About The Country Club

The Country Club exists to divert its members by recording and comparing members’ travels. There are 195 UN Member States/Official Observor, and we are trying to visit them all. Check our progress on the Club Ladder, to the right, or by clicking the link for the List of Countries Visited below that. Curious how we count? Click The Country Club By-Laws link.

Friday, January 1, 2010

No Country for (Not So) Old Men

[Our beloved Honorary Past President writes about a December 2009 visit to PNG]

Port Moresby is not high on my list of places to return to. A hard place to
get to. I needed 4 flights and about 36 hours. Violent, depressing,
corrupt, overrun by Australians extracting raw materials and precious
metals. I met the acting Prime Minister, but could only highlight the
issue of violence against women there, and the need for family planning
and services for gender-based violence. Others from the country club
will have to travel to PNG to tackle the other problems...

I understand that the rest of Papua is amazing, with unbeatable flora,
fauna, and gentle people. Perhaps in another life, I can visit there,
bypassing Port Moresby.

On the bright side, an unintended consequence of the Australian invasion
is the easy availability of high quality reds. So I had a nice bottle
of Shiraz in my hotel room, since I was cooped up there after dark,
cowering from the violence and lawlessness.....

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