UNDISCOVERED PAPUA NATIONAL MASK FESTIVAL

One of the world’s most astonishing man-made spectacles, the national mask festival celebrates the unique mask cultures of the tribes of East : the Tolai, Baining, Pomio and Sulka. The festival itself is a four day extravaganza of storytelling, music, cultural dancing, and ritual performance.

On the first day at dawn, the Kinavai is held, signalling the arrival of the Tolai Tubuans who arrive on canoes amidst the chanting and beating of kundu drums. Traditional masks will be on display during the festival – some many decades old, brought over from New Ireland Province and other parts of Papua New Guinea.

Many of these masks are sacred and are not meant to be viewed, and the opening ceremony acts as a cleansing or appeasement ritual for the broken taboos.

The highlight of the evening performances are the spectacular fire dances in which young initiated Baining men perform exhilarating rituals through blazing fires as their elders chant in haunting tones.

During our stay we will also have time to visit wartime sites and WWII relics, travel through colourful welcoming villages and tour the rim of an active . Attend the astonishing Kinavai ceremony on Kokopo beach at dawn.

Witness the arrival of the Tolai people on canoes with wild drum beats.

See traditional masks from all over Papua New Guinea.

Be immersed by the performance of the Asaro mud-men warriors from the central highlands. Climb an active volcano and visit a vulcanology research station.

Travel to the landing spot of Australian forces in World War One.

See the former Japanese wartime headquarters of General Yamamoto and the attached museum.

Travel through Japanese military command underground bunkers and tunnels.

Take photos of WWII aircraft and relics covered byjungle canopies.

Watch the Tolai whip dancers’ incredible initiation dance.

Go shopping for handicrafts at Kokopo market - one of the biggest in PNG.

Be amazed by the Baining fire dance where recently initiated young men dance in and out of the flames of a raging fire. Day 1 PORT MORESBY

Arrive at Port Moresby International airport. Welcome to Papua New Guinea. Overnight at Crowne Plaza or Ela Beach Hotel, Port Moresby. Day 2 PORT MORESBY - KOKOPO

Upon arrival at East New Britain’s Tokua Airport, you will be met by your English speaking Australian tour leader and local guides who will accompany you to your resort accommodation in Kokopo township. Following the burial in of much of old town in 1994, East New Britain’s commercial hub has been re-established in a modernised Kokopo over recent decades. Settle into your beachside resort facilities and enjoy a swim before your evening meal.

Four nights at the Rapopo Beach Resort or similar. Day 3 NATIONAL MASK FESTIVAL (KOKOPO)

Gather at dawn on the Kokopo foreshore for the Kinavai, signifying the landing of the Tolai people in East New Britain several hundred years ago and marking the official opening of the Mask Festival. The Kinavai is represented by the arrival of the Tumbuan in their traditional masks, alighting from canoes paddled in the predawn darkness from the neighbouring Matupit island. Dancing to the primal sounds of chanting and kundu drums, the revered ancestral spirits arise to welcome dancers wearing traditional masks from all over Papua New Guinea.

During the day you can take a quiet break from the Festival and visit the Kokopo Museum which is conveniently located next to the Festival grounds. The Museum houses an impressive range of war relics along with an informative display of colonial, military and natural history

Lunch can be enjoyed in air- conditioned comfort in either the Gazelle International Hotel restaurant or the Ralum Country Club, both located next to the festival grounds. Overlooking the historic Queen Emma Steps, the backdrop is breathtaking with ocean views over Blanche Bay.

Returning to the festival grounds after lunch you will continue to enjoy a VIP viewing of the rest of the day’s performances.

Return to your accommodation for a refreshing swim and dinner. Day 4 KOKOPO - MOUNT

Following an early breakfast, be driven from your resort to Rabaul and enjoy a morning climb of the active volcano, Mt Tavurvur. The volcano is not too arduous to climb and well worth the effort. Mt. Tavurvur is the most active of the six volcanoes that surround the Rabaul .

View steam vents and hot springs at the base of volcano along with the megapode egg hunters who burrow metres into the black sand emerging with prized eggs.

Return to the hotel in Kokopo to refresh and then travel a short distance to the festival grounds for the second day of the Mask Festival. Among the many highlights are the Kusare warriors from Kandrian on the South coast of New Britain’s western province and the immediately recognisable Asaro mud-men from the mainland’s Eastern Highlands. From closer to home, the tall Tubuans from the Pomio district, the Tolai whip dancers and neighbouring New Ireland’s renowned Malagan mask men all add to the colour and movement.

Return to your accommodation for a refreshing swim and dinner. Day 5 KOKOPO - RABAUL - MATUPIT ISLAND -

Following an early breakfast, enjoy the panoramic views as you are driven around Blanche Bay and up to the Malmaluan lookout for a spectacular view of the town of Rabaul. View the Simpson Harbour which is part of the huge flooded Rabaul Caldera.

Visit the Vulcanological Observatory where instruments monitor volcanic activity across Papua New Guinea. Visit Matupit Island whose people and settlement survived the worst of the 1994 volcanic eruption despite their location immediately beneath it.

Reminisce at the famous New Guinea Club, the centre of Rabaul’s social scene, back when it was revered as “the Pearl of the South Pacific”. It now houses the extremely informative displays of the Rabaul Historical Society. You enter the network of tunnels leading to the Japanese military command bunker of Admiral Yamamoto that includes etched ceiling maps.

After meandering through Karavia Bay’s Japanese Hospital tunnels you will visit the tranquil memorial gardens of the Chinese cemetery where your guide will explain aspects of the historically long association the Chinese have had with Rabaul. You climb around the large barges of the Japanese Imperial forces that are still housed in even larger tunnels hewn into the soft volcanic cliff faces on the shores of Blanche Bay. Used to unload shipping cargo, the barges were hauled to the water along rails by Indian slaves, now buried at Bita Paka Cemetery.

You will then return to your accommodation in Kokopo for lunch and to refresh. Following lunch you have the choice of 3 afternoon activities :

1. Simply relax and enjoy the resort facilities and on-site activities.

2. Enjoy a scenic tour of the Gazelle Peninsula. Kokopo, known then as Herbertshohe, was from 1884 to 1910 the capital of the German New Guinea colonial empire. You will visit the historic German cemetery and the cathedral at Vunapope Catholic mission. View the beachside landing site at Kabakaul from where Australian military forces advanced in 1914 to capture the German wireless station at Bita Paka. This battle was Australia’s first major military engagement of the First World War. Bita Paka War Cemetery is now the resting place of over one thousand Australian and Allied soldiers who met their fate during World War 2, when “Fortress Rabaul” became the South Pacific headquarters and staging post for the Japanese Imperial Forces. Your tour will include a visit to the Kokopo Market, one of the biggest in Papua New Guinea. 3. At your own expense: Half-day scuba diving and fishing activities are available and are a great way to explore the seas of East New Britain that are rich in marine life, maritime wrecks and abundant fish for viewing or catching. Your guides can organise these activities.

Enjoy an early dinner at the resort.

After dinner, we will drive to Kainagunan or Gaulim Village (approx. 90 mins) in the Bainings clan area. Tonight, a spectacular Fire Dance is performed by recently initiated men from the Bainings clans, who will immerse themselves into the flames of the fire and escape completely unharmed. This amazing ritual is not performed anywhere else in the world. One of few cultures in Papua New Guinea who do not use the Kundu drum as their rhythmic percussion instruments, the Bainings clan instead use bamboo, and the sound is just as unique as the fire dance itself. After the performance, return back to your hotel. Day 6 KOKOPO - PORT MORESBY

Departure: Farewell your group and tour leader after an early breakfast today. You will be transferred to the airport for your flight back to Port Moresby departing at 06.35AM.

Upon arrival, transit to international departures to board your flight home. INCLUSIONS EXCLUSIONS

Meet and greet service on arrival Port International and Domestic flights Moresby and Rabaul Scuba diving & fishing trip (Half-Day 4 nights accommodation Option) 5 Breakfasts, 4 Lunches, 5 Dinners Drinks unless otherwise mentioned English speaking Australian guide Visas throughout & accompanied by english Travel Insurance speaking local experts Tips All activities as per itinerary including Inoculations tours and walks in Rabaul, Kokopo and Items of a personal nature elsewhere. Anything not mentioned in the itinerary Private transportation and all transfers in Port Moresby and Rabaul Entrance fees, sightseeing and photography permits at National Mask festival and local museums and parks.

DATES

2018 July 9th to 14th. 2019 July 8th to 13th.

PRICES AUD$ 3999 Per Person / Twin Share AUD$ ****** Single Room / Solo traveller Contact & Booking www.undiscovered.world

[email protected] (+61) 1300 161 333 Australia (+1) 650 45 70413 USA (+44) 203 6565710 UK

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