Stories From My Time in Papua New Guinea
70
In the 80’s and early 90’s I spent almost 10 years in Papua New Guinea. During my time there I had many wonderful and quite funny experiences that I would like to share.
Three lovely years were spent in Madang on the North East coast and a beautiful place. For the remainder of my time there I lived in Port Moresby which is the capital. It is the only capital in the world that is cut off from the rest of the country. Due to mountain ranges the only way in and out is by plane.
The local population are a very simple and childlike. I do not mean that in any derogatory sense. They blossomed under praise but would sulk if told off. If you treated them with respect it was reciprocated. Conversely if you went in portraying the arrogant ‘I am the big white man’ role as many did then life could be uncomfortable and extremely dangerous. Even though there was a police force to control crime it wasn’t a 100% effective. Although things may have changed a lot since I was last there in 1991
They still carried out punishments under their own traditional tribal laws. You had to be very careful in everything you did, for instance if one of their children ran out into the road in front of you and you hit that child, there would never be an inquest or a court cases or trials. You didn’t stop to pack you were on the next plane out of the country with your family.
All of the books and TV documentaries show the beautiful side of Papua New Guinea, very few would alert you to the downside of life there. But as I said if you respected the people and were good to them, knew what and what not to do and where and where not to go life was very pleasant.
I won’t mention the dispute during one sitting of parliament that couldn’t be agreed. The designer realized all too late that it was a big BIG mistake to decorate the walls with spears. Neither will I mention the coup that didn’t happen because the leader was still recovering from his drinking bout. The ladies stayed at home during these unsettling times, the children were always pleased to have an extra day off school.
Temperatures could rise to 46 Celsius (115 Fahrenheit) the coldest it ever reached while I was there was 28 Celsius (82 Fahrenheit) in Port Moresby, it rarely fell below 40 Celsius in Madang. I remember one year going for 42 weeks without a drop of rain. Inevitably some parts of Port Moresby were without water. Water trucks would come and you would take your buckets daily to get them filled.
Employing House Staff
Every expatriate family there had a house boy or house Mary. Mostly they would live in their own little house/hut on your property and invariably they would become part of your family.
It was a while before I found a reliable houseboy / Mary. The first houseboy I tried just couldn’t help stealing items. The second was a woman named Nalu had never worked as a house Mary before or that is what I assumed anyway. She spoke hardly any English and my Pidgin English was a very little on first arriving in Papua New Guinea. Certainly not enough to get by with someone who had little or no English at all. But I gave her a try.
One particular morning before I went out for the day I asked her to take all of the rings off the top of the stove and give them a good wash. I helped her take them off, the outside rings, the inserts and the trays. I then left her to it and went to meet my friends. When I arrived home after picking up the children from school the Nalu was nowhere to be found. Everything looked Ok, nothing missing, beds were made, dusting and sweeping done, all looked fine… That was until I went into the kitchen to prepare some afternoon tea for the children. The stove was nice and clean but there were no rings or inserts or trays on the stove top… I looked around and they were nowhere in sight. I searched the cupboards; I even looked outside in case she had put them out to dry… nope. We had to eat out that night. I did find them the next day, hidden behind the fridge. Nalu must not have been able to put it back together so had just hidden the parts thinking I wouldn’t notice. But I never did see her again.
David the Treasure
The next houseboy I had was David and he was a treasure. The only time I had trouble with David was when he cooked up our neighbor’s cat. He was always willing to help and always a happy chappy. And the best floor polisher in town. He looked after us well and would worry if he thought something was wrong. Like the time he had heard of the riots in town and I was late home with the children. The riots were not among the civilians, oh no… there were the police at one side of the road and the army at the other side, throwing bottles and rocks at each other. David fussed like a mother hen when we did eventually arrive home.
The driveway of our house bridged a ditch that ran along the roadside. He driveway was only narrow, just enough for a car. I had a little Toyota Corolla. I lost track of the number of times I would reverse out and… kazunk… one of my wheels would go over the edge. I would shout for David and he would come and lift my car back onto the driveway for me. Although he was small was quite strong.
Watch your P’s & Q’s... Or rather your T’s and S’s
Before leaving Port Moresby to go to Madang we had a big farewell party at our place. There was always an excuse for a party and they were always big affairs. For safety sake all the children would come too. (Children were never out of your site unless they were in school) Each child would bring his/her own pillow and they would all just pile into the bedrooms and curl up on foam mattresses or even just on the floor.
On this particular occasion I asked my houseboy David to watch the cars, about 15 of them, a security measure to prevent any from being stolen. The party was in full swing and I decided to take some food out for David, to my surprise he had the hose and was washing all the cars. When I asked why he was washing all the cars he said “You asked me to wash the cars missus”. After that parties at our house were always recommended because they got a free car wash thrown in.
Fund Raising
Almost every expat there was a member of at least one organization. Either the Lions, Lionesses, CWA (Country Women’s Association, Rotary Club, school or sports club committees. And I am pleased to say that some of the locals would join us as well.
We all did a lot of fund raising especially for the schools for the Papuans. We would also raise funds for equipment at the hospital too. So when someone from the USA contacted CWA and asked could we make use of spare false limbs, they had been made especially for patients there but did not fit quite right, we had no hesitation in accepting this very kind offer. They even paid to ship them out to Papua New Guinea for us. Well the big day came and we were all very excited. But on opening the crates and inspecting the white limbs we were all rolling on the floor laughing. Please bear in mind that the average American is 6’ tall and your average Papuan is between 4’6 and 5’. The images this conjured up had us amused for months.
Nuns Mistake
Now in Port Moresby CWA we had the nuns from the mission join us. One sister came to us with a story of how she had found these beautiful plants and dug them up and potted them and stood them on the verandah of her little hut. However over night the plants disappeared. So once again she dug some new ones up and potted them, and again they vanished. She did this several times before questioning one of the local women as to where the plants were vanishing to. She understood when the explanation was given that these plants were used for contraception and the local girls did not think it seemly for a nun of all people to have contraception plants on her front verandah.
Be careful what you say
You had to careful to think about what you were saying before you spoke the words because the locals would take you literally at your word. One Papuan who worked for one of the wholesale meat companies was asked to take a truck of rubbish to the dump and burn it. Hours passed and everyone was wondering where he had got to. He arrived back at work at the end of the day minus the truck… and yes you guessed right… he had taken the words literally and burnt the truck too.
Links to nature and wildlife of Papua New Guinea
Much of Papua New Guinea is still unexplored
Here are a few of the recent discoveries made over the last few years
New Species found in recent years
There are many more stories and memories
But I think this hub is quite long enough so thank you for reading and please remember to vote.
A day in the life of school children in Madang
Hanuabada and Port Moresby
Which story made you laugh the most?
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Hi Rosemay! Wow, what a great, entertaining hub. I really wish that I had the experience and adventure of living in a different place.
Thanks for sharing the beautiful photos and videos. Papua New Guinea appears to be really beautiful. Thanks again for sharing your experiences! Voted up, up and away!
Hi Rosemay, it was interesting reading about your exploits in Papua and it was wise of you to cut your adventures short to suit the hubpages unofficial format. You can add a few more stories i'm sure in a separate hub. It must have been so different living there and having to adapt to the local customs. Educational too i would imagine, in a two way manner. Oh for a cool breeze. I used to live on the Gold Coast where the weather was too perfect for my liking. Oh well must dash. Cheers
Hi A.A. Zavala It's always better to have first hand experience. It was good most of the time but there were some scary moments. You never left town to go to the beaches or up the mountains unless you went in a convoy of at least 4 cars. As I said if you knew what and what not to do you were OK. There is still a great deal not explored yet and canibalism still goes on too.
Thank you for reading and pleased you enjoyed it.
Hi Dexter It is certainly an experience I wouldn't have missed for the world. It is a beautiful country. Just needs to be run better thats all. The poeple and culture is anazing.
Thank you. I am pleased you enjoyed the photos and videos.
Hi attemptedhumour. It was certainly an education on both sides. There was alot of adapting to do and it was actually quite hard to fit back into a 'normal' lifestyle once you left, some people never quite back to being normal, normal as living in the modern world that is.
I love the weather on the Gold Coast, suppose heat got into my blood.
Thank you for reading and the heads up on format, I may do another hub later.
I was especially delighted to read this hub because as of 4 or so years ago, the bishop of Papua New Guinea was the current owner of the "railroad cottage" my grandfather was born in 1877 in Long Marton, England. I've often wondered about the differences between English and Papauan cultures. This is the first first-person account I've found about life there, and answers many of my questions. Thank you for sharing! ;D
I enjoyed this. The only country I have lived in is the US. I have visited Mexico but not for several years. I wouldn't want to right now, it is too dangerous.
Love the stories... when we enter into any new culture we are reminded we are guests rather quickly should we step out of line... Great writing.
Blessings
Hello Rosemary. These are all wonderful stories.What an adventure you have lain out for us. Burning the truck and wacthing the cars are priceless stories. You portray the locals as both gentle but with a deep animal instinct.
I guess you really love to travelfrom England and then you decided to live in New Zealand.
You had great interesting hub. I enjoyed reading all the stories.
Rosemary, you are a master storyteller. It is evident from the tone that you were a well mannered guest during your tenure. It is a regrettable fact that, as both you and I have observed, we Westerners, as a group, have infamous reputations as poor ambassadors. In that light, to see the respect for your hosts conveyed by this narrative is indeed refreshing. Interesting, funny, useful, thumbs up!!!! Regards, Robert
How interesting. You have lived in some fascinating Hub is like a documentary and I learned so much. thank you for putting this together with the great photos and videos. You did a great job.
JamaGenee. It is a small world and growing smaller with the internet. I am so pleased you enjoyed my hub. If there is anything you want to know just ask or send me an email. There is a great deal that would not be appropriate to put into print on hubpages. Do you know where your Bishop lived in Papua New Guinea. He would have been well respected among the locals. It didn't matter what they did through the week, the biggest majority attended church each Sunday.
Hi Becky I just took a quick day tour across the border of Mexico in about 1981, so didn't really get to see the real Mexico. You do right not to want to go now, better to keep safe. I'm pleased you enjoyed this. Thank you
Good Morning Quill Again. Yes indeed we are. I remember when we first arrived I was too afraid to leave the hotel and just cried as the cockroaches crawled the walls. If someone had given me a ticket then and said go home I would have had no hesitation. Later when we lived out of the town I would wander around the area and around the local markets with my 2 year old. Everyone told me I was stupid and naive and it was a dangerous thing to do. But I somehow think that it was that naivety that kept us safe.
Hi Mick. Pleased you liked those stories, the memories always bring a smile. Yes they were gentle and looked after you if you looked after them but savagely brutal if you crossed them, as many a white man found if they took advantage of the local girls. Or even if a referee made a bad call in a rugby match. It wasn’t unusual in the Highlands to see them doing their shopping in grass skirts and their head dresses, spears at hand. It certainly is a fascinating country.
writer20 You got it in one, yes I love to travel, see and experience different countries. But I won't be doing much more now unless it is to return to England to see my family.
Thank you for reading. I am pleased you enjoyed it.
Hi Hyphen. I wanted to do this hub from a personal perspective, without all of the facts and figures that are available on the web. Facts and figures don’t give a real insight into the reality. And so many sites only give a generalization of the history and culture.
I have so many fond memories and some scary ones too, but I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
I am pleased you enjoyed it and maybe learned a couple of things. Thank you for reading.
Good morning Robert. I am pleased you enjoyed my stories. I sometimes think it was a great shame that Westerners explored these countries. They should have been left alone to live their own simple lives. We can feel good because we introduced them to medicines, but we also introduced them to diseases and drugs, not that they didn’t have their own drug, the betel nut, which grew in abundance.
In 1980 they would break into your home and steal food from the fridge and leave, just a decade later they would break in with shotguns, steal valuable to sell. And if you were lucky your wife and daughter weren’t raped and you were allowed to live. And the awful thing is WE made them like this.
Yes Westerners have a lot to answer for.
I love the watch/wash car story. What wonderful experiences!
Hi Rosemay,
I real enjoyed reading about your experiences in New Guinea. I hope you will share more with us.
Voted up, up and away!
Thank you sally, pleased you enjoyed it
He just grinned ate his food and carried on washing. Unfortunate after he had retired for the night a car was stolen. Soon after reporting it the police rang to say they had found it. Of course males being what they are, a couple still sober dashed out and jumped into their cars, however one reversed his car out of the driveway so quickly he went down the bank on the other side of the road, with headlights beaming up to the stars. Took quite a while to tow it out in the morning with dozens of men trying to keep it upright.
Thank you Sue, so pleased you enjoyed it and yes I probably will do another one.
Wow Rosemary, you've lived around the world, i've always wanted to see other cultures, you seemed to have a great time. I do enjoy your stories. Thank you... more please..
Cheers
Haha 'More please' says she with bowl in hand. I have been so very lucky to have either lived in or visited so many places. I am working on my trip to Egypt and a certain... no I won't spoil it, but you will pee your pants. Lol
Thank you
Hi, Mary. Nice report from and wonderful adventures in Papua New Guinea. This was one of the closest country beside papua (one of the biggest island in Indonesia). Thank you so much for share with us. I really enjoy all stunning pictures and the videos as well. Well done and vote up! Have a nice weekend!
Prasetio
Thank you Prasetio That is a lovely compliment coming from our very own tour guide. :-)
Papua New Guinea has the most languages in one country. 800 I believe. Pidgin English is the most used between the tribes as well as with the expatriate population.
Thank you for the vote and you enjoy your weekend too.
I loved this and found it fascinating. I look forward to reading lots more.
Peanutritious Nice to meet you. It is a fascinating country and the people are fascinating too. I will be writing more on my travels at a later date. Thank you for your visit and comment
Great little snippets and I saw something of your humour sneakin' up in there too, which was a lovely surprise. I totally related, having been an expat in Dubai, similar things happening with those we employed. This was a nice little medley of your experiences there, written succinctly, and very entertainingly. Nice!
Thank you Ercolano
Its nice that you can relate to this. I have seen a little of Dubai, only spent a week there but thoroughly enjoyed it. I remember visiting a huge birs sanctuary there and and sledding down the dunes, and the camel races with the little ones, and know a little of that story so I'll say no more.
I am pleased you enjoyed reading this, I certainly enjoy reading your stories.
Thank you for dropping by
Up and across the board Rosemay. Some great stories and a good laugh. This was a great fun article my friend. I can't believe they would go off and burn the truck. A great example of taking words to heart. The stove incident shows that the lady probably had never seen one before. A great time Rosemay. My heart to you and the family over your sister's loss. Take care and talk to you soon.
Hi Ricky yes you to stop and think about exactly what you were going to say before you said it. It was dificultto get crosss with them. They kept us smiling that is for sure.
Thank you again for your kind words re my sister's partner.
Thank you for the votes and take you care too
Hello Rosemay,
What a lovely hub and I really liked the video of the school.
Those kids were real characters and obviously a little mature for our idea of 3rd graders lol.
It reminded me of my time in South Africa with the whole 'literal' issue (watch what you say thing)
You have inspired me to write a hub on some of my experiences with maids and gardeners.
You will completely 'get it; I can tell from this hub that it will have echoes for you.
I really enjoyed reading this and watching the videos and slideshow. It is lovely well done.
Voted up and across the board.
I'm so pleased you enjoyed reading this and that it has encouraged you to write about your experiences too. I am so looking forward to reading them. It's always nice when someone can relate to these things, often you can tell stories and people just don't believe you.
Yes those 3rd graders are a little mature aren't they... :-) But the little ones cooking their own lunch at school. Lol Makes you realise how easy our children have it.
Thank you for reading and for the vote
Hi Rosemay,
I enjoyed reading your stories, but it appears you got away with a somewhat charmed existence in PNG. My husband has now worked there for 3 years and has encountered nothing but hostility towards the 'white man' robbery on several occasions, fraud, frequent cases of domestic violence, car jackings (accompanied by rape when there's been a woman involved) and armed muggings.
Beautiful as the country is (and he ventures into the Northern Territories frequently with his job), it just pales into comparison with the high levels of danger.
Even the locals don't just walk about, car journeys have to be planned to avoid high risk areas and offices and apartments guarded 24-7.
Shame - it does seem a beautiful place, with a wealth of undiscovered nature, but just too dangerous. Otherwise I would go visit my husband whilst he works as he is away so much!
Please don't get over-excited travellers - this place isn't all it is cracked up to be - unless you like 'living on the edge' every hour of every day.
Good stories though.
Hi Vicki
This is my account of my experiences while I was there. It is not my intention to promote PNG as a holiday destination. This is simply MY story of MY experiences.
Bear in mind that I left 20 years ago. It was not a ‘charmed existence’ as you call it; we were very cautious and careful, and aware of the dangers, but we did not live in fear otherwise what was the point in being there. We had good times there and some lovely memories.
I did say as long as you knew where and where not to go and what and what not to then it was reasonably safe. Even 20 years ago you didn’t go shopping alone, if your car broke down you locked yourself in it. You never went to the beaches or into the mountains unless you were in a convoy of at least 4 cars. You never ever walked anywhere, you dropped off your kids and picked them up on the doorsteps, they had no freedom to wander. You kept your kids safe that is why whenever anyone had a party it was usually an all night thing and the kids came too and stayed overnight.
If the locals jumped into the road in front of you, you didn’t stop; you put your foot down. It was all a matter of following the rules and being cautious and aware of the possible dangers.
The houses had 8ft barbed wire fencing and the security compounds had guards on the gates, all business had security guards.
If you followed the rules you were safe. I have no idea what it is like there now. I do know that I had a good American friend stabbed to death because he stood as a witness in a court case. I also had an army officer friend murdered and his wife and daughter raped. There was a reason for that, there usually was.
But the same as any other country different areas are a different kettle of fish. The capital Port Moresby is where all the ‘rascals’ were drawn to, the same goes for Goroka or Lae. The same also applies to London, Sydney, the big USA cities
There are cities in the UK, Leeds, Leicester, Bradford, and areas of Sydney that I would not walk around alone. All of these crimes you mention are carried out throughout the world. It just seems scarier because they are ‘natives’ and the country is nothing like a western world country.
The grapevine is very strong, you treat someone like s*** in Port Moresby and then go north they will know you, your reputation travels fast.
Then there are places like Malolo and Madang where there was the occasional store broken into. And you could walk around alone, and if your car broke down the locals would give you a hand. And you threw parties for the local employees and they loved it.
So yes there is a lot of crime there but there are also good places too, it is not all bad. And you were never alone it was a very close community and they became your family.
Personally as a hubber from PNG, I have to thank Rosemay50 for putting together a wonderful hub. To me this hub is more than a hub. Its about the country I was born and love. PNG is my motherland and I am so proud to say I am from PNG. What else can I say. Well done Rose. I have to follow all your hubs even though I am from PNG and know more about the country. lolz...
Videos and images are great. Rose I live in Lae if you have been there. Moresby has change a lot in the lately due to LNG project that is occurring up in the Highlands...Number of people have certainly increased so don't be surprised if yo are back here again. Madang town is beautiful as ever. Just a bit of hiccups between local landowners and Ramu Nickel but otherwise all is good. These are some latest about PNG which I am glad to share with you. You can link up wit me on facebook to keep in touch with what is going on in PNG if your are interested. Tenk yu tru (Thank you very much)
Hello Ian and its a pleasure to meet you.
Thank you for the updates. I am sure it has changed a great deal since I was there.
I was just reading about the LNG project, it will help provide more jobs. I do hope though that the foreign investment doesn't mean that the largest portion of profits are going overseas as was the case with the gold mines. Western investors do tend to take advantage of less sophisticated smaller countries.
I am pleased to hear that Madang has not changed, I used to manage a clothing shop in Madang, WAMPS, and so I travelled to lae and Goroka many times to pick out stock. I used to lived right next door to the Madang Resort. I loved it there and some of my happiest memories are from my time in Madang.
Thank for following and for the fan mail. I will pop along and read your hubs in the morning.
Tenk yu tru, lukim yu behind
Thank you for a very interesting hub. I enjoyed the humour, too. Have you seen my two hubs: 'Happy memories of PNG' and 'Papuan Island Celebrations'? It is such a beautiful country and most of the people are lovely, too.
Hi Blossom
Thank you for coming along to read. It is nice to meet someone who shares memories PNG
I will certainly pop along to read your hubs on that beautiful country
Thank you. I'll look forward to your comments.
Rosemay,
I didn't want the adventure to end! This was a wonderful read!!!
Will you do another one? I'm hooked so surely there can be a part two. :)
femme
Hi Femme
So pleased you enjoyed this and found it such an adventure, which it was.
Yes in fact I have just started to write another one up when I get spare minutes to work on it
Thank you for reading
Rosemarry thanks for the "Lukim yu behind" comment. I am totally moved. You are true a true hero.. Please write more about PNG. I will be waiting right here to read. My fiancee and I are planning to settle in Madang. she works in ANZ Madang as a banker and I work in Kimbe as a oil palm plantation manager. Thanks for your reply.
Ian
Hi Ian Thank you for that lovely compliment, I am certainly no hero. Lol
I am planning to write a hub on Madang. I used to bank with the ANZ and I used to play cards with the manager and his wife, Graham and Carol, but I would think they are long gone now.
Wishing you all the best for your coming wedding.
Rosemay50
You are totally welcome. Waiting to read your Madanng Hub.
It may take me a few days Ian so much to do. Lol But thank you
This was fascinating Rosemay. I'll be back to watch it again. Well done.
Hi Peg
Thank you for taking the time to come nad read, I know your are very busy so it is much appreciated.
Welcome back anytime
Enjoy whats left of your weekend
A.A. Zavala Level 7 Commenter 8 months ago
Iinteresting stories! New Guinea has a fascinating history, and it's people have been studied extensively by anthropologist. I've always wondered what it was like for foreignors to live there. Now I know; thank you for sharing.