Barbie goes to Papua New Guinea

A few weeks ago we bought some carved wooden figures. One is a man with a spear and the other a woman with a Bilum (a traditional bag carried with the head). Joelle then drew the following Barbie story:

Barbie together with Ken visits a village in the middle of the jungle of Papua Neu Guinea. Suddendly, she is attacked by a fierce looking man with a spear. Ken hurries to his beloved to save her. (The speech bubble reads: Oh no!)

But Ken cannot withstand the ferocious warrior. He is speared down and now lays at Barbies feet, slowly bleeding to death. The woman with the Bilum is horrified and rebukes her husband.

A doctor flown in by MAF is able to save Ken's life. To celebrate the healing (and pay compensation) the whole village prepares a big party. Everybody dances and enjoys themselves. And they lived happily ever after.

The couple that triggered the story

Independance Day Celebrations 2013

A Sing Sing is a special experience, because the present day modern meets with the wild of the older days. Clothed with little more than grass skirts men and women dance in a way, that not only seems strange for European eyes, but also make you want to run away and hide. But putting the spear down, they reach for the mobile phone and tell some relative at the other end of the country how Rumginae celebrations are going on.
Traditions that less than 50 years ago where still part of everyday life is labelled "culture" today. At least this was the main topic of the Minister's speech. He went as far as to say that people who do not know how to make a Kundu (traditional drum) have no culture and are certainly no citizens of PNG, and thus should not receive any benefit payments. I had to wonder, how many Swiss still know how to carve an Alphorn and master the yodelling – and how much benefit money the Swiss government could save it made one the requirement for the other.

Female dancers in action

Dancers with Kundu (drum)

Abundantly sparse clothing

Beard and Bow

Elaborately clothed

Grass Skirts

Dual Tone

Dancer with Head Dress

Bird(feathers) as decoration

Dancer with Head Dress

Face Painting

Back Painting

Back Trinket

... and more backs

Spectators as Attraction

... and after the heat the rain

On the way home

(For more pictures click here)

Here some pictures from Niklas:

Niklas' Interpretation of the Celebrations

Dancers preparing

(For more pictures click here)

Birth Announcement Lucien Marc

Lucien Marc Bischoff

Baby #4 has arrived

Today at about 4pm our 4th family member and 3rd son has arrived at Rumginae Hospital. Lucien Marc is 6lb 4oz and 19.3in. Lucien and Madeleine are both doing well.

Lucien Marc

The Other Day at 1000 Feet ...

The other day, while flying to Lake Murray under a low cloud cover, I felt a tap on my shoulder and one of the passengers handed me the following note he had written on a scrap of paper:
"Sir, could you give signal to my family in this village to bring my motor [boat]. I did not call them. If you could circle the village once x only. Thanks."
I looked back to see the man pointing out the window to the little village we were just passing. As we were flying at 1000 feet only I gathered that people might actually notice and with a chuckle banked the plane to "signal his family".

The shores of Lake Murray

New Role – Check Pilot

Since two weeks I have a different role while flying. Well, actually I am not flying at all. Instead I am flown. From Luke Newell, a new pilot, who arrived in PNG together with his wife beginning of June.
In PNG, before a pilot can fly on his own he needs to be checked into all the airstrips he is supposed to go and over all the routes that connect them. During this time he flies with a more experienced pilot who will show him all he needs to know. Mainly, landmarks helpful for navigation in poor weather and the peculiarities of the different airstrips.
Therefore, like in the Prairie days past, I now again sit in the right hand seat in order to disperse wisdom gathered during my two years of flying in the Western Province. The goal is to hand all the flying over to Luke by the beginning of November, i.e. before the arrival of our new baby.

Luke and Markus in the Cockpit of the GA8 Airvan

Flying to New Tribes

"Two 30Kg batteries, roofing iron, timber, nails, showers, toilets, furniture, food and everything, even the kitchen sinks for three family homes. This and more was needed in the middle of the jungle 1½ hours flying west from Wewak town. That was the picture as New Tribes Mission (NTM) asked MAF for help."

Here the full story released by MAF PNG:

Click here to read the story as PDF

Unloading the Airvan in Munbil

... and another one!

It seems that some people never learn from the past. Even the highly educated and wise ones, or maybe especially those. And so it happened that the stork took another go at them and caught both, as it did before, unprepared. Thus it came to be that she was with child and will give birth to a little one in the early days of November. And the Bischoffs will once more return from abroad having multiplied themselves. Is there anything new under the sun?

Checking on Baby #4

Birthday Season

And once again we had a series of birthdays. Here some pictures:

Madeleine's birthday was close to Easter

Markus celebrates after a hot day

And baby Gian is already 2!!

And here some pics from Joelle's birthday:

Birthday Party

The Tea-Party

Our Stay in Cairns

Here are some pictures of our stay in Cairns. Follow the link at the bottom to get to the album.

Beach at Kewara

Jump into the cool waters

The Pool

The Bischoff family on a cruise

(Click here for more pictures)

Three In One

"While doing my daily inspection at Kiunga in the Western Province of PNG, I received a call from the MAF Operations Manager in Mt Hagen for not one, but three patients needing medical evacuation to the Mt Hagen hospital from the rarely used airstrip at Erave."

Here the full story released by MAF PNG:

Click here to read the story as PDF

Patients in the Airvan (photo by Matt Painter/Godfrey Sim)

Flying the Highlands, One Month in Mt Hagen

To fly in the Highlands is challenging. For a Lowlander like me, at any rate. And especially, if you have an aversion for towering cumulus. In the Highlands, they are everywhere and usually they settle exactly where you were supposed to go, covering up all the terrain (peaks and ridges), that are found on your flight from A to B.
Therefore, it came as quite a surprise when I realised that a wall of towering cumulus usually is not a wall of towering cumulus. What from a distance looks like an impenetrable obstacle turns out to be individual clouds that can be circumnavigated in any of the three dimensions quite easily. You only have to have the courage to get close and look at everything from different angles.
As a Lowlander I'm not used to land on steep airstrips, either. In the Highlands, however, there is hardly anything else. Circuits are flown in narrow valleys, over ridges and gorges, then directly towards a steep cliff, until you turn final in the last minute. First you think you are too low, then too high, then you think you are going to hit a wall until, finally, you touch down on a slope that is steeper than most of the roads leading over Swiss alpine passes. No wonder I constantly feel a knot in the pit of my stomach.
All in all the Highlands offer more challenges and therefore more interesting flying – at least after you get used to it.

Strip in Agali (6% slope)

Strip in Yenkisa (9% slope)

Strip in Labalama (11% slope), at the end of the valley is Kompiam

Airvan Cockpit

Strip in Dusin (8% slope)

Bushmen in Megamanau

Strip in Mengamanau (14% slope)

Markus and the men of Mengamanau

Unloading medical supplies from the EU

Patient from Iropena, her child got stuck in the birth channel and unfortunately died as we were unable to medivac her for two days due weather