than anything since the Late Show.

Those Chaser guys have put together a 2005 in Review thing, linked up here...

Pop-Pop-Populations

2005-12-16T15:57:00.000+10:00

PNG has this kinda bizarre spread of population. I don't just mean rural vs urban, though that's plenty different as well. I'm kinda also talking about the towns/cities merging at the edges with some settlements, which then run into foothills/mountains pretty quick. Anyhoo's - the PNG Gossip thingy, which you can see anytime here, had this link here which gave some census figures for Province and Town/City.

Accuracy would have to be questionable I'm guessing, but still - interesting to see where the larger provinces really are when you get the map out!

2005-12-16T15:55:00.000+10:00

Congrats to my Mum...

Happy Birfday's -- in Goroka!

2005-12-11T14:44:00.000+10:00

This last weekend, I trundled up into the Highlands to Goroka! Even leaving off the weather, Goroka is cool because of lots of things n people (I hereby decree) - and I will be back.

So earlier this week I copped an invite to a triple birthday - sweeping up birthdays from across the year, for 3 AVI's who are in Goroka-: Eden, Jason & Robyn. All on the one Saturday night at Eden/Jason's place. Getting towards last thing on the Friday afternoon, I talked myself into not needing to work this weekend, and grabbed an Airlink flight (my luxury purchase for December) one-way to Goroka early Sat. morn. Managed to get the tix 5 min before the office closed - Noice One.

The day was super-relaxing (needed after this week/month!), and the party (that night) was spe-sh-ial. Must've been at 25 odd come through the place, and a lovely bunch of people they are. Great party, replete with balloons, fairy lights, dancin, bbq, chattin n drinks aplenty. The cake bought by Robyn was a bit of a talking point for interpretation!

Sunday morning I was feeling a little delicate(!), Robyn was walking me to the PMV stop, and out of no-where this freak'in dog who was trotting past had a bite at my leg! Nasty thing - ripped up the pants below the knee and drew blood on both sides of the calf...! Anyhoo's - stinging leg, thumping head - jumped a 4 (or so) hour PMV back to Lae.

Worth another post or two is suuuurely Goroka generally & the Highlands Highway return trip (being Nath's first long PMV ride). But not tonight!

So. Eden (Save the Children, doing IT-ish), Jason (Institute of Med Research- multi-media) & Robyn (Editorial stuff-Melanesian Institute) - - are basically "way cool", over and above the fact that they're AVI'ers as well. Cheers for the weekend in Goroka!!

Some Weekend Papers!

2005-12-04T14:53:00.000+10:00

Never take your newspaper for granted.

Geoff is one of the other AVI’s here in Lae who arrived in the same group as me. He’s working at the Unitech in their department of distance learning. This morning, Geoff’s shown up at my place with the Weekend Australian in hand (THIS WEEKEND’s!). Every time I’d looked previously, there was only last week’s paper, and it was K19.10 for a Sydney Morn Herald/Sat Age/Weekend Australian.

So this/last Sunday morning I got to chill in the morning with the Weekend Australian. Nice. Gave the mass this morning a miss after a double-header weekend, which included the go-finish party for Jeremy (another AVI here in Lae). I’ve mentioned it before, but after 2 years Jeremy has a soon to be mothballed gutpela blog which you can see here.

Back to the papers. Looks like it’s happening as per usual in Oz media eh? Some rich reserve bank guy I’ve barely heard of dodged some tax, and Little Johnny getting through that de-regulation for that ‘culture of individual initiative’ he wants to entrench. Front page of the Weekend Inquirer-:

“Even where all employees at a workplace want to bargain collectively, they will be unable to do so if the employer refuses. This gives workers in Australia fewer rights than those in the US, as well as in most other developed economies…”

Not that it’s easily comparable, but I wouldn’t call the rights of workers here in PNG any good compared to what Aussies will still have.

Ahh… Weekend Paper input. I’ve had to turn past the book & film review section for 2005, as I started to very quickly get antsy – there’s no cinema, or good bookstore, here in Lae!

Good article on p21 as well on early childhood development:

“Part of the problem is that we’re always comparing ourselves with the US and it’s easy to look good… in [Scandinavian] countries child poverty would be around 12 percent without government intervention. With government intervention, it’s around 2 or 3 percent. In Australia, child poverty is around 16 percent, until govt. intervention bringing it to 14 percent”

Awright – I’m off to read the rest of the paper before Geoff gets back from church…

Photo's

2005-12-02T17:56:00.000+10:00

Yup - I've been snapping here and there.

So far the travelling has been to Moresby a few times and the beaches/places/faces around Lae.

If ya keen to have a squiz at some of the collection so far, you can do that HERE.

But we haven't gut da pow-ure Captain!

2005-11-29T16:58:00.002+10:00

Today we had 8 black-outs/power shut-offs here in central Lae.

I know there were 8, because each time there was a blackout, I took a non-electrical based whiteboard marker, and made a non-electronic mark on a non-electricity dependant whiteboard.

So in 3 days that makes (from this weekend to end of Monday) 3 earth tremors (tinsy lil earthquakes that shake the walls) and 12 blackouts (incl one for over 5 hours last night) - luckily only setting off the alarm only once.

Of course, it was also good excuse for a relatively quiter day in the office *smile*... so it wasn't ALL bad...

Ummm, just sharing -em Tasol!

Crazy Catholics & Mediocre Anglicans

2005-11-29T16:38:00.000+10:00

Here we go again - those crazy Catholics are moving to make clearer a stance that they've long held. Link (for as long as it lasts) to one of the Age articles is here.

I think my favourite quote from this article is this one:

Father Richard John Neuhaus, for example, one of the church's most conservative commentators, wrote in 2002 that "it seems more than likely that, in centuries past, some priests who have been canonised as saints would meet today's criteria as having a homosexual orientation".

It's interesting at the moment to see the issue progressing, from a slightly closer vantage point, within the Anglican Church. I'm picking up (and filing mostly) a fair chunk of mail from the position of General Secretary to the Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea (ACPNG). And there are a constant stream of emails/letters around the topic.

I found this quote, from this article, interesting also:
"So why aren't liberals fighting back? In a recent sermon, the Rev Canon Marilyn McCord Adams, regius professor of divinity at Oxford University, offers a view few are prepared to admit: "One whispered reason why many personally convinced liberals do not act is 'postcolonial guilt'"

Good article.

I've heard some say the issue is a bit passe now. I've heard others saying about how you shouldn't talk about the issue b/c you're not gay (it's not for you to understand) -: sounds like bollocks to me. When you see the theology and teaching at a local level in a developing country - informed by a world-wide communion - these debtates take on another level of importance. Hopefully the church, partly being my church, somehow manages to pull it's collective brains into the mid-20th century sometime soon. Of course, I realise my opinions are quite different to many of my Christian friends - but *shrug* regardless of your views, this latest push by the Catholics is OTT.

Here endeth the rant.

Macedonians leading technology?

2005-11-26T06:43:00.000+10:00

I'm not entirely sure how we got talking about this bit particularly the other night, but anyways. Think it was something like this: There's a new head of the business faculty at the UNITECH here in Lae - Alan. He comes out for a drink here and there, and we got chatting about setting up here in PNG, which led to talking about internet or something... And he said check out "Macedonia Connects" thru google. Non-techo's might find it boring, but I thought it was worth a quick post. If for nothing else than the question of whether it goes along-side roads etc as a right-:

The BBC Article is here...

Further links here...

The easy road or the hard road…

2005-11-25T10:10:00.000+10:00

Nuts. Coconuts to be precise.

Now. I’ve bought some fresh, drinking coconuts in Thailand earlier in the year. I bought some of those in Moresby too a month ago or so. Most common use of coconut juices I’ve seen here so far, however, is to scrape the inside of the things out, and use the juice from the scrapings (squeezed) over your vegies (particularly the taro’s and kukim banana’s, but also Yams etc.).

The house came with a good coconut scraper, and I’d watched Martin do one or two with some commentary – how hard can it be?

Surely all too easy!

One takes the coconut, and smacks it with the blunt edge of your bush knife (house came with one of these too – over a foot long – chances are low of me getting one back into Oz methinks). Then once you get all the away around, you drain the juice, take the coconut half, and start-a-scraping.

So Nath gets his coconut, takes up the bush knife, and starts smacking this coconut in various places around the edges… and keeps doing this… and keeps doing this…and keeps doing this… eventually I get a different sounds, and wedge the knife in, thinking I’m about to score PURE coconut GOLD for my vegies.

“Pop!” went the coconut, and “Splatter!!” went everything inside the coconut, spreading my lower t-shirt, shorts, dish rack full of clean dishes – and a goodly portion of the kitchen floor near-abouts with a claggy, ultra-ultra-yukky-smelly, ultra-sticky residue. Now, I know what you’re thinking, but I am still master of my domain. It just turns out this coconut has gone very bad already.

Took me about half-an-hour to remove most of the smell from the surrounding areas!

Saturday I’m buying some fresh coconuts, with someone that knows what they’re doing, – and maybe some (the easy-road) tinned coconut cream… just in case you understand.

Scott Baio gave me pink-eye!!!

2005-11-23T10:00:00.000+10:00

Yes it’s true. Scott Baio (spelling?) has been wandering throughout PNG – bringing to truly epidemic proportions the cases of red-eye… or eye infections… or conjunctivitis – whatever your preferred name.

After my self-enforced week of solitude (except for work), and due to such heinous crimes perpetrated by said criminal, I’ve decided on behalf of all red-eye sufferers to put a bounty out on Scott’s head. Hmmm… I’m still deciding on the amount, because I’m supposed to be a volunteer now or something.

If caught, I will subject him to a debilitating course of eye-drops, humidity, sleeplessness and enforced solidarity.

Damn you Scott.

Malaria

2005-11-20T15:14:00.000+10:00

So before I came, I did some of that looking into the topic of Malaria. That's to say that I read some bits of a lonely planet, clicked around on the internet for a while, and talked to the travel doctor. All a bit vague.

Most people in PNG, except for certain times of the year in Moresby, live with the reality of Malaria alllll the time. Anyhoo's - here's a few other links/spots I've had a read of since coming down with it this weekend.

And here's another...
Though I'm yet to get thorugh it all - I'm still a bit unsure of the long-er term effects (or possible effects). Haven't found a good sharp summary of that yet - if anyone finds one pls let me know!

Actually... One of the AVI's is working with the IMR (institute for medical research) at the moment - I should prob email there also!

All Souls Day at the All Souls Parish (Lae) – one big Sing Sing

2005-11-20T13:28:00.000+10:00

Not even photo’s can do justice to this event – but they do better than me prattling on. Briefly -: a kinda high-anglican service with brief traditional dancing inserts, followed by more food than I’ve seen so far in PNG, followed by 7 different ‘zones’ of the church each separately presenting a different set of full traditional dances n ‘presents’ to the parish - - this is with the full get-up. All up this started at 7:45am (church) and finished on and around 4:30pm. Then I went to the yacht club and had a few beers…

Click here’s for some happy snaps...

Yes - there are some very kewl people in Lae

2005-11-19T13:27:00.000+10:00

Here are two of them.

I may have to take these pictures down again, as I may have promised not to put them up on a blog, oh well.

Jonika (ex-Canada) & Alex (ex-Melbourne). They’re recently engaged (he proposed in the Taj Mahal, which I’m not even sure that I can spell) – they’ve been in Lae for quite a while. Alex works at an export company, and is an ex-AVI. Jonika does a bit of everything from what I can tell – but lotsa teaching/NGO/consultancy stuff.

So they’ve regularly picked me up to go to the yacht club for drinks any number of times. They have scrumptious brunches. They are a lot of fun.

Anyhoo’s – this week I had pink-eye – otherwise known as eye infections – which swelled the left eye right over (ouch!). Then I got back to Lae, feeling crap and unable to see properly, heaps of work to do – you get the idea. Then on Friday of the same week I get fevers n stuff, get tested – yup – I’m Malarial (is that a word?). Yay!

The long and short of all this, (besides an opportunity for some general whining on my part), is that Jonika & Alex got me around on a Sat. afternoon/evening for some cricket, pizza, DVD’s n steak for dinner – putting a much needed smile n chill-out on a mediocre week. Ta!

Action shot is Alex check’in on the home-brew (go bubbles go) outside…

Mini Tribute – Martin & Alieen Gardham

2005-11-17T13:16:00.000+10:00

I spent my first 2 weeks in Lae living with Martin & Aileen.

Martin was General Secretary to the Anglican Church for about 3 years – which from what I can tell acts as the (very) senior civil servant to the Anglican Church of PNG. On the side, he took care of the Finance & Admin Mangers role (which has been unfilled for a few years). Prior to this Martin has worked across almost all areas of ACPNG – diocese secretary for AiPo diocese (almost all the highlands region), and previously in Popondota diocese. All this on the missionary allowance from the UK. The guy is a seriously good administrator. I should know, because it’s relatively serious big hole that’s been left behind! All up Martin was in PNG for 20 yrs + (hope I’ve got all those dates/times right)

Aileen’s ministry/time in PNG was at the same time more broad and at least as important/definitive as Martin’s. For a start, Aileen has been in PNG 30+ years – after feeling called from Rockhampton in her (I think) late 20’s. Aileen is a nurse, and just in the 2 weeks I was here, there were sick babies, staff with Malaria and a general helping medical hand which is invaluable here in Lae, let alone in the rest of PNG. Aileen has been heavily involved in the Provincial (national) Women’s Literacy component of ACPNG – teaching pidgin and getting lik lik buks out to rural areas--, and more locally was secretary and treasurer for Heduru Aids Care here in Lae (based on this same compound). The opening of the office (with computer/phone etc) made possible through some EU funding, was on their 2nd last Sunday.

These little paragraphs can’t really grab even the stories/people/contributions which I was lucky enough to grab a glimpse of whilst being here for the final 2 weeks. Writing the above feels a tad inadequate… but hopefully, as planned, Martin puts all this down in a book/writing - - as it would be a fascinating insight into the changing generation of the Anglican Church and of PNG generally.

More personally, Aileen & Martin welcomed me and settled me into Lae. Made a world of difference starting off with some v.experienced (effectively) locals.

So I live in this place, right…

2005-11-16T13:01:00.000+10:00

A few crazy people have asked for some more on the haus that I’m a’stay’in in.

Fair enough.

So - It’s on the second floor above the workplace (cuts down my lunch expenses!), in that compound I’ve already mentioned. 3 bedrooms, one with a queen-sized bed (yay!), a Neil St.-esque, but serviceable, bathroom (some of you know what that mean), and a v.nice kitchen.

Here’s what the balcony looks like-

Here’s the view from the balcony (green lush gully, down to a stream, then over the back-side of Lae towards a mountain range in the distance) - - photo’s will never do it justice, but I’ll try and get a sunset shot at some stage.

My Kitchen. Boring, but fantastically functional – even for a ramshackle cook as myself. Came fully laden with bits n bobs – toaster, microwave, juicer, coconut scraper, kettle, full pots set, full glasses/crockery/utensils etc. very nice.

The inner security door. This one was new to me – so it gets a gurnsey. This is the second level of defense after the bars/grates and alarm around all the outside walls.

It's a lovely little place - - and as I've mentioned, it's fiiiiiine for (Aussie or otherwise) visitors anytime, plenty of spare bedding etc!

WorkWorkWork

2005-11-13T15:39:00.000+10:00

Slowed down on the posts as it's been work, work, work.

Met some great ppls - churhcy, local and expat. There's a particularly great bunch (mostly expats) who catchup @ the yacht club and seem to gather volunteers in.

Flying off to Moresby on Monday for Provincial Executive. It's one of the twice annual catch-up of all the Bishops n working peope of the Anglicans - 5 Bishops (one for each diocese), one education division boss, one health division boss and one (currently a separate bit) HIV/AIDS division boss...

I'm coming in cold on 5 sets of diocese accounts, 3 divisions, x2 colleges... anyways - wont bore you with the details - - but suffice to say I'm busy and been off the air a bit.

Back on Wednesday from Moresby - catch-up some photo's n things n backlog of stories after that hopefully.

Side Note “Some Volunteers organization gossiping”

2005-11-05T14:10:00.000+10:00

Aust. Youth Ambassadors (AYAD) vs AVI. I think we need a soccer match. Or maybe a game of scrabble. Perhaps Mater-Mind? Or celebrity Jeopardy? Something may be needed.

The AYAD program includes an orientation in Canberra, meeting the Foreign Minister (participants are briefed beforehand that it’s a public event – no tricky questions of the minister please), “Driving in PNG” lessons; an extra flight to Madang to snorkel for a bit (Moresby being too stressful for the AYADs first up) before finishing the orientation back in Moresby; a separate compound where all the AYAD’s live; access to vehicles (well ok, this is prob necessary in Moresby – unless you’re with AVI); much higher salary than AVI’s; one year appointments only; and a silver spoon – of course.

Anyhoo’s – I mention this only to stir the pot. Recent government changes have meant that AVI and others now have to tender/apply for certain numbers of ‘volunteer’ positions. This meant large staffing cuts and a drop in the budget (I think they went from 136FTE to 70 or something). The AYAD program being the ‘baby’ of Alexander Downer (so I’m -unconfirmed- told) – somehow in this new age of tendering (for funding from dfat) – one program can provide so much more…

Of course, some of the AYAD programs/jobs looked spectacularly good – and they’ve got some great applicants – it's just interesting.

The Anglican Church of PNG Compound in Lae

2005-11-03T14:08:00.000+10:00

Mmm. How to give a real picture?

It’s a fairly big property on a corner block of Seventh street & Huon Street (relatively busy-ish streets). Being a city boy, I think in ¼ acre blocks. This compound must have at least 10 quarter acre blocks. Reasonably open place.

Has the parish building (church – seat 200 maybe), a large hall building, 6 or 7 of these 3brhouses + 2 bungalows + a little AIDS educ. office… beautiful views over rainforest long gully then valley into misty mountains, and generally great huge rain-trees all around.

There’s a 24hr guard (one – Simon-Michael in the day, and Mouman on the night shift), kinda nothing gates and a barbed wire fence (waist height) all around elsewise. Bars/grates across all windows/slats/doors etc. Compared to other compounds, this one is an open plot. Normally Aileen & Martin take out a decent helping of dinner around 9-10pm to the night-shift guard (who leaves the plate/bowl back on the balcony in the morning). I’ve added to this with a nightly smoke (my one for the day to date in Lae)

Downstairs from the 3 (small) Br place I live in is the Anglican National Office that I work in, complete with alarm upstairs and downstairs. Inside this upstairs portion, there’s a secondary security door (big iron frame jobby) that locks away the 3 bedrooms separately, and the alarm switch is in there as well.

People are friendly, and almost every night for 2 or 3 hours so far this week there has been the sounds of drums and/or choir wafting across the compound as they prepare for All Souls day church festival on Sunday (I’m getting a crash course in the Anglican lectionary at the moment), and the Ms Milne Bay contest tomorrow (Sat.) night. Nice. Wandered over a few nights and watched the dancing practicing and copped an invite – could be fun.

Side-Note PNG Gender Politics/ians

2005-11-02T19:35:00.000+10:00

Marian, another of the volunteers, works in the Ministry for Community Development. That ministry for community development has as it’s head the only (yes – only) female politician. Her name is Dame Carol Kidu… I didn’t get more of a story than that, but something to be looked up – she had the appearance of an Ex-pat in one picture I saw…

The Work Begins

2005-10-31T14:09:00.000+10:00

So today I actually started that whole work thing. With Martin heading off in 2 weeks, I’ll be spending (plans, plans, plans) nights working to understand as much as possible. As usual with not-for-profits, the accounting is somehow more complicated than it would otherwise be – and there are varying acquittal requirements across the world from different funding sources. Should be fun.

For those that haven’t heard, there’s a fair amount going on about whether the new General Secretary will actually start or not (Father Tennyson)… so all adds to the fun and games, and the hand-over possibly being larger than expected.

To Lae

2005-10-29T19:30:00.000+10:00

Flight to Lae is 45 minutes. Drive from the airport to centre of Lae is about 45 minutes – depending on your suspension. The potholes are of gargantuan proportions. They’re potholes that you wouldn’t so much as ‘hurt your car’ as sometimes you may not ‘be able to get your car out again’…

The actual flight is the tropical equivalent of flying over the Swiss Alps. Wow. Winding rivers through huge ranges. Ocassionally you'll see an airstrip and a small village/town. About 2/3 of the population of PNG is concentrated through the 'highlands' region - the centre of the country there.

Met up with Martin (current boss for 2 weeks) at the airport and Gai - one of the people who work in the National Office, and back to the compound... which is lovely, but more on that another time.

Arrival & Orientation in Port Moresby. Sunday. Sometime in the Afternoon.

2005-10-29T19:29:00.000+10:00

Usual Customs/lines/immigration fun and games. Met by a couple of other Australian Volunteers – Rick Steele, Director of Anglicare for PNG, and Marian – working with the Ministry for Community Development. Very, very nice of them to truck to the Airport on our arrival – considering the van for the Comfort Inn was there anyways etc. Very nice. Anyhoo’s – off to a mid-range Inn. The Lonely planet describes the place as “the rooms are uninspiring” – which is usually code for “watch out”. However this place was fantastic really. The rooms were certainly bare – but the place was great. Green as you like throughout the compound, secure (as with all places in Moresby I saw which weren’t a village), small pool, meals provided each day… friendly staff who were happy to help us with our pidgin… So – next time you’re in Moresby - stop off at the Comfort Inn – pick up and drop off from the airport and all.

The next 5 days, with us 4 volunteers and 4 vols from JICA (Japanese equivalent of AVI) was with the National Volunteer Service. This included daily lessons in pidgin (half of each day) – and lots of extras. Traditional (well, for one region) learning of cooking on the first day (I am now looking forward to the market and buying fresh fish and cooking. Sure I’ve said this sometime before in my past, but we’ll see in Lae.) Involved heating up the rocks for about 20 minutes and cooking big pots with the hot rocks.

The for the rest of the week – (each of these is a story) National Cultural Commissions, parliament house, National Museum, Botanical Gardens, Anglicare-STOP AIDS program, visits to the market, Ombudsman Commission, University PNG (where they’d organized all the deans to line up and meet us, then, as usual, we were horrifically late and they all went to their next meetings ). So it was pretty good, if alllll on Islander/PNG time and organization. James, our Pidgin teacher, was particularly good value, and was full of stories. So… I’m starting to get the rudimentary bits of Tok Pisin. My longest sentences to date involve me walking down to a beach and catching fish in a canoe – but it’s sure to improve in Lae.

We met a number of fascinating ex-pats at the Comfort Inn. One German anthropologist couple had just spent (in x2 separate villages) 1 year living up in the Sepik region. Full immersion to learn the family trees, way of life, music, cultural norms etc. The lady loved the bettlenut, the guy told me where to get Benson & Hedges Lights in Boroko-Moresby down the street.

There were new stories every day in Moresby – some of them I’ve scrawled into another journal and/or written by hand to certain peoples – so I wont double up too much. I tried Bui (Bettlenut), bought a sim-card, met and then got a lift to the nearest ATM (10 min drive) from the PNG National Head of the ANZ bank (thanks Margaret :->) outside a burnt-down building in Boroko – port Moresby. Finally, after getting sick, re-packing, and watching us kick the Irish in the international rules, I didn’t get charged for overweight baggage on the way to Lae. Happy Nathan.

Getting to Moresby

2005-10-27T19:25:00.000+10:00

I’ve arrived and been in PNG for a week+ now – in Lae – about 45 minutes flight north of Port Moresby. For those I didn’t bombard with information prior to leaving, it’s on the northern coast of PNG – and is the second largest town in the country.

But I’m ahead of myself.

For those that didn’t see me after the going away party @ Flor, there was a few delays on the way to Moresby – Visa’s being a tricky business in PNG. So there were a few extra weeks tacked onto an already ‘extended’ application process with Austtralian Vols International. Having chatted to a lot of volunteers since, I wonder whether this is by some strange design meant to weed out people who aren’t really sure they want to go – but it’s just the nature of the game.

So after a spectacularly large amount of food and drink at a nice place down in St.Kilda on Fri., and more than a few tears on the way through for me vis a vis good friends and the lovely lady on Sat./Sun., I jumped a plane for Brisbane with slightly puffy eyes at 5am on a Sunday morning, 23rd of October. Good work Ben on being up that early. The Qantas man took to my tale of volunteering for 2 years with a quick ‘don’t worry about that overweight baggage’ – and all was well.

Brisbane airport has a train running between the domestic and int. terminals… that’s about the most exciting thing about Brisbane airport. Tho I was grateful to get some smaller Kina notes changed before entering PNG. Plenty of flights daily between Bris/Moresby– but still a packed flight. Hooked up with the other 4 AVI’ers at the airport, almost all of us having oversized baggage… of course.

It’s a 3.5hr leg to Moresby is all from Brisbane. Not so far to visit! . The leg to Brisbane was quiet – me being the emotional equivalent of pulped kai kai in the Lae sun – but no such respite for the Bris-Moresby Leg.

This dude next to me had a slightly wild-eyed look about him after the first ‘New Guinea Ice’ beer. Nice enough, but with a few twitches in the eyes and a difficult to explain attitude. Turns out he manages a bit of a road building company out of Mt Hagen called Global Constructions (based out of Moresby so he says). So I was straight into the ‘how much do you pay the labourers per hour’ sorta questions, and asking about how life was in the company. Didn’t take much for him to get started on the stories (and for each of us to start another beer). So, this guy has ended up, a few years ago, marrying a local girl. This dude is 40+…, and the girl he’s married is in the PNG National Soccer team this year. Anyhoo’s – so he’s been fully adopted by the village/Wantok and they’ve adopted him. They’ve built a house for him, and he’s still flown back by the company to Australia every 2 months, so he bring back lots of presents also. Laboring rates round Mt Hagen are 1 Kina per hour – normally 10-12 hour working days. [Remember that it’s $1AUD = 2.2Kina. The comparisons aren’t necessarily valid – not because of the cost of living, but because 70-80% of the population don’t participate (or can’t – depending on your view) in the employment/cash economy].

The stories then degenerated into stories about ex-pat workers who got into trouble with local women – married or un-married back home… and continued to degenerate.

DELAYED!!

2005-10-10T10:26:00.000+10:00

Yes, yes - I've been delayed.

Original Estimated date of departure-: October 9th

New Estimated date of departure-: October 23rd

So... the current General Secretary of the Anglican Church (UK accent, not sur eof rest of background) who's been there for 25yrs+ and doing the majority of the accounts is leaving in November... which meand this delay makes it (maybe) a weeks hand-over as opposed to a months hand-over! Nasty, nasty.

On the plus side, I get to hang out in Melbourne town with the girlfriend for a bit longer and see the family/friends a lil more... one can't complain really! :-). A friend asked me if I'll 'have another going away' - No! But maybe a quiet drink at Stu's on the 21st...

A Quick Syd-a-ney Trip

2005-10-10T08:17:00.000+10:00

Went to Sydney for a bit last week with Bec - it was a bit warmer up there!

Managed to catch-up with Bec's brother-in-law (Jorsta), eat at a speshial Czech restaraunt, get some ferry action, amble around the rocks, buy me some comfy sandals and cheap shorts for O/S, and do a little sleeping in in-between...

Ahhh... Syd-aney. So touristy in the centre that it's not really worth your sitting and eating there (I'll be avoiding the rocks and darling harbour from now on methinks), but in many other ways alot 'more' than Melbourne in the city surrounds and variety. Don't think I'll ever be a full Sydney convert (too many good friends in Melbourne!), but I could be tempted up there for a stint.

It was a lovely trip down memory lane from kidddy visits to Melb., and a relaxing week all-up. Thanks to Grandma& Grandpa & Uncle Bruce & Aunty Anne and Michelle & Stephen & Uncle Greg for making it to lunch!

Going aways, and more going's aways

2005-09-26T08:11:00.000+10:00

Quite a few weeks since popping into have a type on the blog. Managed to squeeze in a going away party the other week - hopefully figure out soon how to get photo's up properly onto this blog thing as well, as there were a few good shots.

THAAAANKS to everyone that could make it for popping along. I had a great night! It's good to be spoiled for a night...

Everyone should go for a drink out at Flor Wine Bar on Nicholson Street. They're always good value, and the owner (Daniel) is a good bloke.

You can check them out here - http://www.florwinebar.com.au/

Then you pack your House...

2005-09-16T11:32:00.000+10:00

Far out. Moving o/s 2 years is just a little different to picking up all your assorted crap and moving it to another repository for that aforementioned crap! Viva la Nomad, but it's not going to save me here...

There are generally 3 piles:
1. Brotherhood/Chuck-out pile (large)
2. Give away to friends/family/others pile (medium)
3. Store for when you get back pile (small)

There's also a really, really small pile of stuff you think you might take with you (eg. guitar).

Then there's H&C insurance, phone/broadband, couches, pantries, crockery, bookshelves (thannnnkyou Liesl), wall pictures, books, books, books, storage... plus the whole 'have you found someone to take my place' stuff - and when would they like to move in.

Luckily, I have a wonderful girl-friend and family who kinda smile as I ring them/prattle about slowly doing this stuff, and who'll put me up a bit in-between being here in Melb. & leaving (oct 9th at this stage).

Advice -: give yourself plennnnnty of time to organise stuff!

Ok... back to the pack-pack-packing.

So you Leave Work -: Ex-DHSV

2005-09-03T11:24:00.000+10:00

Crazy days - I got (more than) a bit spoilt yesterday. 4-point-something years at DHSV, accounting, process, fundraising, phones, printers, IT, Exact--- all done and dusted. I will not again wear a full suit to work for a very long time!

Had a going away lunches n speeches, all afternoon hanging out with some old friends drinking, then more drinks n nibblies the night of the 2nd. Particular organisational thanks must go to Cara M, (newbie) Sarah I, and the 'top effort' award to Rebecca N for making it from Box Hill for the occasion.

Most Pizzled - tied between Sunil (new starter) & Patrick (reigning champion)
Most Struggling - Nathan after 10 standard drinks attempting to stand and say something comprehensible at 330Red

Got most of the photo's up at the yahoo-gallery for those photo's I managed before the camera batteries died on me - You can see some of them here.

DHSV has a lot of good people. Hope to stay in touch (as much as these things are possible in reality!) with lots of them...

So where are you going again?

2005-08-01T10:49:00.000+10:00

Papua New Guinea - it's just to the north of us here in Oz-Land, home of the convict.

PNG has quite a history, it makes for some good reading... Here is one recent Age opinion article to check out... but there are a number of better histories out there.

I've been surprised by just how many 'links' to PNG there are in Australia. I mean, there's always going to be the colonial, WW2, provincial links to the Aust. machine - but on a more personal level - LOTS of people have been there.

Nan & Pop (most recently ex-Brisbane) spent many years there, and my Mum & Dad had their honey-moon there... serendipitous perhaps? (is that the right word?).

Anyways, yes, I'm going to PNG. It's North of Australia. Will try and figure out how to link in photo's with this post... Hmm...

First Up

2005-03-29T22:04:00.000+10:00

So I've applied and got an offer to do some volunteering overseas through Australian Volunteers International (AVI).

It's in Papua New Guinea, roundabouts Lae - which is the 2nd largest town (I use the word advisedly) in PNG. About 85% of the population is still rural/outside metro - mostly highlands.

Right now (18th July actually), there's around 1-2 months before I leave. A long-ish list of things to get done and organise pre-leaving, but one should now be out of the way - getting this little blog thing up and working.

I'll try and post up the job description at some stage of what I'm off to - but in short it's a Finance & Administration job with the Anglican Church (incl. health workers, but excluding teachers apparently), with approx 250 employees.

I'm off now to figure out what this Pidgin thing is!