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Hello everyone,

Taking in the view (Photo by Taylor Starns)

So we are halfway through our stay at Raunsepna. It is amazing up here. We bath everyday in the river; our laundry smells like fresh air because we hang it all out to dry. We learned how to cook with rocks, once they are hot everything cooks pretty quickly, I might take up cooking like that when we get home! Just kidding!
The other day we went and saw the garden, it is enormous! I have never seen so many peanut plants in my life. Everyone here is so nice they have done so much to make us feel welcome. I can only hope we aren’t being too much of a burden.
Hope all is well. Our next post will be once we are back down the mountain.

Love to all,
Katie.

 

Hello!
Today marks our fifth day at base camp. We’ve been having a great time learning and sharing with Ben, Christmas and their family. On Sunday, we made the 1 ½ hour trek to church and the opportunity to meet most of the community.

Community children (Photo by Taylor Starns)

Other than that, the ladies have been watching and helping Christmas prepare food, and taking note of some awesome techniques. Walt learned home to make some traps yesterday, and will soon get to venture into the bush with the boys. We’ve also gotten to see and help in the gardens, which gave me a much better understanding of the way life works here. I also took the first bath I’ve taken in a while in the beautiful river. I hope that all of our walking around here will help prepare us for the walk into the Komgi on Saturday. Until then, we’ll be here learning as much as we can and having a wonderful time.
Love to all-
Taylor

 

Greetings from Raunsepna!

Were staying with Ben and Christmas and their children at their beautiful home just outside the village of Raunsepna. Theresa is coming up today and bringing our hand-written posts down to Vunakanau.
Time is flying here! We just figured out that once we return to Vunakanau next Thursday we only have nine more days in East New Britain. A few days of that last week will be spent in Induna, on the Pacific coast.
Today were sitting with the women of Raunsepna and learning all the cooking methods they use on a regular basis. Tomorrow were learning how to weave rope, bamboo house sidings and baskets. The rest of the week is up in the air, but well be staying at the Catholic Rectory tonight in the village and coming back to Base Camp tomorrow evening.

A lot of our time has been spent talking to the family and neighbours, I feel the group mellowing out with every day in this easy-going life style.
Another post should come sometime next week. Hope all is well in the rest of the world!
Love to all

Caitlin

 

Hello again,
We are currently in Raunsepna, about a 2 hour drive and 1 hour walk up over a mountain range and then into a huge valley. Every morning we wake up with the sun and every night we sleep soon after it goes down. Life here is slower paced, but very efficient; for example, instead of going around hunting by waiting for hours around and choosing tracks like they do back home, the people here (mostly the kids and young adults) simply set traps and then go back a day or two later. These traps are ingenious in themselves and seldom fail to catch something. It is incredible to see how smart and grown up all of the kids act in some ways here; they can all (from 3 years old and up) yield machetes with accuracy and discipline. They can make complicated traps in 5 minutes and go off in the bush for a few days, if need be. The day before yesterday, we walked the 1 ½ hours tot the church and school. The kids here walk this road everyday with no shoes! Not that they don’t have them, but it is easier grip the road without them (as we slipped and fell all over the road.)

Interns' dust covered feet after travelling (Photo by Taylor Starns)

It is raining here everyday, but very sporadically and only for a few minutes at a time, and the views are magnificent. We are sending our posts down by a runner who will meet Theresa.
Much love,
Walt

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