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In Papua
New Guinea, there are many attractions and special places and things to
come and see. These ranges from the different cultures and languages to
top diving locations in the world. For you to come and experience Papua
New Guinea, you have to come and see for yourself. Below are some of many
interesting things and places to see and know.
LANGUAGES
There are over 800 distinct languages in Papua New
Guinea. English, Pidgin and Hiri Motu are the three most commonly
used, but English is the official language spoken in education, business
and government circles.
POTTERY
The village of
Aibom, near the Chambri Lakes, is the only place on the Sepik to
specialise in pottery. Aibom pots are noted for their relief faces which
are coloured with lime. Pottery is also practiced at Yabob and Bilbil
villages near Madang, and among the Amphlett Islanders of Milne
Bay.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 
Papua New Guinea's art forms are as diverse as they are distinctive.
In a country where language varies from village to village, it
can be expected that artistic expression will differ in style
just as dramatically. Pottery, weapons, carvings, basketwork,
musical instruments produced by different people in different
places, according to their traditional skills and beliefs.
Papua New
Guinea artifacts and handicrafts can be purchased from individual artists
and retail outlets in towns and villages. The Faculty of Creative Arts -
UPNG at Waigani also an excellent source of paintings, pottery and
etchings. Artifacts can also be found for sale at most high schools,
teachers colleges and galleries.
BILUMS
Bilums are natural
fibre string bags made in most provinces - although they vary from place
to place. They are very strong bags used for everything from storing food
to carrying a baby.
WEAPONS
Most provinces specialise
in different kinds of weaponry. Bows and arrows are traditional
in several areas. Shields have a decorative and spiritual role
just as important as their defensive purposes.
The
Chambri Lake carvers in the East Sepik region decorate their spears to
match their masks. Cassowary bone daggers are also found on the
Sepik.
MASKS
Masks in Papua New
Guinea are mainly used as decoration. They are found mostly along the
Sepik River, but also in other parts of the country. The Chambri Lake
masks feature-elongated designs with incised brown and white patterns
finished in glossy black. At Koroga the masks are made from wood and clay
decorated with shells, hair and pig's teeth. Murik Lake masks are almost
Mrican in appearance, and in Maprik they are woven from cane or rattan.
Masks are also carved at Kiwai Island, near Dam on the southern
coast.
BOWLS
The Trobriand Islanders of Milne Bay are famous for their finely
carved ebony bowls. Meticulously polished using a pig's tusk,
the bowls are patterned around the rims with fish or turtle 'figures.
Wooden
bowls are also carved in the Siassi Islands and the Tami Islands, offshore
from Lae.
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Drums
are the principal musical instruments. There are two main types - the
large garamuts made from a hollowed tree trunk and the smaller kundus
which are shaped like an hourglass with a snake or lizard skin stretched
over one end. Other instruments include bamboo flutes and pottery whistles
and jews harps from the highlands.
SPIRIT BOARDS AND STORY BOARDS
In the Gulf Province, Gope boards are believed to possess the
spirits of powerful warriors, or to act as guardians of the village.
Before hunting or war expeditions, the spirits were called upon
to advise and protect the men.
Story boards made
on the Keram River, a tributary of the Sepik, are a modern version of the
fragile bark carvings villagers used to make. The boards illustrate
incidents of village life in raised relief.
BASKETWORK
Buka baskets and trays from Bougainville Island are among the
finest in the Pacific. Coarser baskets are also found in the Southern
Highlands.
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