Paradise is right here

By THOMAS HUKAHU
HAVE you realised that some of the most beautiful places in the world are right here in our backyard? There are places that are almost untouched, unexplored and they add a kind of quality to our lives that all the fine halls and walkways of Sydney, Paris or New York cannot offer. In fact, people in those concrete cities would truly envy us.
This thought held fast in my mind as I was embarking on another boat trip to one of the many islands off the coast of Kavieng, the capital of New Ireland.
Easing off from a two-week break from work, I planned to use at least one day for a sea ride just to enjoy the open sea and salty island air.
It so happened that a public notice on trips to Limelon Island – to the south of Kavieng – caught my eye a week before the start of the break.
On the night before the trip on June 27, I packed what I would need for the half day trip into my knapsack – camera,  notebook,  notepad, biros, pencil, pair of sports shorts (in case I would need it), and a black rain poncho.
Before I left the house for the pickup point at the Kavieng Market wharf, I also put in the bag a stick of baked sago (for lunch) and an iced 750ml bottle of water.
I also bought a kulau (fresh coconut) at the market so that I would not have to look for anything to eat were I to feel hungry.
The trip to Limelon was organised after I contacted the management of the place which is set towards the southern part of the island where traditionally-built bungalows provide accommodation for people who want to spend a night or a weekend there. The retreat setup has haus wins, wind houses or open traditionally-built buildings without windows, where conferences or meetings can be hosted with the sea breeze blowing through.
I made contact with the skipper of the banana boat that ferries guests to the island at about 10.30am.
By 11am, the skipper and I and another staff of the guesthouse headed for the island. We had to go past a number of islands to get there – including Nago (pronounced, Nang go) Island where the mariculture and research facility of the National Fisheries Authority is situated.  The trip to Limelon took about 30 minutes as I wanted to take pictures along the way and we had to slow down at different spots for those.
When I got off the wooden jetty built over the sandy shore of the eastern side of Limelon, I was met by Steve Fox, a longtime resident of Papua New Guinea who runs the place.
He welcomed me to the island and told me about his picture-perfect hideout. As I was the only guest for the day, Steve bid me to take all the time I wanted to explore the island and its beaches.
I was later taken around the southern side of the island by the boat skipper, Gibson Besso, who was a local man. Local people live at the northern part of the island.
The island is a pearl in the ocean. At the spot where I got off, the white sandy beach seemed to go on forever. The water that day was clear and calm and is shallow enough for young children to play in.
To the south of the island are other islands, the bigger and closest is Limonak, where some of the Limelon guest house staff, including Besso, are from.
As Besso and I travelled around, I saw a number of canoes on the beach. Upon my query, he confirmed that those were owned by people on Limonak who were working at Limelon. They paddled to and fro for work.
There was also a tall tree-house built about 300 metres away on the western side of the isle. From the top, you can take a good view further south and west.  Its almost as if you were on the limb of a tall tree, looking out.
Apart from the quiet movement of the staff going about their duties of cleaning the yard or fixing a water pump, the place was quiet. The sounds you hear every now and then would be the Fox’s children playing with their wantoks from the village.
I spent most of the time taking pictures of the place and relaxing in a haus win. The clear, clean island air was like refined oxygen.
I quietly watched black birds looking for berries on one of the many trees near the beach, and captured their dances using the video function of my camera – more like an amateur ornithologist.
The place has five traditionally-built bungalows that guests can be accommodated in for the night.
The building is powered from solar panels fitted at the top of the sago-leaf thatched roof. A toilet facility has running water which is drawn from the ground and pumped into a reservoir.
As I was about to leave at about 3pm in the afternoon, I informed Besso and another staff that I would definitely be back with friends – locals or foreigners – to show them a real tropical island experience.
Limelon provides the optimum atmosphere for creative people to relax and possibly work on their pieces, whether it is a poem, short story or script. I have told friends that Limelon could be the setting for creative fiction writers to piece together a story on a theme of their choice.
My trip last month was to see the island and what it offers. Possibly the next time, I will venture into the sea for a swim, dive or even try my hand at fishing.