14 Days in Papua New Guinea
Adventure is leaving for 14 days to Papua New Guinea to climb one of the highest volcanoes in the world
(As I write this I'm in an airport in Singapore, a little tired after a 12 hour overnight flight. Whoever said sitting in the emergency row is better did not know what they were talking about. The arm rests are stuck in place and thus do not allow any horizontal mobility, which is key when trying to catch some Z's in the air! Anyways, they're probably a whole slew of typos and I'm trying to translate from French.. please forgive me this time.)
This is probably one of the least touristic places to go yet it seems like one of the most insane. I am en route to Papua New Guinea and I don't know if I've ever been this excited for a trip. As a kid my dream job was to be a zoologist and live in the amazon jungle with tribes studying the wildlife. This is not South America but living with tribes, traveling down the river and seeing the wildlife is exactly what we'll be doing... it makes my heart beat faster just thinking about it.
Casual tourism however is not quite common yet. The tourism industry as well as the infrastructure in this Oceanic country is so underdeveloped that each person who travels here could quite possibly be seeing unchartered territory. This is definitely not a party destination. Anyways, here is the itinerary I will be following for the next 14 days and can give you an idea of what sort of tourism is available in the country. Also, I won't have electricity most of the time so I won't be able to keep up to date with you all but I will try to log whenever I can to up date you on how the itinerary is going so far- problems, practical information, pics, scary shizzle etc..
Day 1 Wednesday July 21
Plane Paris to Singapore
Day 2 Thursday
Singapore to Port Moresby
Day 3 Friday- Port Moresby to Hagen
Only passing through the capital, taking one hour plane and then one hour on the road before arriving at Hagen mountains at the foot of a summit called Magic Mountins by the locals. We will be 2000 metres above sea level in the middle of the forest far away from the city and roads. Yet we will at this point still have the luxary of a room and hot water!
Day 4 Saturday- Hagen to Mount Giluwe
We leave Hagen super early in the morning for the village of Kargoba. From here we start the hike up the moutain, Giluwe and after 6 hours of walking and seeing a high altitude forest (sorry I'm translating the work of the guide from French), we will set up camp at the foot of our goal. Tonight we will be sleeping in a tent or perhaps a hut.
Day 5 Sunday- Mount Giluwe
Wake up damn early for the final trek to the top. Hard walking then descend all the way down until the village. From there we will take a car to the Magic Moutain Lodge.
Day 6 Monday- Paya Village, Kumul Lodge
Will first visit the traditional village of the Papua New Guineans typical of the region Hagen, then take part in local dancing ceremonies of the Malpa. After a quick lunch we hit the road for Kumul Lodge in the Enga Province. This lodging is run by the local community and is in the heart of the pluvial forest with many tropical birds and animals. Spending the night at the lodge.
Day 7 Tuesday- Tari to Kobe Tumbiali
Leave in the morning to Tari, a small stop in the Southern Highlands Province. The area is populated with Huli people, known for their famous ceremonies with crazy head garments made of bird feathers. The are also warriors. Here we will spend 2 days and go hiking in the surrounding nature.
Day 8 Wednesday- Kobe Tumbiali to Liru
Discovery day of Huli culture. Chill with the tribe, learn some secrets from the Shaman (hopefully go on mystical adventures ?), then spend the night at one of the homes of the inhabitants not far away.
Day 9 Thursday- Hewai Waterfall
Leave on an excursion to find the last secret of the Huli people. We will learn how they make their head garments and then on to a two hour rough walk to get to a beautiful hidden waterfall (!!! I love findign waterfalls when traveling!). From there we will stay the night in a guesthouse in Kobe Tumbiali for our last night.
Day 10 Friday- Tari to Madang.
Take the plane in the morning to head to a beautiful city on the North coast. Here we will be staying in a small hut along the beach, known for its beautiful coral waters.
Day 11 Saturday- Jais Aben
A day dedicated to relaxing and snorkeling in magnificent environments around the lodge, situated in the village of Jais Aben.
Day 12 Sunday- Madang to Port Moresby
Visit the city a bit spend the night in Port Moresby (one of the most dangerous cities in the world!)
Day 13 Monday- Head to our next destination. END OF TRIP
(As I write this I'm in an airport in Singapore, a little tired after a 12 hour overnight flight. Whoever said sitting in the emergency row is better did not know what they were talking about. The arm rests are stuck in place and thus do not allow any horizontal mobility, which is key when trying to catch some Z's in the air! Anyways, they're probably a whole slew of typos and I'm trying to translate from French.. please forgive me this time.)
This is probably one of the least touristic places to go yet it seems like one of the most insane. I am en route to Papua New Guinea and I don't know if I've ever been this excited for a trip. As a kid my dream job was to be a zoologist and live in the amazon jungle with tribes studying the wildlife. This is not South America but living with tribes, traveling down the river and seeing the wildlife is exactly what we'll be doing... it makes my heart beat faster just thinking about it.
Casual tourism however is not quite common yet. The tourism industry as well as the infrastructure in this Oceanic country is so underdeveloped that each person who travels here could quite possibly be seeing unchartered territory. This is definitely not a party destination. Anyways, here is the itinerary I will be following for the next 14 days and can give you an idea of what sort of tourism is available in the country. Also, I won't have electricity most of the time so I won't be able to keep up to date with you all but I will try to log whenever I can to up date you on how the itinerary is going so far- problems, practical information, pics, scary shizzle etc..
Day 1 Wednesday July 21
Plane Paris to Singapore
Day 2 Thursday
Singapore to Port Moresby
Day 3 Friday- Port Moresby to Hagen
Only passing through the capital, taking one hour plane and then one hour on the road before arriving at Hagen mountains at the foot of a summit called Magic Mountins by the locals. We will be 2000 metres above sea level in the middle of the forest far away from the city and roads. Yet we will at this point still have the luxary of a room and hot water!
Day 4 Saturday- Hagen to Mount Giluwe
We leave Hagen super early in the morning for the village of Kargoba. From here we start the hike up the moutain, Giluwe and after 6 hours of walking and seeing a high altitude forest (sorry I'm translating the work of the guide from French), we will set up camp at the foot of our goal. Tonight we will be sleeping in a tent or perhaps a hut.
Day 5 Sunday- Mount Giluwe
Wake up damn early for the final trek to the top. Hard walking then descend all the way down until the village. From there we will take a car to the Magic Moutain Lodge.
Day 6 Monday- Paya Village, Kumul Lodge
Will first visit the traditional village of the Papua New Guineans typical of the region Hagen, then take part in local dancing ceremonies of the Malpa. After a quick lunch we hit the road for Kumul Lodge in the Enga Province. This lodging is run by the local community and is in the heart of the pluvial forest with many tropical birds and animals. Spending the night at the lodge.
Day 7 Tuesday- Tari to Kobe Tumbiali
Leave in the morning to Tari, a small stop in the Southern Highlands Province. The area is populated with Huli people, known for their famous ceremonies with crazy head garments made of bird feathers. The are also warriors. Here we will spend 2 days and go hiking in the surrounding nature.
Day 8 Wednesday- Kobe Tumbiali to Liru
Discovery day of Huli culture. Chill with the tribe, learn some secrets from the Shaman (hopefully go on mystical adventures ?), then spend the night at one of the homes of the inhabitants not far away.
Day 9 Thursday- Hewai Waterfall
Leave on an excursion to find the last secret of the Huli people. We will learn how they make their head garments and then on to a two hour rough walk to get to a beautiful hidden waterfall (!!! I love findign waterfalls when traveling!). From there we will stay the night in a guesthouse in Kobe Tumbiali for our last night.
Day 10 Friday- Tari to Madang.
Take the plane in the morning to head to a beautiful city on the North coast. Here we will be staying in a small hut along the beach, known for its beautiful coral waters.
Day 11 Saturday- Jais Aben
A day dedicated to relaxing and snorkeling in magnificent environments around the lodge, situated in the village of Jais Aben.
Day 12 Sunday- Madang to Port Moresby
Visit the city a bit spend the night in Port Moresby (one of the most dangerous cities in the world!)
Day 13 Monday- Head to our next destination. END OF TRIP
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