On Sept. 16 we went to Highland Lutheran International School to celebrate PNG Independence Day

Many of the kids dress in the traditional clothes of their tribes

One of the Mambis kids donning her gear

I hardly recognize my dorm roommate Irene

One of the tribes traditionally covers themselves in a brown clay

Rachel, one of my Sunday School youth

Mary and Alfred. Mary is hapkas, meaning a mix of white and black

Even some of the parents join in the fun.

Throughout the day the school hosts many activities

Such as a puppet show

Various music competitions

And dramas

This drama depicts when Europeans first came to Enga

There was also one about the spread of HIV

The cast of the dramas

Some students participate in the Mr. and Miss HLIS competition

The younger kids are very enthusiastic about the competition

Each contestant gets to talk about something they are wearing

The high school students seem a bit more uncomfortable, but they are good sports

How the guys stay in shape when they spend most of their time in classes and there’s no real gym around, I will never know

Afterwards they also set up a greasy pole for later in the day

Perfect. Smooth as butter.

There are prizes at the top for whoever gets up first. What a fun gameJ

Now they just have to get it up. Watch this process. It’s quite humorous.

Here we go

Up and up

Good teamwork

Looking good

Wait! Too far!

Back, back, back

Whew, that was close. Sadly this competition was late in the evening so we didn’t get to see it.

Next, each tribal line gives a singsing. Here the mother’s help their children

One of my favorite parts of the day was the dancers and pipe players from Bouganville (you can tell who they are by the darker skin)

It made me laugh when I realized they were using flip-flops as the paddle

A few things have been modernized, but there is still a sense of cultural pride

Some of the highlanders march in

Standing in their tribal groups

And of course the governor made an appearance so he could dedicate the computers he gave to the school

And as a thank you, he received a pig

I’m glad I could be there to see the coming together of so many tribes and the pride they show in their culture.