The second cave, Wiliwili Kana Gula, is interesting to visit to inspect the remarkable nests of swift birds, which are skillfully attached to the cave walls using twigs and soil. Inside the nests can be seen baby birds, their mouths open as they hungrily receive food brought back to the cave by their hunting mothers. After returning from the cave walk, there is no better refreshment than young coconut juice (kulau), plucked fresh from the tree and found in abundance back at the beach. A gentle breeze blows in from the Coral Sea, and up in the clear sky a young brown and white-breasted sea eagle soars on the up- draughts. • The two-day KKUS Festival is an initiative of the Watts Islanders and is supported by the Milne Bay Tourism Bureau, with bureau manager Modakula Kunuyobu noting at last year’s festival that the island has high potential as a tourism destination due to its blend of natural beauty with living culture. “The culture here is still intact. It is very authentic and original.”
Where: Watts Island is in the Engineer Group of Islands in Milne Bay, with Watts and other islands such as Slade, Skelton, Butchart and Bright named after the engine room crew on British naval surveyor Captain John Moresby’s steamboat HMS Basilisk in 1873. Coming events: The Kwateya (yam) Udi (banana) Sailau (sailing canoe) Festival on Watts Island will be held on September 6-7, 2024 – the first in a series of cultural festivals in Milne Bay including the Samarai Giniuba (mother pearl) Kaihea (festival) on nearby Samarai Island later in September, then the National Kenu and Kundu Festival in Alotau on November 1-3. Visitor contact: Mathew Tabunaielo is the owner of Watts Island Adventure Tours and can contacted on Ph/ WhatsApp: 82709750 or Email: wattsislandadventuretours@ gmail.com Accommodation: As well as the new Tasi Bunglows on Watts Island (pictured left), there are plenty of homestay options including guest rooms at host Mathew’s home.
plausible reason pre- dates this, with the cave simply serving as a tomb for important people in order to preserve and honour them. The custom was to bury a body upright with a clay pot over their head, which caught the skull once it detached, enabling it to be relocated to the cave once the appropriate rituals and ceremonies were bestowed on the dead.
PNG Air flies from Port Moresby to Alotau twice per week For bookings: Call + 675 7411 2644
A pandanus tree against a perfect seaview on a beautiful day
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