This weekend has again been fantastic. People from all over PNG and some international tourists come to Mt. Hagen to enjoy its cultural show. A lot of volunteers from all over PNG came as well to Hagen. In short; Mt. Hagen was pulap wantaim waitmen (filled with white people) as my hausmeri (cleaning lady) told me.
My head was spinning after the show from all the colours, all the dances and all the music. I know by now what a typical singsing group in the highlands looks like and what they do. I even imagine sometimes that I can recognise where a particular group is coming from by their bilas. But this show is gigantic…just awesome.
On Saturday we went to the showground at Kagamuga, which is a little out of town next to the airport. Just before entering the show grounds the tourists could buy local handcrafts. We had a good laugh with this man who was showing someone how a gourd should be used. Looking at the size of it we thought that either men from this tribe have a lot to put in there or nothing at all

Not long afterwards the show started on a field used normally for rugby. Everybody who bought a ticket could go on the field and look at the groups very close up. I have to tell you that this is a tow-curling happening. Walking around with all the other tourists as typical whites taking pictures of the people. As a volunteer you seem to think you have a little more insight into PNG culture, so tourists make you sometimes cringe with their sometimes inappropriate behaviour. But what the hey, maybe I’m just an arrogant bastard who doesn’t know anything himself. I just know that 50 percent of my pictures had a crossing white person on it. I hope I did the same to others.
I’ll just show you the best pictures I took during the show. Sit down and enjoy. If I can tell you something about the tribe I’ll put some comment underneath the picture. Most of the times I only know the province of origin.

Here we have the Huli wigman from Tari (Southern Highlands).

This is an Asaro mudman. Asaro is a village North-West of Goroka (Eastern Highlands). Story has it that a tribe wanting revenge on another village made these mask to scare the living daylights out of the other tribe. Highly commercialised, but nevertheless a good story.

These people are from a Chimbu tribe.

These women are from the Enga province.

These men are from a Morobe tribe. You can see ships are important to them.

These women are from a Chimbu tribe.

These women are from a Hagen tribe.

These men are from a Hagen tribe.

These kids are from a Hagen tribe.

Men and women from a Chimbu tribe.

I was walking around the field when I bumped into the singsing group from Penda. Yes Mum, the men group you never got to see. Seeing as they’re my wantoks I took a little movie clip of them. Click here for the movie.

Like we say here, em tasol. Hope you enjoyed it.