cavaan

Let it cook (islands) (literally because of rising ocean temperatures)

I definitely felt taken aback when landing in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, but towards the end I made some new friends, spent time with old ones, and had fun. The people are caring and kind, and the landscape is a dreamscape. Some takeaways still on my mind: Time: is a construct. Your departure time is after the plane arrives. The plane will arrive when it arrives. 8am? Simply a suggestion. Tuesday? Another suggestion. Any use of a time indicator is a suggestion. Coffee: the taste was second to none. It was introduced by German and British colonisers who forced different Highland communities into labour on coffee plantations. These days lots of people plant small amounts of coffee on their own land as a way to make a bit of money. It’s labour intensive and the money they get is not enough. Sometimes their yields get stolen. Bilums: pinnacle artistry meets functionality. The way it’s woven has to be a technical feat because how does it stretch and stretch and stretch? You don’t need Hermione’s extension charm. You need a bilum. Women sell them on the roadside and it was beautiful to see people’s creativity through the different styles, colours, and patterns. May Prada never commit cultural theft against them. Women: are the real MVPs. Providing household income, farming, passing down knowledge and crafts and culture, child rearing, cooking! I feel like I could say this about most places on earth. Women are honestly warriors, tired AF, and the backbone of every society. Fruits: there were lots of fruit varieties at the market and it made me very happy. On our last night my bank card was eaten by an ATM, I let it go as it was 10pm and there was a morning flight to catch. The next day I was already checked in and waiting at the gate when I was reminded time is a construct, the plane is not even here yet. I left the airport and went to the bank, I got the card back and used it for another month before an unauthorised transaction forced me to cancel it (IKIK)

POV: you live on a houseboat

How I pronounced Moruya when I saw it on a map: ‘Moruya’ How people in Sydney pronounced Moruya: ‘Maria’ How people in Moruya pronounced Moruya: ‘Maruiya’

Pitayas are red Cocktails are blue The smell of burning plastic All welcome you

[screams in Australian]

All innocent, sitting on the banks of the grand canal, in the warm spring sun

Maar-vellous lake (with only one freshwater crocodile so the chances of survival in this one is relatively good)

You can have a swim here, they said. It’ll be fun, they said. Can’t trust the internet I swear

I just wanted a place to cool down (at 9am lol) and we went off the route to chance upon this. We ended up spending a whole day here because it was impossible to pull away (okay now this just sounds like a yelp review). At one point I said ‘happy new year’ to some people speaking chinese, and before you know it we were sitting down for a dinner in their home. Two days earlier we had talked about missing dumplings and celebrating the new year, and then what always happens happens... 缘分

Water pls

Is this real life or is this anime about a city girl who goes to live with her grandparents salmon farm by the sea and has a lot of time for self reflection because what else is she gonna do? Help take care of the fish swimming in circles waiting for the day they are sliced and prepared as salmon katsu curry at the adjacent restaurant?