PNG Coloring Book

We hope that this coloring book will be a blessing to your kids! Please click on the picture below.

Enroute to PNG

Although one of our tickets were issued to the wrong person, they waved the $150 change fee and sent us through with all our bags without weighing a single one of them!  PTL

As we got off one terminal in Tokyo and moved our 14 action packers to another terminal I realized how thankful I was for words that I do understand…can you imagine if there were no signs that said, “Terminal Connection Bus”!

This by far has been the easiest trip that we have been on so far.  The kids did really well and enjoyed some  entertainment from their own personal TV screen.

Local market sells organic food…

At the bottom you will see a long list of a few of the fruits and vegetables that you can find at the market that I have names for…

Market time is a special time of social interaction. It is at the market, that people tell stories, catch up on news, meet new friends, and sometimes just pass the time of day away.

Typically market is run by a man who charges everyone who sells a fee to sell. His job is to maintain order and settle any disputes that might arise. In general it is the job of a woman to sell the produce…however, sometimes you will find men helping out their wives who can’t make it to work.

In general, in the highlands where we are at…it is appropriate for women to wear long slacks or dresses.

Generally, when you buy produce at the market…you do not shop for quality…they will appreciate you more if you spread the wealth and buy from various sellers.

At some markets, you will find men who sell their hand crafted artifacts.

Strawberries
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Sugar Cane
Pineapple
Papaya
Grapefruit
Tangerine
Naval Oranges
Bananas (Various Types)
Coconut
Yucca Root
Sweet Potatoes
Potatoes
Cucumbers
Watermelon
Squash
Honey Dew Melons
Avocado
Melon
Lime
Broccoli
Lettuce
Greens ( A variety of green leaf grass)
Large Tomatoes, miniatures
Beats
Egg Plant
Ocra
Passion Fruit
Ginger
Onions
Celery
Zucchini
Peppers
Wild Apple (Jambu)
Goiava
Corn
Green Beans
String Beans
Peas

What do bats taste like?

When we first moved to Papua New Guinea, one of the hardest things I struggled to eat was bat meat!  I have too many misconceptions of those pesty little varmints being filled with dreaded deceases.   These bats that the locals eat are no ordinary bat.   When you hear the locals refer to a ” Flying Fox” they are actually referring to these large fruit bats..  As you can see by the pictures…they are much larger then the average bat that we are familiar with.

If you were to pull into the port city of Madang, on the eastern coast of PNG…you would literally see hundreds of them up in each tree like I took in this photo.  It is quite normal to see kids trying to hit one down out of the trees with their slingshots.

The largest bats have a wing span of up to 5 feet!

On one occasion,  while we were dining out…our security gaurds started  shooting multiple rounds into the trees in hopes that he would hit a few.  This caused mayhem in the restaurant as people ran out from everywhere to try to catch some of the injured prey.   It was quite the site and left us wondering exactly WHAT we were having for dinner…was it really chicken?

Watch the video here to find out what the locals think bat meat tastes like!