Monday, July 13, 2009

Trobriand Islands Yam Festival


Just back from a weekend in PNG's Islands of Love - the Trobriand Islands. So bad are the crops that the traditional yam festival (Minimala) has not been held for the last 20 years because harvest sizes are not good enough to literarily sing or dance about.
Above is a picture of one village filling their chief's Yam House with you guessed it -yams. In the past tonnes of Yams were distributed out through the chief's and their yam houses but due to population explosion from too much, ahem, love - harvest is down .
Trobriand Islander Serah Clark now organises a smaller Ugwabwena Yam festival on Kiriwina in an attempt to revive the islands' dying traditions.
The Ugwabwena Festival last weekend drew 50 tourists from around the world to see famous local dances, singing and art and crafts. More pictures and stories to come.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/836861/island-of-love-causing-population-woes

some pictures
http://www.aapimage.com.au/Search.aspx?search=PNG+TROBRIANDS+ISLAND%26(IMPORTDATE%3e20090712)&gallery=PNG+TROBRIANDS+ISLAND+

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