Preparing and Packing for Papua

How can I begin to describe the excitement and preparation for a trip to a part of the world most of us would never travel to, unless there was a very good reason to.  Our reason, of course is that a dear part of our family has made it their home. 

Indonesia is a nation made up of thousands of volcanic islands and home to hundreds of ethnic groups speaking different languages. The national language, however is Indonesian.  In past visits we have experienced some of the cultural aspects, enjoyed float plane flights over dense jungles and looking out for orangutans along a meandering river.

One of the first things we noticed was that Indonesians do not mind being in, what we would consider, our personal space. So if you are standing in a queue and feel someone breathing down your neck it is not considered rude. Another thing we learned quickly is that one has to be careful about which hand to use to pass or receive anything, as the left hand is considered unclean. It is rude to point with your left hand and rude to point with your index finger. One should point with the thumb and beckoning with the index finger has a bad connotation. These are just a few examples. They are not strange, because who's to say our way is the right way?  By now our children have adapted to the culture so much that it becomes natural and they just smile when we notice the differences.

Indonesia is a country that exports a lot of the clothing we buy here, but the same clothing is not readily available to people who live there. The main food staple is rice, often wrapped in banana leaves. Some of the foods we have enjoyed are satay ayam with chicken, grilled fish, roadside grilled corn on the cob and a lemon grass flavored soup called soto ayam. In the villages, many still do not have a refrigerator, so they buy what they need for the day at the market or roadside Warung,  Life in the more remote parts is about living from one day to the next.  It may surprise you that in the places we have visited, dairy foods are not available and people drink powdered or UHT milk. Their favorite coffee comes in little packages that include instant coffee, powdered milk and sugar. Many things that we consider staples are not so there. Not even coffee. 

So, the past few weeks have included getting vaccinations, prescriptions, the right mosquito repellent, phone plan or app and power converter, along with taking care of incoming email lists of what to bring ... things like favorite cereals, laundry stain remover, personal hygiene products, make-up, coffee filters, coffee (especially decaffeinated), videos, clothing for growing kids and toys or games they cannot get there. 

I removed a soft layer here so you can check out what is hiding in this suitcase.

Homemade strawberry jam has been one of the requests over the years
since it is difficult and would be quite random to find enough berries to cook jam.
It is a reminder of Canada.

Not sure if anyone reading this would ever have the need to send jam anywhere.

But, I have found that packing the filled jars back into the box
 that you buy them in is the best way.

The lids (which are larger in circumference than the jars, keep the actual jars from touching.

It is difficult for the glass to break if it cannot make contact with anything.

I cut as little as needed along the side of the plastic wrap that covers the box and when the

box is filled, simply stretch it back across the box and tape it along the sides

so that it's nice and tight.  If the jars come in a box that closes on top, I would make sure the

space is filled so that the jars can't move. 

And that is how I pack jam.

Our previous visits were to the island of Borneo.

This will be our first visit to Papua

and we can hardly wait to see where they have been for almost three years.