Bananas in th Mornin', Bananas in the Evenin', Bananas at Supper Time

(PNG Kaikai)

this is referring to the foods of the nambis area, in the lowcountry. highlands food and climate is much different...

{boiled bananas}

Breakfast usually consists of boiled or fire roasted banana, fire roasted taro, or fire roasted corn, sometimes a coconut/papaya porridge -basically anything you can quickly throw on the fire and eat so you can make it to the garden before it gets too hot. We did bring a couple boxes of cereal and homemade granola with powdered milk. But once the cereal ran out it was bananas a-plentay (with the occasional pineapple).


getting to the garden is a serious hike. what i mean is that the "clos tu" garden is a mile and a half walk crossing two rivers. the women with small children and babies usually work the close to garden, while the men go "an tap", or WAAAY on top or a mountain. i never went on top because of my brood.

[i'll let darlin' companion post on that another time]
women typically carry bilums (handmade string bags) full of firewood, veggies from the garden, water containers, etc., plus their babies- all on their heads.
 The people will tell you that they only eat twice a day and that lunch is "pasin b'long waitman" (the way of white folks), but every time i was with them around midday they stop working and make a fire to cook whatever is handy- things like kulau (young coconut), taro, always banana, cucumber, kaukau.
then everybody takes a nice long "malalo" (rest).
these people, although their life expectancy is only 54ish are extremely fit. their days are filled with hard work and "gutpela malalo".

[more on kaikai tommorrow]

xo