Papua New Guinea. papua new guinea culture

New Guinea is an island in the Pacific Ocean maritime boundaries with Australia along the Torres Strait. It is also washed by Arafura and coral seas. The western part of the island belongs to Indonesia, the eastern part belongs to the Independent State of Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea also owns the Bismarck Islands, part of Solomon Islands(Bougainville and Buka) and many smaller ones.

The basis of the relief is mountains. high points- Peak Punchak - Jaya (4884 m) in the west and Mount Wilhelm (4509 m) in the east. Papua New Guinea has 18 active volcanoes.

Total area - 786,000 sq. km (the second, after Greenland, the largest island on Earth), the population is about 9,500,000 people.

The total area of ​​Papua New Guinea is 462,840 sq. km, the population is more than 7,000,000 people, most of whom are Papuans and Melanesians. The majority of the population professes the Christian religion, the rest are local traditional beliefs. The official languages ​​are English, Tok Pisin (the most common) and Hiri Motu. Papua New Guinea is the most multilingual country on the planet (about 820 languages ​​and dialects).

The capital of Papua New Guinea is Port Moresby.

Cities of Papua New Guinea

Acquaintance with Papua New Guinea is best to start from the capital - the city of Port Moresby. Port Moresby is a colonial architecture, comfortable climate, beautiful nature.

Tourists gather in the city of Goroka for the annual Festival of Folk Songs and Dances held in August.

The city of Lae is the second largest in the country. Business card Lae - Botanical gardens with a lot of rare plants and animals.

Representatives of all ethnic groups of the country live in Mount Hagen. This is truly a cultural capital - it is held here a large number of festivals and national holidays. The most favorite among the locals is the August Festival of the city.

How to get to Papua New Guinea

There is no direct air connection between Belarus and Papua New Guinea.

by the most the best option there will be a flight on the route Minsk - Port - Moresby with two connections (for example, in Amsterdam and Tokyo) by Belavia, KLM and Air Niugini. Travel time will be about a day (including connections), the cost of a round-trip ticket is from 2,000 US dollars per person.

Climate of Papua New Guinea

The territory of Papua New Guinea is influenced by two climatic zones - equatorial and subequatorial.

The average air temperature in summer is +24 - +32 degrees (it can reach +40 degrees), in the mountains - +14 - +17 degrees.

The annual rainfall is 1300 - 5000 mm depending on the area. Rains usually fall between December and March.

The best time to travel around the country is from May to October. When planning a trip, one should take into account the constant high humidity in the country, which is poorly tolerated by European residents.

Most hotels in Papua New Guinea are complexes consisting of bungalows and located away from the bustle of the city, in picturesque places. As a rule, 2 * - 3 * hotels are located in the capital, as well as hotels belonging to world-famous chains, the infrastructure of which includes sports fields, casinos and nightclubs. The cost of living is quite high (from 80 US dollars per night in a 3 * hotel).

You can rent a cottage or a guest house (without amenities and hot water). Breakfast is usually included in the price.

In the mountains, accommodation options are traditional lodges with amenities and national cuisine(from 7 USD per day).

Economy - accommodation options are private boarding houses (from 3 - 7 US dollars per day) and motels (7 - 15 US dollars per day).

When you check in, make sure you have mosquito nets on the windows.

The beaches of Papua New Guinea

The city of Port Moresby has excellent conditions for classes water sports sports - scuba diving, windsurfing, sailing, water skiing, sea fishing, as well as golf, squash and tennis.

White sand and picturesque coral reefs Idlers Beach is famous, located east of Port— Moresby.

Further east is best resort islands – Loloata Island Resort with good developed infrastructure and Oceanarium Park.

Very nice place for beach holiday located at Cape Moem.

Diving and snorkelling are popular on the island of Duke - of - York, surfing - on the island of New Ireland.

Kulau Lodge Resort will appeal to lovers of folk traditions.

In the vicinity of the village of Wau is picturesque beach Salamaua, where you can just soak up the sun, or you can do outdoor activities- swimming, diving, windsurfing.

Banks, money, exchange offices

The currency of Papua New Guinea is the kina, which is divided into 100 toe. Circulation has paper banknotes in denominations of 2,5,10,20,50 kinas and coins of 1 kina, 1,2,5,10,20,50 toe.

Banking hours:

From Monday to Thursday - from 8.45 - 9.00 to 15.00

Fridays - from 8.45 - 9.00 to 16.00

Currency exchange can be done in banks (a commission of 0.2 - 1% is charged), in private exchange offices, at the airport, in hotels and in large shopping centers. There are ATMs only in the capital, and they can only be used if you have an account with a local bank.

Credit cards of the world's main payment systems (American Express, Visa) are accepted for payment almost everywhere. Cashing out travel checks (preferably in US dollars, pounds sterling, Australian dollars) is carried out only in banks of large cities.

In the provinces, only cash is accepted for payment.

Tipping is not accepted in the country, the service charge is included in the total price.

Tourist safety

The security situation in Papua New Guinea is not entirely clear, so it is simply necessary to follow the basic rules of conduct:

• Valuables, large sums of money and documents should be left in the hotel safe
• In crowded places, it is recommended to monitor personal belongings and not leave them unattended
• Do not visit remote areas alone at night
• You should not exchange currency at "street" money changers
• Before going outside, use sunscreen put on sunglasses and a hat
• Before traveling, you should take preventive measures against malaria, typhoid, hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, Japanese encephalitis and cholera
• Only bottled or boiled water should be used for drinking, brushing teeth, and making ice
• Meat, fish and seafood should be pre-cooked
• Vegetables and fruits should be thoroughly washed, vegetables should be thermally processed, fruits should be peeled

Transport

Due to the mountainous terrain of Papua New Guinea, there is only air traffic between the main settlements. Regular flights carries out Air company Niugini.

Get from the mainland to island part countries can be on a motor boat.

IN major cities you can use the services of a taxi or bus (cheaper).

Entertainment, excursions, attractions

The sights of Port Moresby are houses in colonial style, modern parliament building, sports complex, National Museum with unique exhibits, Art Gallery, the Catholic Cathedral and the pile village of Khanuabad. In the National Botanical Garden you can see many exotic plants and birds.

Among the attractions of the city of Goroka are the McCartney Museum and the Raun Raun Theater, whose repertoire is exclusively folk legends. Not far from the city is the village of Bena - Bena - the center of hand weaving - and the ethnic village of Asaro. You can relax in the bosom of nature in Mount Gahavisuke Provincial Park.

Main tourist sites The cities of Lae are, first of all, the Botanical Gardens, as well as the Melanesian Center for the Arts and the Center for Arts and Crafts. Not far from the city, you can visit the village of Wau with the Institute of Ecology, a museum, a zoo and the Mac-Adam National Park. And on the Watut River you can go rafting.

You can get acquainted with the culture of local residents in the city of Mount Hagen, where a large number of ethnic festivals and holidays are held. IN cultural center there are many handicrafts, many of which you can buy for yourself.

Lake Kutubu is located at an altitude of 800 meters above sea level and is included in the List of Natural Monuments of Planetary Importance. There are unique fish here that do not live anywhere else on the planet.

The largest butterfly on the planet, the Queen Alexandra butterfly, the second largest, the Goliath butterfly, and the largest Hercules moth on Earth, live on the territory of New Guinea.

Cuisine and restaurants

The main ingredients of local dishes are root vegetables, sweet potatoes, yams, cereals, meat (pork, game, poultry). most popular national dishes are the following:

• "kumu" - pork fried in an earthen oven with sweet potatoes, served with rice and herbs
• "balli-beef" - fried beef served with rice
• bugandi - egg soup
• fish cooked in all sorts of ways
• "hula" - fried crab meat with taro
• variety of fruits
• "dia" - sago and bananas in coconut cream
• "saksak" - sago pies
• "pit-pit" - sugarcane stalk boiled in coconut milk with ginger and tomatoes
• "cake" - pies with fruit fillings

From drinks - coffee, "Muli - vara" (lemonade), fruit juices

Alcohol is represented by imported drinks

Shopping and shops

Shop opening hours:

On weekdays - from 9.00 to 17.00

Saturdays - from 9.00 to 13.00

As a souvenir from Papua New Guinea, as a rule, they bring various wooden products, products from crocodile skin, wicker baskets, decorative axes, bows and arrows, beads made of fangs of a wild pig, a symbol of happiness in the house - wooden birds of paradise.

Customs

You can import and export local and foreign currencies in unlimited quantities.

Allowed to import:

• Up to 260 cigarettes or 250 g of cigars or tobacco (for over 18s)
• Up to 1 liter of alcohol (for persons over 18 years old)
• Perfumes - in reasonable quantities for personal use
• New products - no more than 200 kin (for persons under 18 - no more than 100 kin)

It is forbidden to import:

• drugs
• antiques
• Weapons (without special permission)
• pornography
• Non-canned food of animal origin (excluding those produced in Australia and New Zealand)
• Animals, plants and seeds without special permission

Pets are imported with an international veterinary certificate.

It is forbidden to export:

• Antiques
• Objects and things found at the bottom of the ocean
• Exotic animals and plants

Not found suitable option rest - transfer the hassle of organizing a trip to our professional managers by filling out, and they will promptly contact you! We can send you anywhere in the world!

Most people are familiar with major states- France, America, Germany. However, there are several countries such as Guinea on the planet. All of them are important economic components of the whole world. The article considers the capitals of each Guinea, describes their potential and population. Attention will also be paid to sights.

At school, few hours are devoted to studying these countries and their capitals. This question is quite interesting, because even though they are united by one name, culture and history are completely different.

Portuguese Guinea

This African colony lasted exactly 500 years, from 1474 to 1974. The capital of Portuguese Guinea is Bissau. He, along with Cacheu, was for a long time the center where the slave trade flourished. This name was given to the Portuguese possessions in 1879.

Initially, only the coast belonged to the indigenous people. At the very beginning of the 20th century, the Portuguese began to actively oppose the tribes that lived in the center of the continent. This resistance lasted long enough - in 1936 Bijagos passed into the possession of the Portuguese.

In 1956, the struggle for independence began, led by the PAIGC party. For a long time it was conducted with the help of political discussions, and after five years it turned to armed clashes. In 1973, the independent Republic of Guinea-Bissau was proclaimed.

Bissau

Bissau is the capital of Guinea-Bissau. The city was formed in 1687. It covers an area of ​​78 sq. km. As of 2009, almost 390 thousand people lived here.

The city was founded by the inhabitants of Portuguese Guinea as a center for the slave trade. The choice of location for its construction was influenced by the harbor, which was excellent for receiving various types of ships. Bissau is the main center of industry in its country.

Port Moresby

The capital of Papua New Guinea is Port Moresby. It is located on the coast of the country. The climate in the local area is dominated by subequatorial marine. Cold and dry weather prevails from May to September. Drought occurs periodically in this area. This feature of the climate is characteristic of the territory where the Capital is located, subjected to such cataclysms once every 40 years. Maximum temperature- +31 °С, minimum - +23 °С.

The flora of this city is typical for rainforest. Here you can often find oaks, beeches and some other species that were brought by scientists from the European part of the planet.

Population of Port Moresby

As of 2012, the capital of Guinea is home to over 317,000 people. Mostly Papuans and Malanesians live here. They speak 700 languages ​​among themselves. You can also often meet Europeans and Australians in the city. A small segment of the population consists of Chinese.

talking about official languages, it must be said that English, Tok Pisin and Hiri Motu are recognized as the main ones. Visitors in most cases use the first one, the other two are used only by the natives.

90% of the population are Christians. The capital of Guinea has also become a place of residence for Protestants (60%) and Catholics (30%).

Culture Port Moresby

Town Peninsula, which is part of the capital, is historical center. It attracts many tourists every year. In Town there is a fairly high hill, which offers stunning views of the entire city. The capital of Guinea in its center has buildings erected in the 19th century. Most old building Ella Church (1890) is considered. She looks truly aristocratic. Buildings of political significance are concentrated in the north. In 1984, a house was built here, where parliamentary sessions are held to this day. Previously, sports games were held in the capital, so you can admire the special complex. It is designed for several thousand people and is even currently functioning.

Conakry

The capital of the Republic of Guinea is Conakry. It was recognized as such in 1958. Being a port, Conakry is located on the shores of one of the world's oceans. As of 2012, over 2 million people live here. The city is divided into communes and districts.

The capital of Guinea is the main economic sphere of the country. It is called the center of industry. The food, textile, chemical and woodworking industries, as well as metalworking and fishing are developed here. Due to the fact that the city has access to the ocean, the port is the main method of foreign trade of the state.

The architecture of the city began to develop at the end of the 19th century. Now there is a Polytechnic Institute, several hotels, scientific centers, a stadium, museums, a Botanical Garden. All these places attract tourists.

In the eastern part of the city there is an art museum, where all national symbols are located, in the north - the People's Palace. It hosts theatrical performances. Also in the city is the headquarters of the country's main party. These are the places that attract tourists. The city administration cares about the safety of each of them.

Many of us, when we hear the name of this state, immediately imagine some kind of primitive cannibal savages, smeared with mud, various paints, feathers are inserted into their hair, and bows and arrows are in their hands. In general, of course, this is true, with the only difference being that these people are no longer so primitive, but real representatives of modernity, and cannibalism as a cultural phenomenon has long since left the traditional way of their tribal society. Therefore, the inhabitants of Papua New Guinea represent a completely civilized modern society, albeit in a rather weak execution, but this has its own objective reasons. However, we, representatives of the northern hemisphere, are interested in precisely that originality and charm of the shades of primitive wildness that are still preserved in this remote corner of our Planet.

Photo from the Internet

I did not plan my trip to Papua New Guinea for a long time, precisely because you can not find much on the Internet useful information about this country. Only gossip, rumors, mostly about cannibals. So what is there to plan? Grab your backpack and hit the road! The main concern in such a journey is quite banal and simple - collecting money, everything else is quite easy to find on the Internet. And the rest is a collection optimal route to penetrate (or, as the military say, infiltration) into the country and obtain a visa. I will tell you more about all this.

Papua New Guinea Visa

I am not the first Russian-speaking traveler who got into such a jungle, so there is already information on the Internet about obtaining this visa, I successfully used it. My personal experience was this:

Documents required for obtaining a visa:

• International passport;
• Booking hotels for the expected period of stay in PNG. I booked a hotel on a well-known booking site and brought a printout to the embassy;
• Book flights to and from. I made tickets from Jakarta to Port Moresby, in transit through Singapore (only reservation, did not redeem tickets);
• Completed the questionnaire in English;
• I gave a couple of photos.

There is one small nuance that is not mentioned on the Internet, but at the embassy in Jakarta (where I received it) they pointed it out to me. A piece of paper hangs on the window of the consular department, which says that there is a list of countries whose citizens are not desirable to enter the territory of PNG. There are many of these countries, including Russia. Therefore, initially they refused to take my documents, and I had to ask some embassy worker to accept them. He gave his consent, and my documents were accepted and reviewed in the usual way. The visa was ready in 4 working days, the aunt from the embassy notified me by e-mail. Visa - free, stay - 60 days. In addition to Jakarta, PNG has an embassy in Jayapura, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Seoul and other cities. The easiest and most convenient way to apply for a visa is in Jakarta or Jayapura.

Papua New Guinea visa, entry and exit stamps

Looking ahead, I want to say that tourist visa can be extended at the Vanimo airport (they have a migration station there), the cost of an extension for 1 month is 400 kinas.

How to get to Papua New Guinea?

Since flights to the capital Port Moresby are very expensive (although the flight is short), then the flight option immediately disappears! Another possible entry into the country is a land border crossing. Wutung(Wutung), on the border with Indonesia. The overwhelming majority of simple, proletarian tourists enter the country through Wutung. I was no exception!

PNG border with Indonesia

You can get to the border as follows: from the capital of Indonesia, the city Jakarta to the city Jayapura(Jayapura) you can fly by plane (cost 10-15 thousand rubles) or sail by ship (cost about 6-8 thousand), fly by plane for about 5 hours, sail for a week. Choose for yourself, I personally flew.

From Jayapura (more precisely, directly from the airport) to the very border, I hitchhiked, which for the most part was a "motor stop", and riding a motorbike with a backpack on your shoulders, and even uphill, is very exhausting! But it's free!

Thus, I quite easily crossed the border, put a stamp in my passport and for 20 kins I took a minibus from the border to the first major locality- cities Vanimo(Vanimo). By the way, the fare costs 10 kinas, but I paid twenty for myself and the guy who, by mistake and on my wrong explanation, went with me, as if accompanied. When I explained something to him, we did not understand each other and he went with me. It happens, no problem! The Papuan currency rate is as follows: 1 kina = 20 Russian rubles.

Vanimo Center

Gas station in Vanimo

First Papuan Village

To the village Lido(Lido) I arrived on the very first day of my stay in PNG, or rather, even an hour and a half after crossing the border. Since I was tired, I did not walk around Vanimo for a long time, but immediately went to look for a small village with locals where I could stop and live. On the way, I was picked up by a pickup truck with Australian surfer tourists, the guys took me to their surf base, which is located near the Lido.

Children greet their guest

In Lido, a family immediately gave me shelter, gave me a room in their hut, in which I set up my small tent and, tired, immediately went to bed. No, of course, we met, drank tea, and then I fell asleep. I didn’t sleep well on the plane: the plane was uncomfortable, plus some excitement was still present.

By our standards, the family is large, but for them it is small, because in PNG families are very large, well, more on that later. The main attention to me was shown by three brothers, who represent a certain backbone of this whole family. This is Kingsley, Nick and Salim. Their age is 30-35 years. I camped in Nick's hut as it was the only room available in which I could pitch my tent. By the way, the tent is needed because of the mosquito net.

Shore Pacific Ocean

Mainly cloudy

fishing canoe

Waiting for a minibus to leave for the city (2 kins)

Lido is located on the Pacific coast and is very attractive for surfers because of the big waves. Residents are engaged in fishing, gathering, cultivating various plants, someone works in wage jobs. In my family, no one was employed, so their financial situation was immediately evident and contrasted against the background of other families. They do not have electricity - not everyone can afford it and pay for it. It follows that there are no TVs, computers with the Internet, even a cell phone to charge, they run to their neighbors once in a while (infrequently), in other words, they don’t even use phones almost.

Smoked river fish, sweet potato, banana, taro and wild leaves

Sago

Nice modern house

traditional hut

Rainwater tank

Inside the hut (on the wall is the flag of the province of Sandown)

They don’t sit all day in social networks and don’t watch various TV garbage, their life is boring and monotonous, having lived in Lido for my first 5 days, I realized that I couldn’t live like that. And it’s not about gadgets at all, but precisely about leisure, because there is practically no leisure here - just an empty pastime, all activities are exclusively domestic. However, there are pluses - this is constant communication with people, your children are always with you, and you devote all your time to them. There are frequent quarrels, and swearing, and fights - nothing can be done without this, but on the whole everything is pretty quiet.

These people do not know another life at all, just as you were born in this village, you live in it all your life. And nothing changes, day after day everything is the same. Quiet measured life. When I imagined myself in the place of a resident of this village, I was horrified, and the point here is not at all in wealth (which I don’t have either), but precisely in this monotony, in which most of these people remain all their lives. But they do not experience this discomfort, and for them such a life is quite normal. In general, their faces seemed to me quite happy and joyful.

woman catching fish

I'll tell you a little about them. Kingsley is married to Nancy, and she is from Goroka (such a city), they have 4 children: Ronald, Abraham, Amentist and a baby, I forgot his name. The children loved spending time with me, playing high-five with me (when he tries to hit his palm, and you quickly remove it), walking on my heels. Nick has two and a wife, some kind of unlucky one (about her later), Salim also has two. I spent most of my time with the Kingsley family, in their kitchen. Salim also visited there, and his wife, and his children. Their mother often came - a very caring and sincere woman. Very pleasant people who showed obvious sympathy for me and, like an X-ray machine, emitted a huge amount of "positively charged particles" in my address.

Nick and Kingsley eat the Beatlenut

Nick and his son Jimmy

Brother cuts Salim's hair

Ronald and baby

Abraham

Amentist

Francis lives in another house, I called him "Daddy Francis" (Daddy - dad). He is someone's father, but whose exactly, I did not understand, one of the brothers. Daddy Francis and I once went to the city, he bought himself tobacco and some small things, and I bought shorts. A very funny harmless grandfather, who, like the others, was glad of my arrival. There are also sisters, but I don’t remember their names, they spent little time with me. One unmarried sister showed me special sympathy, but I delicately made it clear that I did not like her. In general, white men are very attractive to local women, just as white women are attractive to local men. There are certainly beauties among girls and women, but most of them are unattractive. A lot of women just don't take care of themselves, and besides, they chew beetlenuts.

daddy francis and tobacco

daddy francis on the porch

Francis weaves roof mats from sago leaves

Me and "unmarried sister"

Beatlenut is like vodka in Russia, the same infection. Nuts grow on such a thin palm tree, their shells are chewed along with the seeds of one liana (similar to birch brunki) called mustard (mustard), and mustard is dipped in White powder, lemon flavor, the origin of which I have not studied. All this together in the aggregate turns orange in the mouth, and all this badness is then spat out. Then this paint dries up, leaving unpleasant dirty marks on the ground. The sight is disgusting! Women who take care of themselves do not use beetlenut, and not all men chew it. This habit is an indicator of low social status, and those who try to raise it somehow give it up and look good, those who don't give a damn are willing to use beetlenut. I tried once the shell, without mustard - it is tasteless.

And then one day Salim and I went into the jungle, along the Dadi River, to the waterfall. Salim himself is not a particularly forest guy, so he called Reuben, who feels at ease in the jungle and walks barefoot. I didn't even expect Reuben to push us into such a wilderness. When the path ended, we walked straight across the water, jumping and climbing from one rock to another. I had a hard time protecting my camera from moisture, although quite a lot got inside it. The rocks are slippery, one wrong move and you can stumble. Once I stumbled and fell into the water, but I held the camera on my raised arm, so I didn’t wet it, but I was very scared, because if I drown it at the very beginning of my stay in PNG, then what will I shoot the rest of the moments with?

Forward along the river

Guys at the waterfall

Salim crosses the ford

Me and Ruben

You worry most about the camera, and not about yourself. The fact that you get completely wet is not a problem, because it's hot, and the water is awesome! Despite the fact that it is flowing, the water is very warm and pleasant. As a result of our trip, I received several scratches on my legs, and Salim severely damaged the bone on the foot (the one on the side) and was very sick at night. I gave him my painkiller - Ketanov, brought in the first aid kit. After taking it, Salim slept like a baby.

Personally, I just enjoyed the very fact of being in the jungles of New Guinea. The very thought that I had climbed, albeit not into the wildest wilderness, but, nevertheless, into a seasoned jungle, fueled my unbridled vanity. I imagined how I would brag to my friends later, as if not attaching much importance to this: they say, well, yes, I was in New Guinea in the jungle - just think, it's business! Even considering the fact that, in principle, few travelers have been here, this is not Thailand and not even the Peruvian Amazonas - this is Papua New Guinea - the Promised Land!

From time immemorial, Russian and foreign sailors began to explore the islands located in the Pacific Ocean. These natural complexes so amazing and unusual that they are considered to be separate continents with their own culture and way of life. From school, we all remember that in Oceania after Greenland is Papua New Guinea.

The island is washed by several seas: New Guinea, Solomon, Coral, as well as the Gulf of Papua. close study natural resources N. N. Miklukho-Maclay, a Russian biologist and navigator who made a significant contribution to geography, history and science, was engaged in local culture and the indigenous population. Thanks to this man, the world learned about the existence of wild jungles and original tribes.

True, tours to the island in Oceania are not in great demand, while they remain rare. But travelers who have visited the local jungle, untouched by civilization, recall their vacation with rapture and delight. rich vegetation, exotic animal world, amazing landscapes, a variety of languages, customs and cultures leave an indelible impression in the memory. Our publication is dedicated to this state.

Geographical description of the island of New Guinea

The tropical island is located in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, connecting two parts of the world: Asia and Australia. It has been an independent state since 1975, is also part of the British Commonwealth and is a member of the UN. Its capital is the city of Port Moresby. The origin of the island of New Guinea is mainland. Almost the entire territory is covered with massive hills, rocky ridges.

Most of them volcanic origin, rise to 3000 meters above sea level. According to scientific data, the most high mountain considered Wilhelm, which reaches 4509 meters. Between the hills there are wide hollows filled with water, densely planted with tropical trees.

Several rivers flow on the island: Ramu, Sepik, Markham, Purari, Fly. Scientists involved in the geological study of the island claim that the continent has a high seismic activity. Last eruption recorded in the last century, during which thousands of people suffered, and agriculture was also greatly damaged.

New Guinea Island: population

Life on tropical islands originated thousands of years ago, no one can name the exact date. The last census took place in 1900, at that time the population was about 10 million people. The indigenous people are the Papuans, belonging to the equatorial race. In addition to the Melanesians - as this nation is also called - Asians and even Europeans live.

The lack of civilization, jobs, as well as unfavorable living conditions and the presence of a high crime situation are forcing the natives to migrate from the "mainland" of New Guinea. The island lives according to its customs and laws. Papuans create clans, tribes, choose elders, without whom important tasks and decisions are not made.

The main occupation of the population is agriculture. Wild tribes plow the land, plant palm trees with bananas, coconuts, and pineapples. Fishing and hunting are no less popular. Some natives mine precious metals, after which they sell them on the black market.

Climatic conditions

The huge masses of water and the insignificant size of the land have influenced the climate as a whole. In the north, there is a humid equatorial climate, characterized by heavy rains, slight winds. summer temperature regime fluctuates within +30...+32 °С, slightly decreases at night.

The southern part of the mainland is under the rule of the subequatorial climate zone. In the winter months (January-February) dominate strong winds on the island of Papua New Guinea. The island, or rather the southeast (May-August) and central part, heavily flooded with tropical rains.

The rest of the coastal area (lowland) undergoes drought until late autumn. In areas with high mountains and ridges receive a small amount of precipitation, since the hills act as a protective barrier to cold air masses and rains.

Economic situation

The relief of the ridges prevents the construction of highways and connecting paths. To date, there is no land communication with large New Guinea. The island has only air communications with the Pacific regions. To maintain and develop the economy, the state in Oceania regularly receives financial support from Australia.

However, the infrastructure remains at an antediluvian level. The main reason is non-compliance with the law on the part of local residents. Crime and civil strife flare up in rural areas. In order to protect their property from robbery and ruin, residents create communities.

The main activity of the population is agriculture. Thus tied up market relations between tribes and regions. IN mountainous areas they cultivate sweet potatoes, tea, and in the lowlands, vegetables, bananas, yams, and taro. They grow different cereals, fruit, coffee and chocolate trees. Animal husbandry is practiced. Papua New Guinea is rich in mineral resources. The mining industry is actively developing.

Flora

The territory of the island of New Guinea is covered with evergreen savannas. Valuable species of plants and relic trees grow in the jungle: sago and coconut palms, melon and mango, rubber plants, ficuses, bamboos, pandanuses, casuarinas. The forests contain pines and ferns. And in the swampy areas grow mangroves. Along the banks of the rivers you can see thickets of sugar cane.

Fauna

The animal world is rich and varied. Alligators, dangerous and poisonous snakes, as well as lizards and chameleons are found in local rivers. The fauna is represented by amazing insects, exotic birds and reptiles. Birds of paradise, cassowaries, large parrots live on the mainland. Large turtles crawl along the coast. In the forests there are marsupial badgers, kangaroos, couscous. locals they breed animals familiar to our region: pigs, cows, horses, goats and other livestock.

Tourist orientation

Avid travelers know where the island of New Guinea is located, and therefore tend to get here in the summer months to see the colorful and diverse world of the jungle. In warm weather, enchanting festivals with national dances of the natives are organized here. Many are attracted sightseeing vacation V wild jungle With local guide, others - acquaintance with the sights of nearby resorts.

Things to do?

Having purchased a tour to Papua New Guinea, be sure to go diving. Every hotel and inn offer similar services. The waters of the Pacific Ocean are extraordinary colorful world, replete with coral reefs, amazing sea creatures, large predators. At the bottom of the ocean you can see sunken ships and planes.

Surfing and windsurfing are equally popular. The best beaches for this extreme occupation are the coasts of the resorts of Vevak, Madang, Vanimo, Alotau. It is allowed to fish in coastal waters, which is what guests of the island do. It is possible to catch mackerel, giant trevally, dog-toothed tuna, barracuda, salmon, perch and many other trophies. Rafting, canoeing, kayaking, boat trips are in great demand.

Papua New Guinea - natural wonder world, fraught with many mysteries and seductive with its resources. If you are not afraid of tropical mosquito bites and the aggressive behavior of the Papuans, then feel free to purchase a tour to the picturesque island.