Seriously?

Mon, Mar 7th, 2011  |   Places, Adventures 5 Comments

If there was anything more surprising during my visit to Rabaul than having a couple of machete-toting guys appear out of nowhere to lead us to the precipice of Sauron’s domain, it was watching these people saunter over, set up shop, and offer us great deals on tourist trinkets:


People selling trinkets at the ruins of Rabaul

No one seemed to mind the active volcano nearby.

Fiction pales by comparison.

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  • http://www.facebook.com/edmund.tee72 Edmund Tee

    Ooh, Rabaul. I’d love to have gone there and explored the remnants of the Japanese base there during WWII.

  • http://www.tonywublog.com/ Tony Wu

    Not sure how much would be left visible. The eruption in ’94 was huge. There’s still several inches of ash that rain down every day. The amazing thing is that some people still live, refusing for whatever reason to move some place nearby like Kokopo

  • Christa

    I guess the locals think that if tourists are crazy enough to go near a volcano, they might as well make a little profit… ;-)

  • http://www.tonywublog.com/ Tony Wu

    No doubt. Free enterprise at its best.

    Still…it was quite a surreal situation!

  • Ron

    Tony,

    I believe there have been several eruptions in/near Rabaul since WW II to the point that the harbor has been relocated, etc. I’m sure the landscape that previously existed is under layers of ash and lava, etc.

    Ron