Shopping in the Highlands and other Papua New Guinea Shopping Tips

This woman was selling breadfruit and avocados by the side of the road. We pulled the jeep over so that I could buy a couple of avocados from her.

If you see someone selling something by the side of the road, it's usually safe to purchase from the vendor (and much appreciated).

It is also a great photo opportunity because there are usually children mulling about, and nobody is shy!

Make sure you have very small currency denominations...receiving change is highly unlikely.



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Theme: Other
Directions: Tari, in the PNG Highlands

Each village was proud to display their painted wooden carvings...usually produced by the men passing the time in the Haus Tambaran.

I brought back some very cool masks and have them on display in our home today. I think they are very specific to the region, and don't at all resemble Asian or African masks (at least not in my opinion).

I also brought back a small version of a carved wooden woman with her legs spread, symbolic of the Sepik male's "rebirth" process inside the Haus Tambaran.

What To Buy: Wood carvings and masks

What To Pay: It's easy to bargain with the villagers who are eager to receive hard currency. As with any culture, respecting the locals and not driving the price into the ground will earn you a unique and meaningful piece of local artisanry...and the memory, priceless.

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Theme: Local Craft
Directions: Sepik Region

The women seemed to compete with the men here, selling their artifacts which consisted primarily of beaded jewelry, headpieces and baubles - much like the Karawari villagers had.

The items would usually be displayed right on the ground, and the women were never pushy about selling...they were almost shy about it. My guess is that tourism was still a relatively new concept so there were no expert vendors here.

It sounds so casual of me to say that these things made great gifts...but they did.

And as I also mentioned in the Karawari section, it was difficult to go through a village and not purchase at least a little something - knowing that this was one of their main sources of money (like it or not, that's what tourism brings in the name of progress).



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Theme: Local Craft
Directions: Sepik Region