Hong Kong: A feast for my senses!

Three days in Asia's World City while in transit home for the holidays.  This multicultural gateway is a complete 180 from PNG, a sophisticated metropolis where culture is respected and cutting edge technology embraced.  Its vibrant, bustling, developed, everything that PNG is not.  It has superb infrastructure with efficent transport.  The leather seats and wood grain interior on the airport shuttle were a far cry from  Madang's PMV buses where the doors fall off!

Close to midnight I arrived at my 4 Star hotel  (less than US 100), but unlike Madang's empty dark streets, this city never sleeps!  The lights, the 360 degree harbor skyline, trendy night spots, night markets and street hustlers selling "genuine copy watches"  and "real copy handbags"...and windows without bars!  For the first time in months, I could walk around without feeling marred down with tension and fear. 

The first night I endulged in luxuries by taking a long, leisurely shower.  I stood there letting the water wash PNG from my body and mind.  Then I turned on the flatscreen and ordered room service from my fluffy bed!

The next morning I strolled the streets and popped into a coffee shop for an espresso and bagel..savoring each bite as I people watched from the cafe window front.  Appearances are evidently important, no tatty second hand clothes here.  These trendy, multicultural people hop in and out oft the subway and shops wearing the latest high end fashion.  Gucci suits, Coach bags, and knee high boots.  

Kowloon is a shoppers paradise.  From shopping centers boasting names such as Vivian Westwood, Prada, Tiffany to bargain markets selling packaged plastic bangles, chopsticks and silk bags.  Each shop I entered, I walked out wearing the new leaving behind the old for the trash! Every other store flashed neon lights with the latest high tech inovation. Nikon, Canon, Sony...my eyes were bulging from my head!  And obviously the hustlers could see "easy target" written clearly across my face.  Long story short, after hours of what I thought was bargaining, I found out that I was ripped completely off.  When I finally found my way back to the one of  hundreds of shops along Nathan Road, they would only refund 70% of my money! I left without my bargain Hong Kong electronics, but with a very expensive lesson learned.

The next day, in an attempt to avoid the endless choices of products and brands, I ventured out to Hong Kong Island.  Subway and tram to The Peak, Hong Kong's largest tourist attraction overlooking the entire city and Victoria Harbor.  The city was particularly buzzing with people and events for the 2009 Asian Games.  Museums, cultural dances, martial arts.  After a ferry across the harbor, I walked along the waterfront waiting for the worlds largest permanent light and sound show.  Each night at 8:00 over 40 buildings along the 360 degrees of harbor skyline is illuminated by a laser light show.  It was incredible!

Boasting the title of "Culinary capital of Asia" Hong Kong has thousands of resturants.  Chinese traditional dishes, Japanese sushi bars, Balinese and Indian cuisines.  (And of course a McDonalds and Starbucks on every corner) I particularly enjoyed the fresh sashimi and sushi...and Japanese beers and sake! 

Hong Kong has now become one of my favorite cities, a real feast for my senses!

Pondering a Goodbye to PNG (edited from my personal journal)

It's hard to know if I am saying goodbye.  In my mind I am already gone.  It is even possible to say that there have been moments over the last 19 months when I felt like I was never really here.
So for now, I am focusing on facing the world's opportunities directly in the eye.  There are many uncertainties ahead and I welcome the feelings this brings.  All I know is this, I will be in Hong Kong tonight--and the next 3 nights.  Then I will be in the States surrounded by my family and friends for the holidays.  But then there is January.  When January  comes there is a chance I could be in Cambodia or on a plane to Singapore with an open ticket to Indonesia before making my way across the Indo-PNG border back to Madang. Each of these possibilities have their own appeal.  I often times catch myself smiling in complete amazement of my life.  I am happy with my choices to live life in the unknown, where each day is wonderfully adventurous.  I feel I am in a good place, I don't feel anxious or lost. Instead, I feel that life is moving me in a forward direction.

 It's a wonderful feeling.  It's like looking beyond the horizon knowing there is a great big world out there just waiting for me.  I am enjoying every moment, every possibility, the excitement of knowing the world is my oyster! My thinking is circular at the moment.  Not a dizzy, mind boggling type of chaos of thoughts, but more of like circular dancing in my head.  I feel lucky that I have so many choices in life.  In some ways I am saying goodbye to Madang, to PNG and to my life here.  I would be lying to myself if  I tried to say that throughout the last few days I didn't crave to hold on to every last moment.  The last time to swim the pristine sea, my last time to gaze out to the "Land you can sometimes see", the last time for Jolanda, Marleen and I to be crammed inside the Nissan.  Through all these nostalgic moments, my mind holds tightly to the possibility of returning.  I dream of all the teacher trainings, of gaining the courage and confidence to take a PADI diving course,  to kiss his lips again. to sit on the veranda drinking kulau smoothies and Highlands coffee.  However, as my thoughts circle I feel excitement growing inside of me at the mere idea of starting a new life.  Of surrounding my senses with new experiences.  A life in Southeast Asia is appealing.  It is safe, city life is buzzing, good food is easy to find and once again I will have the freedom to walk the streets day and night.

I am leaving for holiday tomorrow without knowing if I have the job with Handicap International. So, I  have decided to pack as if I am not returning.  Once again I have put my material belongings into 2 checked pieces of luggage.  I first started to pack my artifacts and bilums. Reaching into the bilums I found an odd mix of randoms items that would only be found in the bottom of your purse in PNG.  I found discarded flex cards, Chicken Snax, sunscreen, rotten bananas, shells, a piece of blue coral and ants among other things! Packing personal items was more cut throat.  I began to make piles of things I definitely wanted to take, things I would give to Roselyn, schools, the Country Women's Association, Marleen and other VSO vols and a pile of things that didn't make the 'take' pile but I just couldn't bare to let go just that moment.  In my mind, it was easier to think of the possibility of seeing them again if I were to return.  So I set them aside and they remained in a neat pile just for peace of mind.  However, I knew it was more likely than not that I would never see them again.  This process of detachment is healthy, but hard.  It reminded me of the time I left Folly Beach, SC for the Peace Corps.  However then I sold my car, furniture,... well everything!  Packing like this with only a few days notice forced me to put into practice my beliefs for not valuing things more than experiences.  To follow Buddha's teachings that attachment is the source of all suffering.  It helps me to live life more spontaneously.    It was surprisingly easy to leave what didn't fit in my 2 bags all behind.  Easy because I know that my heart is  overflowing with memories and experiences.  And regardless of my journey, I know I will always carry them with me.  

Today I am free..for a new start, whether that be in Cambodia or PNG.

Go Pinis-Pondering a goodbye to PNG

People frequently come and go from PNG.  Short term volunteers, long term volutneers, consultants, anthropology students, researchers, and the occasional, adventurous tourist.  With the holidays approaching and contracts ending, go pinis parties have booked the Madang social calendar.  Dinner at Edens and The Lodge, sports themed parties, and karaoke parties helped to bring normalacy to the disturbing events plaguing the town.  We shared our adventurous travel stories of various destinations across the globe.  And highly emotional stories of escaping Madang's crime and danger. After the attacks last week highlighted the unpredicable dangers of PNG, several ngos in Madang decided to pull out and even VSO is evacuating all Asian volunteers. The town is on curfew and all alcohol sales have been banned. 

The combination of the increased security risks and a recent shortlisting for a job in Cambodia leaves me pondering if my time here in PNG is finished.  Several months ago I submitted a general application to Handicap International, a ngo targeting persons with disabilities and eliminating extreme poverty.  Last week, I received an email stating I had been shortlisted for an Inclusive Education position, the same work I am doing here in PNG.  After two international phone interviews, things are looking positive for a job beginning January 2010. 

Things were moving quickly as I had my flight booked home for the holidays.  It hit me that there was a possibility I may get the job in Cambodia after I leave PNG and I may not return.  I only had a few days to wrap my head around this idea.  Packing. Goodbyes. 

This was not the first time I have had to pack my life into a bag with a few days notice.  In true 'Charlye fashion' I didn't give it much thought, and enjoyed my days, my friends and the beauty of the moment. 

My potentially 'last' day in Madang was one I will never forget.  Morning coffee on the veranda with Marleen and Jolanda overlooking the sea.  An afternoon boat ride to the beach house for food and cheers with the expat community of Madang.  That evening on the ride back to the mainland, we stopped for skinny dipping in phosphorescence.  This was one of the most amazing natural experiences of my life.  Swimming under the stars above the reefs surrounded by the emission of lights produced by the bioluminescent plankton was spectacular.  We took turns diving off the boat and watching with our snorkels as our bodies plunged through the water like a rocket in the sky.  We looked like comets shooting through a star filled sky.  Then we transformed into the most beautiful underwater, sparkling angels as we spread our arms and kicked our legs to the surface.  A fanstactic natural phenomenom!

My next adventure, Hong Kong.  Living in the moment, I am not thinking too much about the possibility of a real goodbye to PNG, a future in Cambodia or even hoildays in the States.  To the unknown again!

Is PNG meeting the Millennium Development Goal 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education?

The 2007 school census reported 674,169 school-aged children are out of school in PNG. But why? PNG faces challenges beyond that of other poorer countries of Asia and Africa. 85% of the population lives in rural areas where the road to school for children is extraordinary: they climb mountains, cross rivers, and paddle canoes. PNG children come from diverse communities with over 800 cultures and languages.

Education Department officials, in collaboration with partners and donors, have developed a Plan to realize its international commitments such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Education for All and Millennium Development Goals. This Plan is titled ‘Achieving Universal Education for a Better Future.’

Within the PNG context, the Plan has three goals for achieving Universal Basic Education as outlined in Papua New Guinea Universal Basic Education Plan 2010-2019 (National Executive Council, July 2009).

1) Access: All children should enter school at a specific age- they should enter elementary prep at the age of 6 years.

2) Retention: All children should complete the elementary and primary cycles of education that constitute basic education- this is nine years of basic education.

3) Quality: All children should reach a required standard of literacy and numeracy at the end of their years of education.

PNG is seeking a breakthrough in universal basic education by abolishing school fees for elementary in 2010. But ending school fees is no magic wand. The surge in enrolment after eliminating school fees brings immense challenges to the entire learning infrastructure, from the physical building, to the class size, to the teachers.

It is expected the Plan will address issues such as expansion of school infrastructure, pre and in-service teacher training, advocacy and awareness raising, water and sanitation facilities in all schools and provisions for remote and overcrowded schools.

But abolishing school fees and building classrooms is not enough. We must build inclusive schools that respect diversity and encourage the participation of all children including street children, girls, children with disabilities, those from remote areas, and children affected by HIV/AIDS.

Much remains to be done in order for PNG to deliver on the global promise to get all children quality primary education by 2015. The success of this Plan will depend on the support and commitment of communities, parents, schools, teachers, churches, ngos, and all levels of government. We all have an important role to play to ensure a happy and healthy future for PNG children.

Rapes and Attacks Grip Madang!

In the 18 months I have been in Madang, I have witnessed many disturbing and violent acts.  PNG is known for its tribal fighting, domestic violence, compensation, gender based violence, gang rapes, and armed robberies. I have myself been a victim as well as many of my friends, both National and Expatriates.  Yes, violence occurs across the globe, but violence in PNG in more prevalent and certainly more volatile. Being a volunteer in development, an optimist, and a public blogger, I have tried my best to describe PNG, its culture and people, in a positive and diplomatic manner. 

Today, however, I cannot. I can only tell the truth.  A truth that I have been holding back as not to worry my friends and family at home.  A truth that is so disturbing that all readers should be warned of the content, which may only be suitable for....well, actually no one, regardless of age, sex or mental stability, should ever have to read of a truth so unsettling.

Last night five men broke into a house of an elderly expat who has spent most of her life in PNG.  They must have known her husband was out of the Country and took this opportunity to hold her hostage in her own house.  The gang tied her up, bashed her and raped her.  The neighbors notified the police, however, when they finally arrived, the men had fled. 

A pure act of animal violence!

My heart pours out to this strong and committed woman, who has dedicated her life to the people of Papua New Guinea.  She is known by most as 'the mother of Madang' for her community service with womens groups, the Red Cross and the centre for persons with disabilities.

Her attack was one of the 8 reported rapes here in Madang in the last 4 days!  This week alone there have been armed hold ups along the roads going in and out of town, a young boy was shot when his family could not give the man K1 (less than 33 cents), and two women were hacked to death while walking to the market to sell thier vegetables. 

The Madang community is in an uproar!  Myself included.  What response will the government provide? Obviously there is complete chaos with the law and order situation in Madang town.