All the way with LBJ

Clem seems to interchange Dad and Granddad but maybe it's just me. He was brought up in the Johnson cult, i.e. President Lyndon B. Johnson. A local man still collects taxes to fund the installation of LBJ as president of New Hanover. Clem's Dad is still part of the cult and is now 79 years old. He still climbs coconut trees and is as spritely as a 16-year-old. He was a child during the war. My impression after talking to him is that there's more to the cult than an outsider could understand. We westerners have learnt to take everything so literally - not so here.

Clem considers himself Christian and believes in God. I'm not sure if he holds to traditional beliefs like other people here. His Granddad was still involved in sailing large canoes on raiding expeditions which also involved eating their conquered victims.

I've just been snorkelling on the Sanko Maru wreck but unfortunately have major pain from the sinus above my left eye. I hope it doesn't ruin the diving. Luckily I'm not on a set schedule.

The right end of the world

"Welcome to the end of the world", smiled Clem as we arrived on Tunung. The right end of the world, I said.

The wind has picked up since the two-hour boat-ride ended, blowing welcome coolness from the sea. Looking out north, the next stop is Guam! The rains may be coming, as they did yesterday. The place Clem has built here is simple, clean, idyllic. A French Lonely Planet guy spent 10 minutes here a couple of years ago and that's the only way I heard about Clem and ended up here. The ride in the boat was super-smooth for the first hour, a little bumpy for the second. I've also managed to sort out accommodation in East New Britain when I head back there - Kabaira for three nights.

This may well be the most isolated place I've ever been. I've felt a bit strained since leaving Melbourne but that's starting to seep away now. It's been such a barrage of unfamiliarity, uncertainty, lack of usual security. I'm also aware that my heart is aching for my darling Nadia. I don't want to be away from her like this. Who knows if I'll ever do this again.

I've brought 10 tanks, which equates to five dives: three on the wreck, two on Chapman's Reef. One of the wreck dives should be a night dive.

The only imperfection here is the noise of the generator - but that's almost drowned by the wind.

Clem became a divemaster because of his white teeth! He was the only one in the district not chewing betel nut and was chosen by a passing live-aboard dive cruise captain to help out.

Missionaries first came after the war, according to Clem, and confused the locals, firstly because there were also companies moving in to exploit resources, but also because of what the locals had seen in the war, and because of the differences between what the missionaries were saying and the traditional beliefs of the people. Now there are no missionaries on New Hanover, except for some SIL translators.

The generator is off now - only the noise of the breakers on the reef, squawking birds, the rustle of the wind in the treetops.

Cargo cult is alive and well on New Hanover: Clem said it wouldn't be good for a European to go there alone. It works both ways: not only an expectation that Europeans bring wealth, but also fear that they may take wealth, i.e. resources.

Mining must seem like spiritual rape to them. Why do they allow it? Probably because they lack guile.

Clem's bungalows are well made, there is a bucket-flush toilet and a hand-bucket shower. Clem must seem like a rock star to everyone here. A one-week trip on that American live-aboard turned into nine months in the Solomons.

There are no pigs on this island because the last lot got out and couldn't be caught and ate the crops for two years, so there was no food for anyone! New Hanover has plenty of them.

Into another world

I've stepped into another world: paradise. I decided in the end to leave Rabaul/Kokopo and fly to New Ireland province further north. I'd read some interesting things about it and also about the possibility of some excellent diving on rarely-visited sites.

It was raining heavily as Martin from Bougainville drove me to the airport - he a Baptist. Six churches in the area, he said. Apparently all the land along the road to the airport is owned by "Catholics" - bought a long time ago, no doubt very cheaply. It's now being sold back to the local people.

Lachlan and Kirsty from near Tumut, and their two kids, Jake and May, were waiting at the airport, for the same flight as me to Kavieng in New Ireland. We chatted until boarding. Kavieng is nothing like Kokopo, I feel like I'm in the Pacific now.

We transferred to a boat and were shuttled across to Nusa resort. Just fabulous. Simple.

I met Clem - a nice guy - and will go to his home island, Tunung, with him for at least five days to dive some WWII wrecks and other sites near there.

Sean, the owner of Nusa, grew up in Rabaul pre-eruption. Lachlan has a mutual friend of his in Moresby, Kirsty another in Kimbe.

Clem believes the diving around Tunung is the best in the world, so I'm mounting an expedition with him, including up to 14 filled air tanks! He told me about the shark callers of New Ireland - only Jacques Cousteau has filmed them. Clem assisted an Irish attempt to film the same caller more recently. But the younger men wanted to be in on the action, so "spoke to the spirits" to keep the sharks away. None came! During the first attempt at filming, a canoe capsized, ruining the cameras. The whole thing was a disaster.

Lachlan said his trip to New Hanover 12 months ago is still talked about by the locals - Clem confirmed this. Many of them had never seen a white person before.

Adam (from New St in Hampton, about 200m from our place!) was another interesting character at Nusa, married to Dani. He told of the "meeting" to OK logging on New Hanover - only selected local "representatives" were picked up by boat. The Malaysian Mr. Hi transported the National Conservation officials, even though he owns the logging company! Adam gate-crashed the meeting, having only learnt of it 10 minutes beforehand - he and a friend asked some awkward questions. His friend started taking photos, which resulted in full-scale panic from the selected landowners. Adam met the officials later in the market and asked for their cards - once again inducing panic. The provincial government's legal officer knew nothing of the meeting and said the agreement wasn't legally binding.

Adam was of the opinion that PNG is very resources-oriented and unaware of the value of the environment, e.g. for tourism. Local people are more aware but the central government has become dislocated from the traditional connection to the land.

Sean talked about Lihir (island), which he thought seemed to be working OK. USD 120 million offered for the hill on that island from which the ancestors depart - no sale just yet!

There are lots of dogs on the island. And I've noticed some of the men wearing lap-laps.