Papua New Guinea

Back Home

2007-03-22T22:38:00.000-07:00

We made it home! Thank you so much for your support and prayers. Please feel free to send us an email with any questions if you would like. As for now, it is back to work and school. To follow along on my continued flight training, visit the other blog at www.pilotsprogress.blogspot.com.

Folopa Video

2007-03-22T10:32:00.001-07:00

Islander landing Mt. Tawa video

2007-03-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

This is a short quicktime video of the islander landing at Mt. Tawa for the Folopa dedication.

Over Japan on the way home

2007-03-15T22:20:00.000-07:00

Ukarumpa to Moresby

2007-03-15T22:15:00.000-07:00

Goodbye

2007-03-15T21:54:00.000-07:00

Most of the Aviation staff showed up to wave goodbye. It was sad to leave.

on board

2007-03-15T21:49:00.000-07:00

After all of the goodbyes we were loaded up in the Islander for the flight to Port Moresby.

Kite

2007-03-15T21:47:00.000-07:00

As we were packing up to leave, we took a short break to go for a walk and have one last look at Ukarumpa. On our walk we saw more of these amazing kites. They were neat birds and it was amazing to see them soaring around the center.

Rain

2007-03-15T21:45:00.000-07:00

This picture captured the rain pretty well. It was pretty wet before we left so we were happy that it dried up enough for us to make it out.

Orange

2007-03-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

It's an Orange only green. Just one of the many things that are backwards in PNG. (I suppose that the opposite of orange would be blue)

Campbells

2007-03-15T21:42:00.000-07:00

We can not thank the Campbell family enough. They held a big goodbye party for us and many of the friends we had made during our stay came out to bid us farewell. Craig and Stephanie were so hospitable and made us feel right at home in Ukarumpa.

Speaking

2007-03-15T21:40:00.000-07:00

The day before we left I had the opportunity to speak to the Junior high and High school group Soul Purpose. They were a very gracious audience and I wish that I had more time to get to know them.

Into the wild blue yonder

2007-02-18T03:29:00.000-08:00

Then the Caribou sailed into the wild blue yonder. Which reminded me of how short our time is here. Tomorrow, we start our final week here in PNG before we too depart. We have a very busy week and I am sure that it will go by to quickly. We will keep you posted on the final days and thank you in advance for your interest and support for our time here.

Caribou

2007-02-18T03:27:00.000-08:00

Nothing like the sound of those two big radials roaring past you.

Caribou

2007-02-18T03:16:00.000-08:00

We had the distinct honour of hosting the Australian military at our airstrip last week. They rode in on a Caribou. Which for those of you that don't know, bares any resemblance to any hoved animal. It is a large ugly airplane, that looks a little better in camo. However, it's takeoff and landing performance is superb. It can land most anywhere a Cessna 206 can while hauling at least 5 times the payload. The Aussies come by to practice landing in small jungle stips offten in PNG. We enjoyed a short chat and watching their airplane perform.

The Next Level

2007-02-12T03:41:00.000-08:00

The upper level barrels get special treatment and get to skip the second drop and the mud bath. They get to do a high wire act as they are rolled along a couple boards precariously not fastened to the edge of the truck and into the container. This would all be hard work and mundane if they were filled with say, milk. It just seemed so much more exciting with the explosive warnings on each drum. Nevertheless, 80 some drums later, we finished just in time for a coke back in the hangar. Don't tell OSHA. :)

Rollin rollin rollin

2007-02-12T03:38:00.000-08:00

Over the bumps and through the mud, we made our way to the container. Once inside, they are packed in tight. The ground level ones are usually pretty muddy by the time they get inside. But they are a little easier to work with than the second level bunch.

Next up...

2007-02-12T03:34:00.000-08:00

Then you make the plummet to the ground. With another strategically placed tire and just the right amount of roll off the truck, it makes a nice landing on terra firma without too many dents or punctures. You learn to put a lot of trust in whoever made than drum. When you have recovered from your cringe, you grab onto it and start rolling.

Unloading

2007-02-12T03:30:00.000-08:00

After the truck backs into position, you take the top drums down and cushion the blow onto the truck bed with a few strategically placed tires. You sort of cringe the first few times as this fifty gallon drum of explosives crashes onto the bed of a truck holding 80 other explosive drums. That's over 4000 gallons of explosive stuff you standing next to. It was intense.

Fuel Truck

2007-02-12T03:25:00.000-08:00

It was another exciting day at work. The fuel truck arrived delivering our highland supply of avgas and jet fuel up from the coast. After it arrives we unload the truck into containers and store it until it can be distributed to various airfields around the country our pumped into the plans here. It was an exciting and labor intensive task to say the least. They just don't prepare you for this kind of OSHA approved technique back home. Here is the play by play.

Spider

2007-02-12T03:23:00.000-08:00

Also down by the river, we found this great spider. We have seen them around the banana plants often and this one had made its web in the grass along side the path. Leslie was giving it a close inspection and if gives you a little scale for how big these arachnids can be.

Crocodile

2007-02-12T00:04:00.000-08:00

The other day, Leslie and I went down to the river just off center and there in the water was a Crocodile just waiting for us. I just had to take a picture. Can you spot him? (this one was for you Dad)

The Andersons are back

2007-02-11T23:54:00.000-08:00

Last Friday Neil and Carol arrived back in Ukarumpa after saying goodbye to their village. It was fun to be part of their welcoming crew. We might even get to welcome them home in Spokane in three weeks as well.

Up High

2007-02-08T03:49:00.000-08:00

I was told that the mountain range here rises faster to 13,000 feet from sea level faster than any other place in the world. It was amazing to see how high and rugged the jungle peaks were. At the top I was surprised to see yet another village on a small sierra plateau. Just a few hundred feet from the houses the cliff drops away thousands of feet in a massive landslide that looked relatively recent. It would be amazing to meet these people and learn how they have managed to live in a place like that. It would be the same as living near the top of Mt. Rainier, only at 45 degrees and now snow. We made it back to Ukarumpa and I spent the rest of my day in the hangar, but it sure was nice to get out and fly.

Transfer

2007-02-08T03:45:00.000-08:00

The people were happy to see us but we did not have much time to mingle. We quickly unloaded the cargo we had brought and loaded up the translators things into the plane. We had brought some petrol for the village and transferred that from our containers to theirs. In the meantime the people were happy to take refuge from the heat in the shade of the wing. After the translators said their goodbyes, we were on our way.

Long Island

2007-02-08T03:42:00.000-08:00

The airstrip was right along the shore. The island strips are usually more straight forward with few obstacles but the wind was very gusty and unpredictable as we made our way to the ground. Gavin flew well and got us down safely.

The coast

2007-02-08T03:38:00.000-08:00

After we crossed the mountains we descended quickly and made our way out over the ocean toward Long Island. The Island was covered in clouds except the coast were the airstrip ways. In the middle of the island is a large lake. If you look just north west of the island New Britain you might be able to find it on a map. It is the only large round island with a large round lake in the middle of it.

Green

2007-02-08T03:34:00.000-08:00

The mountains on the far side of the valley are very rugged and rise quickly above 13,000 feet. We climbed high to cross them and looking down on them reminded me of the color of the wicked witch of the west. I saw many small villages scattered all through the mountains down in the valleys and along the ridges. Many of them distinct languages and cultures just a few miles apart.

Into Ramu

2007-02-08T03:31:00.000-08:00

The Ramu valley looked even more spectacular from the sky. It stretches from Lae to the East, up to the Sepik in the North West. The sun was just rising and all the waterfalls and rivers flowing into the valley glistened and shown bright white against the lime green of the grass and foliage on the hills.

Where are we?

2007-02-08T03:26:00.000-08:00

After the fog lifted we took off and headed east towards Ramu valley. It took 10 minutes by air instead of the two hours it took us by car to reach the the valley. Most of my time here has been spent in the shop maintaining aircraft and my flying has been mostly as a passenger. I was excited to be able to ride along and see what a day as a missionary pilot is like. It was a relatively simple flight out to an island to pick up two translators and bring them back to Ukarumpa. There were no incidents and we were able to sit back and enjoy the beautiful scenery. This is Gavin doing his best where are we pose.

Back to work

2007-02-08T03:22:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed another successful people slalom to work today. It proved to be a much better day than yesterday. Yesterday I fought a losing battle against my malaria medication that left me nauseous and out of commission pretty much the whole day. Today I got to go for a flight with Gavin out to Long Island.

F.Y.I.

2007-02-06T18:18:00.000-08:00

I have posted a lot recently and I wanted to point out the Archives column on the right in case you have not noticed it. You can browse the different posts by month that don't fit onto this main screen. -->

DHL

2007-02-06T18:04:00.000-08:00

At work that last few days I have been working in the Parts room as a Systems Engineer. Or at least that's what I like to call it. I have been writing a lot of little programs on the computer and working with the store guys to streamline the parts management. It has been a blast. I have also become an honorary DHL employee. They run a DHL distribution center out of the hangar which has proved very advantageous to getting shipments in and out of the country more reliably. While it has its own paperwork and logistic headaches, it makes keeping parts for the fleet much more viable. Mr. O and I have a blast working together to keep things running smooth.

Getting to work

2007-02-06T18:00:00.000-08:00

Most of the time I take the van to work. Today I got to travel in style with Dan. The road to work is a bumpy mile stretch usually filled with pedestrians. It is sort of a horizontal pedestrian slalom course.

On Top

2007-02-06T17:58:00.000-08:00

We made it over the pass and the sun poked through the clouds filling up Ramu valley below us. It was amazing to see the road snaking down the hill to the valley floor. We were very grateful to have made the trip and to have done so safely.

Pot Hole

2007-02-06T17:55:00.000-08:00

This was worth a picture. I tried to get Craig to stop next to it but the rest of the passengers would not hear of it. He pulled a little ahead as a compromise and let me get a picture. Down the hole is a cliff dropping away into jungle 1000 feet or so below. You can better appreciate the drop from the next picture.

Ramu

2007-02-06T17:52:00.000-08:00

The Ramu valley was spectacular. If you look at a map of PNG, it is the large valley on the north side of the country between the mountains on the coast and the highlands in the middle. Much of the valley is filling up with palm plantations. It was a beautiful place.

Car Wash

2007-02-06T17:51:00.000-08:00

We thought about stopping at this car wash but it looked a little busy. You wash cars just like everything else here. Take it down to the river and scrub it.

Buai Market

2007-02-06T17:48:00.000-08:00

On the way home we stopped back by the Campbell's POC village to see their market. It consisted mostly of Buai or Beetle Nut. If it was not a narcotic and rotted your teeth, I am sure that it would be really great. Unfortunately, many people here are addicted to it.

Sun - Rain - Sun - Rain

2007-02-06T17:45:00.000-08:00

...and then it rained. It does that a lot around here I have noticed. Fortunately, it always clears up again too. Bob and I swam out around the dock in the pouring rain. It was a blast and we didn't even have to shower off the salt water when we got out.

Monkeys

2007-02-06T17:42:00.000-08:00

These kids were having a blast climbing high into this tree and flinging themselves out into the water. It looked like fun until this kid went in sideways. I didn't envy the landing.

Snorkeling

2007-02-06T17:39:00.000-08:00

Well, you can't go to the ocean in the south pacific without a swim. The water was amazing. Under that dock is a Cessna 210 and it made a great artificial reef. All around it was all sorts of amazing coral. We even found Nemo.

Bats

2007-02-06T17:36:00.000-08:00

There were lots of them. I wish I had the time to go out and take lots of pictures of them. All day they would hang from the tops of the trees and fan themselves to keep cool. At dusk and dawn they would literally fill the sky as they set out for the night to find fruit to eat. Many of them had 6 foot wing spans and could even soar for short periods of time. They were spectacular to watch.

Market

2007-02-06T17:34:00.000-08:00

In town we visited the market and explored all the fish, artifacts and produce. It was a very large market and it was fun to see all that the people where selling.

Duke

2007-02-06T17:29:00.000-08:00

We were greeted at the guest house by Duke. He was a really friendly dog, which is not a desirable characteristic when it comes to guarding. Just two days before we arrived, the managers of the guest house where held up a knife point in town. We were pretty cautious when we went into town.

Madang

2007-02-06T17:23:00.000-08:00

Eventually we arrived in Madang. We stayed at the SIL guest house which is near the water and just a little out of town. Madang has a rich history and if you have time for a good read, check out The Coast Watchers. It is about a few GI's in WWII who where trapped here under Japanese occupation warned the allies of enemy attacks. There is a memorial lighthouse dedicated to those men in the center of town.

Big Fern

2007-02-06T17:19:00.000-08:00

I love the plants here. It reminds me of the tropical exhibits that my mom and I would visit at the flower and garden show. I am bummed that I am going to miss it this year, but it is pretty neat to see the real thing. Those ferns are big.

Red Vines

2007-02-06T17:15:00.000-08:00

On the way down we stopped at the village where the Campbell's recently did their POC (Pacific Oreintation Course). They spent 5 weeks living in this small village. All the people there were very happy to see them. Many of the kids had enjoyed plenty of green vines out in the jungle, but they were a little hesitant to try Stephanies red vines. After a few licks I think they started to like them. :)

Aids

2007-02-06T17:09:00.000-08:00

Along the way I saw this sign. Aids is becoming a huge problem in this country. It is spreading very rapidly and some are predicting that in 10 years more than half the country will be infected. SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics) is working hard to provide literature to educate the people how to protect themselves. SIL has the unique opportunity to be able to translate small informational books into many languages and make them available to the people. This not only fights aids, but encourages literacy and provides one more opportunity to get God's word into the peoples hands. If you want to know more about aids or what is being done to fight it here let me know and I can send you stats and some of the little books in english.

Ford

2007-02-06T17:06:00.000-08:00

We got a real kick out of the road. To be fair it is not all gravel and potholes, well, most of it is. However, here is a nice paved section with a river flowing over it. Now might also be a good time to point out that this is the main road in Papua New Guinea connecting two of the biggest cities in the country.

Freeway (I-5 if you like)

2007-02-06T17:02:00.000-08:00

This last weekend we had the priveledge of seeing more of the country with the Campbells and the Boogaards. It was also a mini vacation of sorts to celebrate our time here in PNG being half over. I (Ian) also managed to be sick for most of it. Nevertheless, we had a blast and really enjoyed seeing the north coast of the country, meeting people, and taking pictures. Here are a few.

A different perspective

2007-01-30T01:51:00.000-08:00

I don't have a picture for this story. However, it was an interesting experience and worth noting. Yesterday after work I was heading out to the bus that takes us from the airport back to Ukarumpa and I noticed that one of the carts we use to carry luggage to and from the planes was outside the fence near the bus. Normally, they are put away at the end of the day. As I got closer to the bus I realized that the cart had a casket on it and a national man was standing close beside it. I learned from one of my coworkers that the man's wife had died and he was trying to find transportation to her village to bury her. It is our policy not to keep bodies in our buildings overnight for sanitary reasons as well as cultural problems that have occur ed in the past. There is a lot of cultural implications surrounding death here that I do not fully understand. However, it is always an expensive affair and lots of family members and friends are involved. We could not offer any financial assistance but one of our national employees at aviation offered to allow the man to spend the night at his house and bring his wife. My coworker and I volunteered to transport them to the house a few kilometers away. The truck quickly filled up with about 20 people and we began the drive. The drive was eventful with deep mud, very small narrow "bridges" made of various sized logs spaced roughly tire width apart. We were pretty nervous about getting stuck as well as losing some of our passengers including the casket as we four wheeled along the small jungle road. Eventually we made it and the man was grateful for our help. Even so, he has a long road ahead of him to find money to get to his wife's village and make the journey. The people here have difficult lives.

The Crawling Eye

2007-01-27T19:38:00.000-08:00

In the morning there was this patch of mist that was moving along the river devouring everything in its path. Which would have been fine if we did not have to cross the river to get back home and if I had not watched the crawling eye. :) Thanks Dad.

pre-moth

2007-01-27T19:16:00.000-08:00

Just another example of crazy bugs here. I really liked the hairy back tuffs. What an amazing creator.

Speaking of Bugs

2007-01-27T19:13:00.000-08:00

This one found a nice spot to hide out from the morning mist. We tried to do the same thing under a tarp and were relatively succesful. I am not sure what that bug was. It looked a lot like a mosquito but it wasn't. Whenever I leave my house, I feel like I am discovering new species everywhere I look. It is great.

The forest

2007-01-27T19:10:00.000-08:00

Once we were in the trees, it reminded me a lot of the forests back home. Except the underbrush was filled with passion fruit vines, giant ferns, bread fruit trees, lots of types of grass and millions of spiders. We also saw really cool lightning bugs that looked just like little L.E.D.'s.

Lone Tree

2007-01-27T19:07:00.000-08:00

Our destination was the hill they call "Lone Tree." That was 40 years ago when there was only one tree on it. Now there is a forest. It was planted by villagers to have firewood and the trees grew faster than they could cut them down.

Out of Ukarumpa

2007-01-27T19:01:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to better give you a feel for where Ukarumpa is, I took a short hike Friday night to the top of one of the nearby hills. I spent the night with Mike and Ian Patrick and Daniel. They all grew up in PNG and we had a great time sharing stories around the fire that night. As we were leaving the center, one of the guys who mows lawns on center offered to be our guide as far as his house in the village just off center. He was very helpful to show us the most shallow part of the river we had to cross that was waste deep and moving swiftly. From then we just followed the path through the grass that has been hiked for hundreds of years. Lighting was crashing on several of the surrounding hills but we were in the sunshine. It was beautiful.

This is for you Eugene and David

2007-01-27T18:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the comment Eugene. I will say Hi to Bev tomorrow when I see him. He is still flying helicopters and I have really appreciated getting to know him. David, your folks have been awesome. They have had us over twice for dinner and a movie. I keep begging for a ride in the King Air. It looks like we might get one on the flight out of here with him. Also, Eugene, say hi to Emily Cline at school if you know her.

Buy and Sell

2007-01-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

Here is Leslie buying some bell peppers, and no, those tomatoes in the foreground are not stacked very well. This market t is different from almost any market I have ever shopped at. All of the prices are fixed and there is no negotiating. In fact, there is virtually no conversation at all. Look at the product offer your money, take your food and say thank you. Even so, highlanders are very relational and it is important to never criticize their food and they really appreciate complements.

Produce

2007-01-25T17:27:00.000-08:00

Here is another isle of the market. In all there are probably 60 or 70 people that show up three times a week to sell their goods. Some of them walk for miles.

Strawberry Stacking Competition

2007-01-25T17:16:00.000-08:00

They were evenly matched and the competition was stiff. Any moment now, one would emerge as the winner. Actually, this is the market and just like home, all produce must be stacked geometrically. Whenever you buy something, they rearrange the remaining fruit or vegetable back into an even geometric pattern.

Dog in the way

2007-01-25T17:13:00.000-08:00

Dogs can be very helpful here. They are great for guarding the house and many of the nationals use them for hunting. Sometimes, they can be in the wrong place at the wrong time. This dog wondered out in front of the king air right as it was powering up to take off. After a few seconds of sizing up the noisy airplane, the dog yielded and ran off the runway. Good decision.

Roadside Scenery

2007-01-25T04:40:00.000-08:00

I thought I would also point out that this is a beautiful place. Another interesting piece of trivia is that most of the now green highlands looked like this just a few hundred years ago – very few trees. From what we have been told, only recently with coffee and other light sensitive crops have people began to plant trees to provide shade. It has become a massive reforestation project.

Truck Full

2007-01-25T04:38:00.000-08:00

The main way of getting around in PNG is to catch a PMV – public motorized vehicle. Some are vans, others are well, vehicles. As long as it has a blue license plate, climb aboard. Here in PNG the motto is: “There is always room for one more.”

C-Shop

2007-01-25T04:36:00.000-08:00

On the way home we saw even more great stuff. Roadside stores are no exception to Papua New Guinea. This is one such store. If you look close, you will see the Coca Cola logo and next to that…nope this is not a Coffee Shop, this is a Coffin Shop. I was confused too, nevertheless you can still order a single tall.

Pictures

2007-01-25T04:35:00.000-08:00

We mentioned the significance of taking a picture earlier. Here was one such excited gathering after a roll of film was developed. They were having a blast seeing the pictures they had taken, especially the ones with them in it.

Goroka Crowd

2007-01-25T04:33:00.000-08:00

We traveled to Goroka accompanying Stephanie Campbell and another clinic staff member for a medical meeting. While they were meeting we checked out the local shopping. Here’s main street. Just like 5th Ave. The shopping was considerably better, and safer than Kianantu, and only 2 hours further awa., Goroka is known for its annual Highlands Sing Sing. It is sometimes referred to as the Goroka show, where many villagers from around the highlands gather to sing, dance and show off their traditional ways of celebration.

Long Road

2007-01-25T04:25:00.000-08:00

It was a long road to Goroka. We traveled there today with the Campbells and a few other people from Ukarumpa. The road is one of the longest in the country and can be treacherous due to the rascals as well as the potholes. We were very grateful for a safe trip both ways.

New Edition

2007-01-25T04:20:00.000-08:00

You can see in the background the new edition to our fleet here at SIL aviation. Just kidding. That plane belongs to the government and only visits our small dirt strip for unique medical evacuations that we can’t perform and to transfer money to various banks around the country. The roads either don’t exist or are not nearly safe enough. It was sure something to see a jet like that both land and takeoff from our airstrip, although they did have to do a go around.

Time to Go

2007-01-24T04:38:00.000-08:00

Then it was time to leave. It was hard to say goodbye to our new friends. The word we used is Koneo. It means I am sorry. They us it for hello too, in the sense "I am sorry that life is so hard." Often the old women great the other people in the village with a short phrase that means "I am dying..." in a rehtorical sense of "do you care?" Life is hard in the jungle, but we could tell as we left that this next chapter for the Folopa people could be very different. I am anxious to see what the people do with the word of God. It never returns void. By reading it they can now know just how much God does care about them and that He loves them very much.

The Mumu

2007-01-24T04:34:00.000-08:00

Up next was the Mumu. The next day, at dawn, the air was filled with the sound of pigs and other animals being led down to the promise stakes. Before the feast, families brought stakes down to the center of the village representing an animal that they would contribute to the feast. All the animals were tied up to the stakes in a long line and then... I will spare you the details. It was really something to see and hear. We had to leave before the eating happened. Which turned out to be a good thing because everyone got sick after the feast. There have also been reports of animals with a virus similar to anthrax in the area. While it is not fatal to humans, it has made a lot of people very sick.

There I am

2007-01-24T04:31:00.000-08:00

I found out towards the end of our time that it was a great honor to have your picture taken. I think I made a lot of people happy that week. They also tell me it is a big status symbol to be able to take a picture, probably because it is so hard for them to get a camera, much less get a picture developed. They absolutely loved seeing themselves in my camera.

Peanut Gallery

2007-01-24T04:29:00.000-08:00

The rest of the day we spent wandering about the village as they rejoiced in the days events. I enjoyed seeing the peoples reactions to all that had happened. I wish I could have spoken their language to even better understand what all it meant to them.

Pastor Paul

2007-01-24T04:26:00.000-08:00

After the box was opened. Pastor Paul presented the gift to the people representing food, light and direction that was finally accessible to them.

Bibles in a Box

2007-01-24T04:24:00.000-08:00

After about five hours of speakers and celebration, the Bibles were finally brought out to great fanfair.

Airplanes

2007-01-24T04:20:00.000-08:00

This was symbolizing the first missionary airplane's the people saw flying overhead. They made these models long before an airplane ever landed at their village complete with propellers. The first airplanes they saw was a squadron of bombers flying low during the war. The people fled to the hills and valleys believing that their ancestors had returned and the world was ending. They sacrificed all their animals and it was a time of great terror.

First Missionary

2007-01-24T04:16:00.000-08:00

This was the first missionary to the Folopa people. He came as part of a survey team and instructed the Folopa to pray for translators to come. Two and half years later the Andersons arrived.

Watching

2007-01-24T04:13:00.000-08:00

This is part of the crowd that turned out to watch the dedication.

All The Planes

2007-01-24T04:06:00.000-08:00

This is a rare sight. 5 airplanes at a mountain strip. This was the day of the dedication and all these airplanes participated in bringing in guests. It really demonstrates the importance of aviation in the work that is being done.

Here comes the rest

2007-01-24T04:02:00.000-08:00

I am going to post some of the last pictures of the dedication with minimal explanation. We have had a very busy week and we have been trying hard to carve out the time to get the rest of these pictures up. It is amazing how long things take to get done here. Especially dial up. So without further delay, here they are. Email us with questions if you want more details.

Picture review

2007-01-24T03:54:00.000-08:00

The little kids have little inhibition crowding in for a picture, and even less for reviewing the picture on the backside of the camera (hang onto your camera!). The older kids and grownups are delighted to be in a picture if you ask them, but then will stand still anxiously awaiting an invitation to see themselves (a rare view as we did not see any mirrors in the village). These three teenaged girls were such a pretty picture standing together in their colors with their hair done all up. I ended up liking this picture better of their review.

School

2007-01-22T02:39:00.000-08:00

School is held in these buildings off a side peninsula of the ridge. The children learn Folopa, then Pidgin, then English, if they stay thru high school. I wish my school had had such a view. – L

Morning Fog

2007-01-22T02:38:00.000-08:00

We walked to the top of the village and he snapped this shot along the way. All morning fog had poured over the ridge next ours and had slowly filled up the valley below to the brim. Now it was pouring over the village’s ridge and into the next valley like cascading fog. It was mystifying…

(…that was for you, Dad.) - L

Morning Walk

2007-01-22T02:37:00.000-08:00

The morning of the dedication Ian and I went out for a walk, though I think it was Ian’s second or third walk of the day – that man would disappear for hours with his camera. He had sunburn on his forearms after the first day from holding the camera to his face all day. You should see his watch tan. – L

Pretty in Pink

2007-01-22T02:34:00.000-08:00

My turn to write now (says Leslie). This is my friend, Anna (the one in pink). The kidos in the village were either as cute as buttons or had green snot running out of their noses 24/7. Luckily, this one decided to be my friend (though if a snotty one had, it wouldn’t have mattered as I was prepared with lots of Kleenex ). Anna is probably six, and spoke some pidgin. As I only spoke three words of pidgin, we didn’t converse much, but that didn’t hinder our friendship – that little girl followed me up and down the village for a good number of miles. She would take my hand when I would offer it and I would often find her hanging around the house when I’d come out. She would just beam when I would recognize her and say hello. Such a sweetie. – L

Village and Basketball

2007-01-20T23:44:00.000-08:00

Several of the men accompanied me to the other end of the village where they had constructed a basketball court. None of them had ever heard of Michael Jordan, I think kick boxing is a bigger sport in their community. Nevertheless, they had to hoops and a few balls. Things like basketballs and clothes are all traded up slowly from the coast where there are a lot of Australian second hand clothing stores. I wanted to ask them how many balls that lost over the side of the cliff next to the court but I just didn’t have the words.

Men's House

2007-01-20T23:41:00.000-08:00

I also visited a Men’s House. Most of the time the men sleep and live out at the Men’s House and go to their wives house (where the children live) only for meals. Inside the house it was dark and very smokey. They burn fires inside to keep the bugs out of the roof and generally make it difficult to breathe. I am not sure what we were talking about but it was really funny to all of them and I think I had something to do with it, probably my sudden inability to inhale. I took a few pictures and moved on.

Cassowary

2007-01-20T23:38:00.000-08:00

We saw a Cassowary. There it is. You can check them out on wikipedia if you want to know more. They can be pretty nasty and have been known to kill men in the jungle. These were the highland type and were considerably smaller but they were still pretty mean and they were kept in cages.

Welcome to the Dedication

2007-01-20T23:36:00.000-08:00

At the end of the hike we arrived at the center of the village and Neil and Carol’s house. All the women stayed in the Andersons house and the men slept in a temporary house built just for us. The building was later going to be used as a temporary church until the people decide when and where to build a new one that they have been planning. The rest of the day we had to wander around the village, learn some of the language, play games with the kids and see all the other Folopa filter in from the other villages.

Hey I know you

2007-01-20T23:34:00.000-08:00

It was really great to see Pastor John and his wife Sandy as well as Frank and Margi from Spokane. I think they were happy and surprised to see familiar faces that far into the jungle as well. All in all there were 9 Spokanites together in the middle of the Jungle in PNG. That has to be some kind of new record.

Welcoming Parade

2007-01-20T23:31:00.000-08:00

All of us fly-in guests where then corralled into the center of a long column of singing Folopa. We were led by a group of guitar players and singers, followed by warriors and surrounded on all sides by women dressed in elaborate grass dresses waving decorations and making music by beating on pvc pipes with flip flops. It was great. What was really incredible was that this village was doing this same welcoming processional for every guest that came to attend the dedication the entire day from sunrise to sundown. Over a thousand people came as guests from the surrounding Folopa villages.

Pick Me

2007-01-20T18:57:00.000-08:00

All the kids that met us at the plane eagerly collected our bags and began the 1 mile walk down to the center of the village. The all wanted to be helpful in some way and contribute to our welcoming ceremony.

Around the plane

2007-01-20T18:55:00.000-08:00

After we landed our airplane was surrounded by people. We were the first plane to arrive for the dedication and the Folopa people were so excited to see us. They had choreographed marches and written songs to sing for the occasion in English just to welcome us. This is a picture of the second plane to land just moments after ours which received the same treatment. The Folopa were so friendly and everyone wanted to shake your hand. We felt very welcome.

short final

2007-01-20T15:49:00.000-08:00

As we flew in we could see some people in the village looking up at us. It looked pretty disserted. It was amazing to see all their houses from that perspective.

Runway

2007-01-20T15:47:00.000-08:00

The airstrip itself is relatively long as mountain airstrips go at 1700 feet. It also rises over 110 feet from one end to the other. We flew in on the Islander with Captain Will. He has been flying in the country for over 28 years and is an excellent pilot.

Mt. Tawa

2007-01-20T15:42:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Mt. Tawa Folopa village. There are about 2700 Folopa people spread throughout several villages within a few days hike of Mt Tawa. It is a beautiful spot for a village, set along the ridge at about 3200 feet. The village stretches just over a mile along the ridge leading up to the airstrip.

Islander

2007-01-14T04:18:00.000-08:00

We are leaving tomorrow morning for the dedication on that Islander there. We are very excited and we can’t wait to tell you all about it when we get back. We will post some of the highlight pictures and let you in on the details then. In the meantime, you can be praying for our safe travels and for the celebration.

Catercoonwheelteepeepillar thing

2007-01-14T04:15:00.000-08:00

This is our strange bug of the week. It was a caterpillar of sorts that had constructed a house for itself that it dragged along everywhere it went. It was sort of a cocoon, fifth wheel, inverted teepee hybrid. I am not sure what that would be in Latin, but your welcome to post your ideas as well. The amazing thing was this bug was about 9 or 10 inches long. Biggest strange caterpillar I ever saw.

Data Entry

2007-01-12T03:47:00.000-08:00

Here I am. A familiar sight really as this is what I usually do in my day, though my desk would normally be a bit more tidy. Yesterday, today and two days next week this is where I will be – auditing billing invoices for the Aviation Department. Yeehaw. But it is a few days of work for me that would take them possibly weeks, if not longer, so I am happy to be able to serve, as is the department. The Director of Aviation (da Boss Man) and the Assistant DOA (da Numba Two Boss) were just as excited, if not more, for my coming as they were Ian’s, even though I will only be there a few days. I start my “permanent” temporary position on the 22nd as, you guessed it, Office Manager & Consultant of the Finance office.