EM205A 2010 MOROBE SHOW WEEKENDER 22-25 OCTOBER 2010 1 night Goroka, 2 nights Lae (Morobe Show) Escorted program for independent travellers and private groups. The Morobe Show is one of Papua New Guinea’s major annual festivals. The weekend event begins with a full day of agricultural and trade displays and awarding of prizes to the growers of the biggest and best of everything – from coffee to cattle to cut flowers. This is a marvellous opportunity to view a cross section of rural commerce in contemporary Papua New Guinea and rub shoulders with the locals who flood into town to show their wares and to see what everybody else is making, growing and selling. The second day of the show, known as the Morobe Sing-sing, features traditional dancing performances by over 60 sing-sing groups from all over Papua New Guinea. This line-up is second only to the Mt Hagen Show in size and variety, attracting cultural groups from as far away as Bougainville and the Trobriand Islands to compete for prizes. The local crowd of 50,000 flocks in mainly from the villages around Lae, down the highway from the Highlands provinces, and across from Madang. In contrast, less than 100 overseas visitors attended the last Morobe Show, so it is definitely a “local” festival and not created for tourists. There are also health awareness programs, sideshow alley and all manner of other activities at the Show which make it the highlight of the annual event calendar for the people of Morobe Province and their capital city, Lae. Some very remote villagers come to town only once a year, for the Show, so you will see quite a kaleidoscope of faces just in the spectator crowd, even before you turn your attention to the sing-sing arena. Tourists and locals with cameras are given special seats with the best views, and you will also have permission to enter the performance arena to take close-ups of the dancers. We will arrive early to watch the performers dressing up in their traditional finery and applying their body paints and ornaments before the sing-sing. Prior to the Show you will visit Goroka with an excursion to Kemase village where children dressed only in moss and bark coverings out of respect for their ancestors will lead you into a cave where the skulls and bones of the dead are stored and revered. From Goroka it is a scenic drive down through the thermal inversion layer separating the cool highlands from the steamy tropical coast, to PNG’s second largest city, Lae, the venue for the Morobe Show. Click here to download a detailed itinerary for EM205A with tour price, tour inclusions and trip notes (PDF format, opens in a new window)
Welcome at Kemase village Bones of the dead in burial cave, Kemase Kemase villagers Bird of Paradise Hotel, Goroka	DAY 1: FRI 22 OCT 2010 PORT MORESBY / GOROKA Arrive Port Moresby on early morning flight (or the day before) and connect through to Goroka on PX960 departing 09:15. On arrival in Port Moresby Ecotourism Melanesia staff will greet you with a smile and a surprise gift ? and you will be transferred to check in for your connecting flight to Goroka. 10:25 On arrival in Goroka, you will be met by our tour escort and transfer 5 minutes to your hotel for check in. After check in you will board your tour bus again for the 90 minute drive to Kemase, a rural village. Here, the local people farm the land to support themselves with food, and grow cash crops such as coffee and market vegetables to raise income to buy clothing and other needs, and pay school fees for their children. On arrival at the village you will receive a traditional welcome and meet the village people. A small crowd of enthusiastic “guides” will show you around the village, including private homes, the village school, village church, and important village artifacts such as bride price ornaments and traditional money. You will be taken to the village gardens and shown how yams and other staple vegetables are cultivated. Near the village is a spooky gorge populated by large boulders. The people believe the boulders are the spirits of the dead. It is forbidden to speak while walking among the boulders. In the gorge is a burial cave where the bones of ancestors are displayed. Children dressed in traditional costume as a sign of respect for the ancestors will guide you into the cave. The caves were also used as a hiding place during tribal fights in the past. A demonstration of tribal fighting with spears and “bunara” (bow and arrow) will be performed. At the end of the gorge is a feasting ground where the village people usually gather for special occasions. Here your lunch has been prepared: chicken and vegetables stuffed into bamboo nodes and roasted under hot stones, with fresh fruit on the side. After lunch we drive back to Goroka. Overnight Bird of Paradise Hotel, Goroka (twin share premier room, room only).
Handicraft market, Goroka Melanesian Hotel, Lae Faces in the crowd at the Morobe Show Woman with bird of paradise plumes, Morobe Show	DAY 2: SAT 23 OCT GOROKA / LAE 07:00 After breakfast, check out of the hotel and board the tour bus for the 5 hour drive to Lae. This is a very scenic road trip, first passing through high montane countryside to Henganofi, Kainantu and the Yonki Dam then descending to the T-junction with the Madang-Lae road at Gusap, the small town at the top of the Markham Valley. Between Yonki and Gusap you will notice the change in temperature and humidity as you pass through the thermal inversion layer separating the temperate highlands from the steamy tropical lowlands. The Markham Valley is the economic powerhouse of the Morobe Province and is dotted with cattle and poultry farms, rice paddies, market gardens and experimental plots. Wide and flat, the valley is a marked contrast to the hemmed-in feel of road travel in the highlands. 12:00 On arrival in Lae you will check in at your hotel in time for lunch (pay-as-you-go). In the afternoon you will be taken for a half day excursion to the Morobe Show. Today will be mainly agricultural exhibits (cattle, pigs, poultry, horses, cash crops, cut flowers, orchids, cooked foods) and social awareness programs on HIV/AIDS, domestic violence, family planning, law and order, social responsibility etc. Various organisations will display their awareness materials and perform drama skits which are usually very funny. There will also be many handicraft stalls and all manner local foods on sale. There may be some cultural groups performing but this will be informal and just a warm-up to tomorrow’s main sing-sing program. Today is an excellent opportunity to mix with the local crowds and gain some insights into the PNG social milieu. Crowds are also an opportunity for pickpockets so today you should leave all handbags, large cameras, wallets, purses and other valuable items back at the hotel and just bring a single small camera and whatever cash you might need carried in a buttoned pocket or money belt. The main risk is from Artful Dodger-type little boys who might snake their hand into your pocket or handbag while you are busy looking at the exhibits. Tomorrow at the sing-sing program you will be sitting in a special enclosure away from the crowds which will be safe for bringing all your cameras and bags etc. After around 2 hours at the show we will take a short tour round Lae city then return to the hotel. Overnight The Melanesian Hotel, Lae (twin-share premier room, room only). For some dinner variety we will take a walk across to the Lae International Hotel which offers a choice of Italian, bistro or fine dining. Our tour bus will run us back to the Melanesian Hotel after dinner.
Huli wigmen at the Morobe Show Skeleton dance at the Morobe Show Electus parrot, The Rainforest Habitat, Lae	DAY 3: SUN 24 OCT LAE (Morobe Show) Today’s program at the Show is known as the Morobe Sing-Sing. Over 60 cultural groups from all over Papua New Guinea will perform. We will aim to arrive early at 8:00am in order to watch and photograph the performers dressing in their traditional costumes (“bilas”) and applying their body paints. The main program will start around 9:00am and finish around 4.00pm. We will be seated in the grandstand with clear views of the performances and you will be allowed to enter the performance enclosure to take close-up photographs of the dancers if you wish – but at your peril if you block the view of other photographers! We will have our own group supply of cold drinks and snacks in the grandstand and probably depart around 2.00pm and head straight for The Rainforest Habitat. The Rainforest Habitat is a huge walk-through aviary housing a variety of native animals and birds – the closest thing to a zoo that we have here in Papua New Guinea. There is a cafetaeria there wher you can buy late lunch (pay-as-you-go). If time allows we will also stop at the Melanesian Arts and Crafts Centre (basically an artifact shop – they have some quite unusual collectors items), and Lae war cemetery. Overnight The Melanesian Hotel, Lae (twin-share premier room, room only).
Stilt village, Port Moresby harbour Bomana War Cemetery 20 minutes drive outside Port Moresby	DAY 4: MON 25 OCT LAE / PORT MORESBY This morning our main aim is to get to Port Moresby in time to connect with outgoing flights to Singapore, Hong Kong, Brisbane and Cairns. To avoid the discomfort of an early morning flight we suggest you book on a mid-morning flight CG1505 departing Lae 11:10 arriving Port Moresby 12:10. If you need to travel on an earlier flight this can be arranged but bear in mind that Lae airport is one hour transfer time for the city and you will have to wake up at 4am to catch the earlier flights out. On arrival in Port Moresby our staff will be on hand to assist you with checking in for your onward flight. If you have sufficient time between flights, our staff will take you sightseeing or shopping around Port Moresby. Click here to download a detailed itinerary for EM205A with tour price, tour inclusions and trip notes (PDF format, opens in a new window)