Alotau, Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea (PNG)



December 24, 2018

What a surprise Alotau was to us! We were expecting a similar experience to what we have had in other poor Asian countries—crowds, begging children, lots of street vendors. Instead we found beautiful green mountains surrounding Milne Bay and an orderly, but undeveloped small port town. We were greeted by dancers in traditional dress beating drums to greet us. Our tour’s first stop was an overlook of Milne Bay, an important WWII battle site for Australians and Japenese. Next was a tour of the local high school, closed for the holidays, where students were our guides. Buildings were rudimentary, with vents near the floor for “air conditioning”. The dining hall had posted rules and a prayer for students to say before eating. And, yes, I asked about a library—very small with a few computers which all students in grades 9-12 share. Bill Gates, where are you? The school tour ended with a cultural show where traditional dancing that tells their history was explained. Then it was off to the local market, very busy on this Christmas Eve day. What looks like cherry tomatoes are lady apples. Everything was organized by food type and an outrigger canoe hung from the roof. We really enjoyed meeting the people and they were eager to interact with us. Regent offers good tours, but this one was really a winner!








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