EM204 – NATIONAL MASK FESTIVAL TOUR – JULY 2009 ESCORTED SMALL GROUP TOUR FOR INDEPENDENT TRAVELLERS – group size minimum 6 maximum 15 pax NB Dates and itinerary for 2009 have not yet been finalised but will be available mid-October. Please put your name on our mailing list if you would like to be advised as soon as the 2009 tour program is released. Below is the itinerary for the 2008 tour. The 2009 itinerary will include Rabaul (Mask festival), Kavieng (Malagan Culture Show) and Tabar Islands. 2009 tour cost not yet available.
Rabaul town, Simpson harbour and Tavurvur volcano spewing ash	2008 ITINERARY DAY 1: TUE 15 JULY 2008 PORT MORESBY / RABAUL Arrive Port Moresby on your flight from Singapore, Cairns or Brisbane and connect through to Rabaul on either the morning flight (PX282 08:50/10:15) or afternoon flight (PX202 14:55/17:05) depending on availability of seats at time of booking. Ecotourism Melanesia will meet and greet you on arrival in both Port Moresby and Rabaul and assist you with connection and transfer. If you have time to kill in Port Moresby we will take you sightseeing around the city and stop somewhere for lunch (pay as you go). After checking in at the hotel in Rabaul, you have free time to explore Rabaul town on foot. A walking guide is available on request. Overnight hotel, Rabaul (best available hotel rooms at time of booking) - includes full breakfast – pay as you go for lunch, dinner, snacks and extras).
Dukduk dancers performing Performing the burning fire dance	DAY 2: WED 16 JULY 2008 RABAUL 0430 - rise early and we have a quick orange juice and plate of fruit before boarding our tour bus for a short transfer down to Simpson Harbour while it is still dark. Here as the sun rises, we will witness canoes carrying the dukduk and tumbuan “spirits” arrive on the shore. The figures dance briefly on the beach and disappear into the jungle. They will reappear at the festival later in the morning. 0630 – we return to the hotel for breakfast. 0800 – we transfer to Queen Elizabeth Park and settle into our seats for the first day of the National Mask Festival. Spirit masks and ancestor masks from all over Papua New Guinea will be featured: a combination of static displays and dance performances. There will also be many stalls and displays with local foods and handicrafts available for sale. Local guides will be available to accompany you around the festival grounds and explain local culture and foods to you. Purchase your own lunch today from one of the many food stalls – an opportunity to try local fare. 1300 – we depart from the festival grounds, return to the hotel to freshen up 1400 – free afternoon at leisure in Rabaul (you may need some rest after this morning’s early start and in view of this evening’s additional activity) 1800 – arrive back at hotel 1900 - dinner (PAYG - Pay As You Go) 2000 - transfer to festival grounds to witness Baining Fire Dance 2100 – return to hotel and retire Overnight hotel, Rabaul (twin share, includes full breakfast)
Malangan ancestor mask from New Ireland	DAY 3: THU 17 JULY 2008 RABAUL 0700 - breakfast 0800 – we transfer to festival grounds for the second day of the National Mask Festival. Again, purchase your own lunch today. 1300 – we depart from the festival grounds, return to the hotel to freshen up 1400 – we take a half day tour of Rabaul district including the fresh food market, Mt Tavurvur the active volcano, the volcano observatory located on a ridge overlooking the harbour, and wartime relics such as Admiral Yamamoto’s bunker and the Japanese submarine base. Also a stop at Kabaira Beach for swimming, snorkelling and beach-walking. Overnight hotel, Rabaul (twin share, includes full breakfast)
Japanese barge tunnel	DAY 4: FRI 18 JULY 2008 0700 - breakfast 0800 – we transfer to festival grounds for the third day of the National Mask Festival. Again, purchase your own lunch today. 1300 – we depart from the festival grounds, return to the hotel to freshen up 1400 – we take a half day tour of Kokopo district. Kokopo is the new town built after Mt Tavurvur buried old Rabaul town in volcanic ash in 1994. Apart from visiting the Kokopo Museum we stop at the Japanese barge tunnels and Japanese Cemetery, Bitapaka War Cemetery. We return to Rabaul via the back road to Vunapope, the provincial government seat, and Kulau Beach for another swim and beach walk if time allows. Overnight hotel, Rabaul (twin share, includes full breakfast)
Kokopo beach with view to Tavurvur volcano	DAY 5: SAT 19 JUL 2008 RABAUL / MADANG 0700 - breakfast 0800 – check out of the hotel and drive to Kabaira Beach or Kulau Lodge for beach activities, then continue on to Rabaul airport arriving 11:00 in time for check-in for flight PX311 Rabaul to Madang via Hoskins and Lae, departing 13:15 and arriving 16:15. On arrival in Madang we transfer to the modest but comfortable Madang Lodge. Madang Lodge is located on the seaside and a late afternoon stroll along the foreshore is most enjoyable. Your tour escort or one of the Lodge staff will be pleased to accompany you. Overnight Madang Lodge (twin share room, includes full breakfast)
Bilbil pottery village, Madang Krangket fish market, Madang	DAY 6: SUN 20 JUL 2008 MADANG 0700 - breakfast 0800 - full day Madang tour and village experience. Depending on time available and the weather, the morning segment of the tour may include: - Bilbil Pottery Village - Balek Sulfur Caves - Omili Flying Fox Cave - harbour islands - artifact markets - parks, gardens and war memorials - scenic lookout - Alexishafen Mission with overgrown wartime airfield and colonial cemetery Around we commence our drive out of town towards a local village where we will spend the afternoon with friendly Madang villagers. The drive will take about one hour through tropical greenery and roadside villages. A traditional-style welcome and lunch will be waiting for us at the village. Our hosts will show us around the village, treat us to some village-style entertainment and show us their gardens and crops. You may have the opportunity to take a refreshing dip in a stream, waterfall or the ocean as a respite from the tropical heat, so bring a change of clothes in your daypack. 1730 Return to Madang town in time to witness the nightly flying fox migration from an elevated vantage point. Flying foxes are a key feature of Madang, unlike any other town in PNG. Overnight Madang Lodge (twin share room, includes full breakfast)
Exotic traditional dress, Simbai featuring nose ornaments and hand drums Exotic traditional dress, Simbai featuring green beetle sheel head dressExotic traditional dress Want to buy an axe? Cuscus (live) Cuscus (demised) Traditional style outhouse - at least you get to sit down!	DAY 7: MON 21 JUL 2008 MADANG / SIMBAI 0600 - breakfast 0630 – check out and transfer to Madang airport for light aircraft flight to Simbai (45 minutes flying time). The Simbai Valley is the emerging new ecotourism destination in the highlands. Just inside the borders of the Madang province, the Kalam tribe of the Simbai Valley shares many similarities with other highlands cultures around Goroka, Mt Hagen and Chimbu but has yet to be overrun with visitors and commercialism. If only a small aircraft is available there will be several flights to transfer us with luggage. As we arrive at the Simbai airstrip we are welcomed by local villagers and we walk about 20 minutes to the Kalam Guest House for morning tea and scones. Then we commence our exploration of the family hamlets dotted around the valley. Lunch today will be traditional food offered at one of the private homes we visit. In the afternoon we venture into the forest where our local guides will demonstrate their bushcraft and introduce us to the plants and animals of the Simbai Valley. In the evening a full scale Kalam tribal sing-sing will be performed in our honour and we will surely be mesmerised by the kaleidoscope of colourful head-dresses, body art and decorated hand drums as fifty to a hundred men, women and children sway to the beat and chant their traditional celebration songs, mournful dirges and sung narrations of tribal legends. Overnight Kalam Guest House, Simbai (twin or multi-share, includes meals) The Kalam tribe which populates the Simbai Valley is one of Papua New Guinea's last undeveloped peoples still living a subsistence lifestyle in traditional villages scattered through pristine wilderness territory barely touched by westernisation. Attractions for ecotourists including the vibrant culture characterised by elaborate sing-sing head-dresses, and the natural setting hosting many species of bird of paradise. The Kalam people have some interesting traditions like nose-piercing for the wearing of nose ornaments made from bone, quills and other materials through the nasal septum. Sometimes when youths are due to have their noses pierced they hold off until another special occasion is due like the opening of a new facility or the arrival of outside visitors and then the celebrations are held together. Simbai airfield is 45 minutes flying time west of Madang town and about 30 minutes northeast of Mt Hagen. There is no road access in or out, there is only a choice of flying or walking. Simbai bears many similarities to Woitape or Tapini in the Central Province in that it is a very isolated little government station surround by village hamlets and hardly has any outside visitors apart from missionaries and the occasional school inspector. Simbai "station" consists of a trade store, a district administrator's office and house, a tiny police post and a primary school. Simbai is the "big smoke" for this area. Once you leave the station, the surrounding villages are entirely traditional with not a piece of roofing iron to be seen on any village house (who wants to carry building materials 2 days up hill from the Ramu River?) The high-montane forest and sub-tropical bushland in the Simbai area features a wide range of native flora and fauna. Naturally the locals hunt many of the wild animals for food including cassowaries and tree kangaroos. Other species like bird of paradise are hunted to make decorations for traditional costumes. Hunting by the Kalam people is sustainable because they have a low population density, large areas of rich bushland to hunt in, and they still use traditional hunting weapons like spears and bows and arrows to take only what they need. The forest is still teeming with wildlife and being expert hunters the Kalam people are also excellent wildlife guides as they know where and how to help visitors get close enough to observe and photograph various species. Over the past 50 years only the very occasional visitor has made it to Simbai as it was never promoted as a tourism destination. In 2004 Madang-based tour guide Steven Mago (who passed away early in 2007) visited the area and enthused the people to receive eco-tourists and as a result the Kalam Guest House and a small cultural centre were built at Simbai and an annual culture festival was initiated. In 2005 a young Dutch couple contacted Ecotourism Melanesia asking to go somewhere completely off the tourist trails and we took them to Steven as the first pre-booked tourists to visit Simbai. They rode with Steven down the Ramu River to Aiome, walked up to Simbai and flew out to Mt Hagen. You can read an account of their trip at http://www.pngbd.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15251 The main attractions at Simbai are the unadulterated culture and the pristine surroundings untouched by logging or any other major developments. Once a year in September there is a week-long culture festival in the third week of September with the highlight being the initiation of young boys between 12-15 years by nose piercing ("sutim nus" or shootim-nose). The Kalam Culture Festival also features plenty of pig killing, bride price payments, debt settlement, feasting, dancing and singing. This is not a show put on for tourists (there are no tourists - yet), it is a genuine cultural phenomenon when all the surrounding village people flow into Simbai station for the occasion. Visitors simply stand and watch in amazement (or join in, if you want to kill a pig or have your nose pierced...) as Kalam men parade around the station with their huge head-dresses decorated with bright green beetle exoskeletons (see left). Of course we will not be there at the right time for the Show but certain aspects of the Kalam culture portrayed at the Show will also be demonstrated for our group, though we can’t guarantee a “sutim nus”. See the Destination Simbai page on our website for pictures of this fascinating remote location. Accommodation at the guest house in Simbai is basic but comfortable. The guest house is built in local style with bush materials. Each twin room has two single beds with rubber mattress. You will sleep in a clean sleeping bag that we provide and some extra blankets will be provided by the guest house. A pillow and mosquito net is also provided. There are no malaria mosquitoes at Simbai due to the high altitude (Anopheles species do not breed above 300m) but other species of mosquito and other bugs may be a problem. Anopheles mosquitoes that carry malaria are prevalent at lower altitudes including Aiome and the Ramu River. Meals at Simbai will be local style based on local produce and may be dry-roasted wrapped in leaves under hot stones in the fireplace. Toilet facilities will be an out back pit latrine specially made for guests… sit-down variety. Bathing will be in an outdoor bathroom (bucket of water and scoop – water will be heated for you). The weather at Simbai will be warm by day (20-25 Celcius) and cool at night (10-15 Celcius). Please bring a sweater and warm underwear, and a rain poncho. Bottled water will be supplied for drinking during our stay at Simbai and all the way through to Wewak. This service is included in the tour package.
Kalam tribe women Kalam men with spears	DAY 8: TUE 22 JUL 2008 SIMBAI Today’s program is flexible and we have a choice of activities depending on our interests and our hiking ability. Probably our group will split in two with one group sticking close around Simbai and the other group wandering farther afield. Wherever we go, we will meet familiar faces from last night’s sing-sing and feel welcome in people’s humble homes, typically six-sided trapezoid structures unique in Papua New Guinea. Those of us who are fit to hike for about 4 hours will take a scenic meander through some village hamlets further along the valley, stopping to meet and talk to locals we meet on the way. There will be spontaneous opportunities to observe or join in with locals doing their gardening, hunting, building houses and other day to day activities. For those of us who are not so mobile we will further explore satellite hamlets closer to Simbai station. We can sit with village women as they prepare traditional foods, and let the men show us how they make their trademark green beetle head-dresses. We may visit the little primary school and hear the children sing the national anthem, and perhaps have an opportunity to address the students and tell them a little about our home countries – teachers are delighted with such opportunities for the students to hear English spoken by Westerners. We can visit the little health centre and talk with the nurse about the kinds of health problems people experience in this remote area. At the guest house we will observe our dinner being cooked and discuss local foods and their preparation. Surely there will also be time for a short walk into the forest with our guide who will point out wild orchids, medicinal plants and perhaps a shy tree kangaroo or cuscus. Overnight Kalam Guest House, Simbai (twin or multi-share, includes meals)
Sepik River near Timbunke - grass fire in the distance Kanganaman village guest house	DAY 9: WED 23 JUL 2008 SIMBAI / SEPIK RIVER This morning we depart Simbai by chartered aircraft for Timbunke Mission Station on the Middle Sepik River. Again this may require two or more trips if only a small aircraft is available. We should all arrive at Timbunke by midday. Our Sepik guide will be waiting for us. A short walk from the airstrip is the mighty Sepik River and our waiting motor canoes. From Timbunke we travel 1 hour downstream to Tambanum, the largest village on the Sepik River. Tambanum is known locally as the “carving factory” of the Sepik due to the prolific output of its village artisans. We tour the village, inspect the men’s spirit houses (males only - please display reverence) and view artefacts available for sale. For lunch today our river guide will purchase fruit and dried fish from the local people for us, with fresh green coconuts for drinking. The local tour guide will also bring with him a supply of bottled water. Mid-afternoon we ride back upstream stopping at Angriman and Mindibit Villages to inspect their unique artistic style before arriving at Kanganaman, one of the three “crocodile cult” villages of the Middle Sepik. We will probably arrive quite late in the day and retire straight to the village guest house.Overnight Kanganaman village guest house (similar style of accommodation to Kalam Guest House, includes meals).
Yentchen crocodile dance Children in canoes, Sepik River	DAY 10: THU 24 JUL 2008 SEPIK RIVER Today a full day exploring the villages of the Middle Sepik and possibly the Chambri Lakes. Crocodiles play a major part in the cultural heritage of the Middle Sepik people. Crocodiles are animal totems symbolising strength and power. In the Middle Sepik crocodile cult villages of Yentchen, Palembei and Kanganaman, the attributes of the crocodile are so envied that the men even try to make themselves look like crocodiles. The initiation of boys into adulthood involves a painful scarification ritual during which dozens of small cuts are made all over the back from shoulders to hips, and pockets of skin are lifted away from the flesh and filled with charcoal which, upon healing, leaves raised scars that resemble the bumpy back of the crocodile. Such initiations are carried out in secret only once or twice a year and for modesty reasons outsiders are not normally allowed to witness the cutting ceremony. Everywhere in the Sepik River basin, the crocodile is an occasional source of protein for the village diet, and crocodile skins are sold for cash to outside buyers. The collecting of crocodile eggs in the wild and hatching them in crocodile “farms” is an ongoing threat to the wild population. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is educating locals about sustainable harvesting of wildlife resources and encouraging them to turn to alternative sources of income such as ecotourism. Overnight Kanganaman village guest house (similar style of accommodation to Kalam Guest House, includes meals).
Motorised Sepik canoe travel	DAY 11: FRI 25 JUL 2008 SEPIK RIVER / WEWAK This morning we motor further upstream to the Pagwi mission station and transfer to a vehicle for the three hour road transfer to Wewak. We check in at the delightful In Wewak Boutique Hotel for a night of relative luxury. Overnight In Wewak Boutique Hotel (twin room, includes full breakfast)
Muschu Island beach Kairiru Island welcome sing-sing	DAY 12: SAT 26 JUL 2008 WEWAK ISLANDS 0700 - breakfast 0800 - we embark by open speed boat for the Wewak Islands. First stop 45 minutes from the mainland is idyllic Muschu Island which is surrounded by white sandy beaches and criss-crossed by walking tracks through the light rainforest that covers the island. Muschu has only a small human population because the availability of fresh water is limited. Today we base ourselves at a village guest house close to the beach, and activities include beach walking, rainforest nature walks, swimming and snorkelling in the sea. For those who like fishing, our motor boat is with us for the day and is available for trolling the deeps or hand-lining over the reef. Surely we’ll catch something for our lunch! Late afternoon we continue another 30 minutes by boat to Kairiru Island, the biggest of the Wewak Islands group. Kairiru is an extinct volcano and has a crater lake at the top. The island is covered in thick jungle and was used by the Japanese as a forward observation post in WW2 to warn their garrison at Wewak of inbound American bombers from the north. On arrival at Shagur village the people will put on a big welcome sing-sing and drama performance of the village legends (very funny). Overnight Polen Guest House, Kairiru Island (twin or multi-share, includes meals)
Village tour on lush Kairiru Island	DAY 13: SUN 27 JULY 2008 WEWAK ISLANDS Today we take a full day to explore Kairiru Island including the old Japanese base at St John, waterfalls, seaside caves, hot springs at Victoria Bay. Includes traditional-style picnic lunch. Depending on our group size, we may remain together or split into smaller groups. Late afternoon, we transfer by speed boat back to the mainland. The boat pulls right up on Windjammer Beach and you can walk straight to your room. Overnight Windjammer Beach Hotel, Wewak (twin share, includes full breakfast)
Old DC3 mounted on stand at Airways Hotel, Port Moresby, overlooking Jacksons Airport.	DAY 14: MON 28 JULY 2008 WEWAK / PORT MORESBY 0630 – breakfast 0700 – we check out of the hotel and transfer to Wewak airport just a few minutes away 0730 – we check in for Air Niugini flight PX929 Wewak to Port Moresby departing at 0840 and arriving at 1030. If you are departing on one of this afternoon’s international flights (Air Niugini to Singapore, Airlines PNG to Cairns or Brisbane) we will assist you to check in at the international terminal and farewell you here as you wait for your flight. The airport food is not very interesting so our Port Moresby staff will provide you with a fresh packed lunch at the airport. If you are having an extra night in Port Moresby to travel out on tomorrow’s Air Niugini flight to Cairns or Brisbane, we will look after you for the rest of the day with any transport you require for sightseeing or shopping, and we will farewell you late afternoon at your hotel (the extra night’s accommodation will be billed to you if arranged by Ecotourism Melanesia, or you can make your own arrangements). This tour package officially terminates at 5pm today.