Highlands Beauty

There are cultural differences between the "Highlanders" and the "coastal peoples". We are still learning the differences and appreciative that different parts of our country have cultural differences. The most important question you can ask someone is "Yu bilong wea?" --where are you from? You immediately begin to learn their stories and can see the pride with which they talk about their village and people.

There are small markets along the roadside and people vending fruits, vegetables, grilled fish or pork, cooked potatoes, peanuts, crackers, all items for a roadside lunch. It is indeed cooler and you begin to see people dressed with long sleeves, hats, and sweatshirts. Once you cross the Kassam Pass, there is no steep descent; rather you drive along the Highlands and again see vast fields of grass and gardens on the higher mountain slopes. I continue to be amazed at the gardens that are tilled on steep slopes.

Papua New Guinea is a country of diverse geography---coastal cities and villages, mountains, volcanoes, and vast river beds. Lae is on the coast, a large port on the Huon Gulf. It receives about 200 inches of rain/year, we are told. It is perpetually hot and humid. A common refrain we hear is "you need to go up to the Highlands; it is cool and it is so much different." There is only one highway in all of Papua New Guinea and it is known as the Highlands Highway. As you leave Lae, you pass the Airport road and proceed through grassland with many cattle grazing contentedly. You begin to ascend after crossing the Leron River and into the Markham River Valley, eventually coming to the Yonki Dam, source of electricity of all of Papua New Guinea. The ascent becomes steeper as you reach the Kassam Pass and are now at 6,000-7,000 feet above sea level.