wipe. There's a medical clinic in Tari, but it is not unusual for women, with family assistance, to give birth inside their huts. Afterwards mothers are forbidden to toil in the garden as are menstruating women who are also barred from food preparation, sharing a bed and speaking with their husbands. To the left high mounds of dark rich dirt, smelling very earthy, sprout leafy green vegetables. After a spate of hard shoveling one woman takes a bunch of sweet potato roots in both hands and energetically throws herself at the mound punching the roots deep into its core. Complementary vegetables like corn and carrots are also planted in the same mound. A pig eagerly pulls on its tethered rope; having broken large lumps of dirt with its snout it now wants to reap any benefits. Pigs, a family's number one commodity, are money in the bank. They continue to be used in bride negotiations; the average bride price, depending on size is 30 hogs. Divorce settlements are tough, whichever party wants to leave must compensate the other; Alice says her divorce cost her and her family 31 pigs. Unappreciated by these women it's common for men to take two to three wives. In a land where women's voice is
seldom heard, their path of resistance is set in sorcery. Sweet potato leaves, red paint and bush fan is rubbed together and cut in half as a witch softly chants, "Cut through his mind, right down to his toes, forget about the girlfriend, do as your wife says and follow her around like a puppy dog." Walking between huts there is no sign of rubbish; possessions are few and those such as pots are neatly stacked in a corner. Behind the homes on a grassy bank an older woman sits cross-legged weaving a bilum bag. She explains the material is stripped, dried and twisted bark threaded together by the bone of a cassowary bird. A young girl watches the demonstration and our attention with curiosity. Slowly women gather around sitting on a wooden bench. I glance over from a display of handcrafted necklaces, hats and bags and share unguarded moments of a girl scratching her mother's back while another two women share a private joke, chuckling. These women, the backbone of their clan share their trials, as well as a closeness and ease earned by those who live and rely on each other in such remoteness.
Text and images supplied by Kelly Lynch footprintsphotography.co.nz
More information on Papua New Guinea:
• Ambua lodge is operated by Trans Niugini Tours, which owns a number of lodges in PNG, accessed by their own planes and vehicles. They offer packages including transfers, accommodation, meals, tours and excursions. See www.pngtours.com
• Pacific Blue has daily flights from Auckland to Brisbane connecting to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea's capital.
www.flypacificblue.com
• Air Niugini has regular flights from Port Moresby to Tari
www.airniugini.com.pg
• At arrival at Port Moresby a tourist visa must be purchased for $56
• The local currency is kina
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