Goroka Trip – Part #4

This story is continued on from : Goroka Trip (17/2/06) – Part #3

After the coffee at The Bird and a “stroll” around town we made our way back to the big park across the road from the mian markets. If you recall, uncle Joel had remained at the park to keep an eye on our bags and also some fresh food that we had brought up from Lae with us. As we walked back to the waiting spot, Eli noticed that uncle Joel was stressed. Apparently he had left his bag on the Lae to Goroka PMV and was really upset. The bag in question had some school clothes for his kids which he had picked up in Lae and was taking back to his village up in Simbu.

Now for some of us a loss such as this would just be a small annoynace. For uncle Joel, apparently a great source of shame and emabarassment. He would be returning to his village – empty handed, without his kids uniforms. Uncle Joel was really, really upset. In the end and after seeing uncle Joel almost breakdown in tears, I suggested to him that we would come into the markets in the morning and we would buy replacement uniforms for his kids. This appeared to give him some relief from his anguish but I could see the discomfort on his face, which would remain with him for the rest of the day.

So after sorting out this “little/big” problem we headed to the bus stop to catch a PMV up to “Massey”, just a few miles out of town and the place we would be staying for the weekend. There were around six of us heading back to Massey, we had collected a few stragglers by now, and also a whole heap of cargo.

The PMV dropped us off on the main road approximately 5 Kms out from Goroka town. We had a 20 minute walk back to Ellyson’s place. Ellyson is married to Alberta whom is Eli’s cousin. The extended family thing in PNG can be quite overwhelming, the line where family starts and stops is not always clear, it might be to a PNG national, but to this white fella, not so.

As we got closer to Ellyson’s place – Eli started to recognise some of the folks and we were greeting people as they passed us. The main cargo we were carrying were the Maratas that uncle Joel had brought with him from Lae. Marata is a vegetable which I have never seen before coming to PNG. The photo above shows the Maratas that we had carried into Massey with us, a very awkard vegetable to carry. This vegetable is very popular in PNG and is used in compensation and bride price payments.

When we arrived at Ellyson’s place, we were greeted by many folks, some of them direct relations of Eli’s and others her tambus (in-laws). The produce we brought with us from Lae was layed out on the ground and the greetings and welcomes just continued on and on…

The village of Massey has a combination of traditional Eastern Highlands round houses and also some modern development. Most of the houses appeared to have electricity but no running water or sewerage. This combination of the old and new creates an interesting contrast and one certainly gets the impression that progress and modern life is hitting these people at a rate of knots.

The sleeping arrangments for the evening were of concern to me. Now, I’m no wimp when it comes to camping out or sleeping on a hard surface but I do cherish my space during sleeping hours. The idea of sharing a room (no matter how large) with a dozen others is not particularly high on my list of “likes”. The melanesian culture is a culture of sharing and at times it astounds me the number of people that end up sleeping under the one roof.

So… in the end, Eli and myself got allocated a space within one the round houses, a space that was kind of curtained off, so at least we were to have some privacy. Lucky me : I had brought some earplugs and I knew that they were to come in real handy. Sharing a sleeping space with a large group of people is not something that turns me on. Just imagine, 12 people snoring and farting away, moving around, coughing and spluttering. Over the years living a single life, I rather like that peace and quiet of a nightime.

So the first night in Massey was a restless night but in a strange way an enjoyable one. To be invited into someone’s home as a guest will always remain something of a privilege to me. It’s akin to being invited into their hearts. There is something about village life that fascinates me. The belonging and the whole extended family thing gives me a deep sense of nurturing and love.

All photos from this trip will be posted to the Goroka Trip (17/2/06) photo album.

Story to be continued in : Goroka Trip (18/2/06) – Part #5