Rabaul Restaurant Tips by Bwana_Brown

Restaurant Name: Roadside Picnic

On my first trip to Rabaul, in April 1980, I was accompanied by my Australian boss and one of the local guys from the Tolai tribe, indigenous to this part of Papua New Guinea. We had to check out how things were going at the new power station in Keravat, so this involved a drive of several miles to the west of Rabaul itself.

As it happened, the highway traversed a high and leafy Balsa tree plantation. We had taken some provisions with us, so this was our chance for a very relaxing lunch-time stop in the tropical heat.

Rabaul actually had a good selection of hotels in which to stay, which is where I ate most of my meals. The Hamamas, Kaivuna and Travelodge Hotels were all great places to stay and enjoy their restaurant meals. It is just that, in those days, I did not take photos of such mundane places!


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The Keravat River is just one of many small, brown-flowing rivers in Papua New Guinea. In the heat and humidity of the noon-day sun, and with the sounds of tropical wildlife, I can almost picture myself back here as we surveyed this scene from our picnic site.

The one constant of PNG was it's heat and humidity - it seemed as though I was in a continual sweat from morning until night. In our three years in Port Moresby, the daily temperatures were always in the low-to-mid-30 deg C range (90 F) accompanied by high humidity. Not to forget that, because of the very tight electric power supply situation, no home air-conditioning was allowed! When you combine this with working in the heat thrown off by the diesel-generating sets, it really made you appreciate a cold beer!


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