Kitava, Trobriand Islands
Accompanied by a lively pod of dolphins, we headed for shore on an overcast morning, having anchored close to Kitava and Narutu Islands, with the much larger and more heavily populated Kiriwina invisible to the west. Made famous almost a century ago by the anthropologist, Bronislaw Malinowski, the Trobrianders have retained many elements of their traditional culture, and children learn about it as part of their formal education. Their dance performances are now held at the beach, for the convenience of visitors, rather than in the main village of Kumwageya, along with the sale of beautiful wooden artefacts, inlaid with pearlshell, for which these islands have long been famous. Many carvers were already at the landing site with their carvings on display.
Several groups of boys and girls, all colourfully and elaborately decorated, came into the dance enclosure once we were all seated, and performed several traditional dances for us. It was obvious that these dances have much to do with fertility, in the Trobriand case specifically the all-important yam crop. Most of the visitors headed up the ‘main road’ to the village, one of four major settlements on Kitava, and a few of us lingered at the market, perusing and chatting. Heavy rain late morning brought a rush of visitors to Xplorer, who amused themselves by watching the antics of the water babies around a favourite (and only) diving rock close to the landing.
After lunch, it was water-sports on a cloudy, relatively mild afternoon, or relaxation on the dazzlingly white sands of Narutu. Those of us who snorkelled enjoyed the crystal clear water and healthy, colourful corals, not to mention a great variety of fish. Later, back on board, it was time for the disembarkation briefing from our leader, Larry—always a bittersweet time since it signals the imminent conclusion of our memorable PNG odyssey.
