We awoke early this morning eager to be on top deck as we entered into the mighty Sepik River, the largest within Papua New Guinea at a length of over 700 miles. The shoreline dotted with wild sugarcane, sago palm (the staple diet of the area), sub-tropical plants, and trees, which act as a great haven for birdlife like egrets, cormorants, kites, and white-bellied sea eagles.
We were looking forward to our first experience of a local market, inspired by the market mayhem presentation the night prior by Suzanne Noakes (our on-board culturist). Sepik people express their culture and beliefs through their art, inspiring the carving of incredible masks, drums, baskets, and sculptures that integrate with their daily life and animist beliefs. Some of us took the opportunity to walk through Bien Village ending at the school, our sing-sing (dance) arena for the day. Along the way the locals took us under their wing and proudly showed us their homes, introduced us to their families and shared stories about their lives on the Sepik. We in turn felt privileged for such a heartfelt welcome. We were entertained by school children preforming traditional dancers to humorous pantomimes. Soon we were departing with a fond farewell to what seemed to be 50% of the 3,000 strong village.
Our staff presentations continued this afternoon when we joined Rikki & Jack Swenson, our National Geographic photography team, for the second part to their photography workshop. Our next destination on todays program, Manam Island, an active volcano. The island is lushly vegetated. The lahar zones and mudslides make for incredible color contrasts. The red glow and ash cloud from Manam’s crater served as an illuminated backdrop capping off an amazing day on the sun deck as we enjoy cocktails and a barbeque dinner.
