International

Goroka is in the Highlands. I spent a whole day attending the annual Sing-Sing. It’s a competition where tribes from all over the hills parade, sing, and dance on a vast grass field. In the past, the prizes were pigs, the most valued commodity on the island. In recent years, money was the reward. There was a viewing grand stand, but the tourists were let out onto the field right from the beginning to photograph, pose and dance with the tribal people. There were at least 15 different groups, all dressed in elaborate, and sometimes strange, regalia. They were festooned with bird feathers, native shell jewelry, and necklaces made from animal jaws and beetles. The revelers faces were painted with brilliant primary colors, white mud, or black paint. [Ira Spector]