Tolais take tourism to new level

By KEVIN PAMBA
ON this particular afternoon, at this location, I felt like a VIP (very important person).
The place was the carpark outside Rapopo Plantation Resort not far east of Kokopo. It was the afternoon of Tuesday, Nov 28, 2017.
As soon as the Resort’s courtesy bus had come to a stop there, the lass who had escorted the guests from Tokua Airport quickly disembarked. She asked us to wait at the bottom of the stairs of the reception area for a welcome song from Resort staff. What was unfolding was quite a surprise for me.
I’ve booked into hotels of varying classes in different parts of PNG and other countries such as the US and Australia. But I’ve never been treated to a hotel reception quite like the one that unfolded at Rapopo, though some might argue that hotels and resorts in different parts of the world do have their own special treats or surprises.
Nonetheless, it was still extraordinary as it conjured up a friendly Pacific island feel to it as two young ladies stepped forward and put a lei around each of the guests, after which the strumming of ukelele’s began and the welcome song started. Wishes of an enjoyable stay followed the singing, followed by an invitation to help ourselves to cold (refrigerated) kulau (young coconut drink) that were set out on the tables in the foyer.
That treat brought back a host of memories for me because the first time I was served a refrigerated kulau was in a restaurant in, of all places, Malibu in Los Angeles, in 2000. I had to pay for that drink though, and the young coconut probably came from tropical Hawaii.
The foyer at Rapopo is a verandah-like space overlooking the gardens and sea ahead. It also serves as a dining and relaxation area.
As the evening wore on, I noticed that the welcome song was repeated for each group of guests that arrived. Among the arrivals that evening was the governor of neighbouring New Ireland Sir Julius Chan and his team who were accorded the same reception.
Rapopo is located in a secluded beachfront at an old coconut plantation away from local villages and the urban sprawl of Kokopo. It is a quiet and secure setup with 24-hour security. It has a terrific beachfront view of the sea with the legendary Rabaul town and its volcanic mountains in the distance.
The welcome of the staff of the resort was a simple gesture that cost virtually nothing. But the lasting impression it can leave on a visitor, especially someone from out of town, or abroad even, is what counts. This is especially so as ENBP usurps its new role as one of the government-sanctioned tourism hubs in the country.
Last week I recollected the orderliness and the sense of respect for authority and one another that the East New Britons have. This is part of achieving the common goals they have set out as espoused by their Provincial Vision: “ENB to have an educated, healthy and wealthy population living in a socially peaceful and wise community.”
Tourism is being pursued in ENB in earnest as a potentially major contributor to the economy of the province and the region. Provincial Governor Nakikus Konga amplifies the tourism mantra on a large billboard outside the Tokua airport welcoming visitors to the “tourism hub of the New Guinea Islands and host province of the APEC 2018.” A replica of the same billboard is placed at strategic locations around the province. I was told cruise ships frequent the area, especially the Rabaul Wharf where visitors take in the sights of the twin volcano eruptions of Sept 19, 1994 and the World War II relics and tunnels.
One of the must-see sites related to the volcano is what the locals call the “hot springs” not far from what used to be the Rabaul airport. The area remains submerged under volcanic ash and debris of the 1994 eruptions. Hot springs are a spring of naturally hot water, typically heated by subterranean volcanic activity, and in Rabaul, the water is so hot that the local Tolais dip food wrapped in leaves, including an indigenous treat – wild fowl eggs – in it to cook.
People of nearby Matupit Island who look after the hot springs treated us to wild fowl eggs, boiled in the hot springs, as we watched in fascination. After 10 minutes, we were removing the egg shells for an afternoon snack as we observed Mount Tavurvur quietly murmuring not far off.
Matupit native Henry Gorona explained that the natural phenomenon is popular with tourists, especially Japanese. Henry said Japanese visitors like to visit the site early in the mornings to take a dip in the warm sea water where the steamy hot water from the hot springs meets the cooler sea.
They claim that the warm mineralized water has healing properties that are good for the body.
The more adventurous tourists and national visitors leave their vehicles near the hot springs and walk to the foothills of Mt Tavurvur, a feat not for the fearful. The locals, however, make the walk regularly in search of wild fowl eggs which are laid in the warmth of the volcanic rocks.
The Tolais at the hot springs site have also found a niche in carving the volcanic rocks into miniature figures of the natural fauna such as turtles and fish, and sold to visitors.
The tourism vibe is indeed catching on in ENB. And the last word for the East New Britons’ efforts in being more hospitable toward visitors is in a recent Tok Pisin expression they have coined, Pasin tumas.
Pasin tumas, roughly translated into English, could mean, best in hospitality.
l Next week: I will share the emotions the old coconut plantations in Rapopo and others between Kokopo and Rabaul invoked in me as someone whose tribesmen were among other Southern Highlanders and Helas enlisted as indentured labourers who worked there in the 1970s and early 1980s.

• The writer is a journalist and regular correspondent.