Saturday, July 21, 2007

Women with Melons and Greens


These photos were taken at my local market. I told Marie that I would show her ours after her wonderful Montpellier ones recently. So today and tomorrow I am posting from the Kokopo market.
The women, often with babies and small children, spend all day here in the heat, selling the wares from their gardens. Many do not have any cover, as the place is in
terrible condition. They are wonderful women - hard-working, spirited, joyous and very shy usually of the camera. Some of them won't look when you take their photo, but they all love to see the results, and giggle and blush when you show them. Their friends all come over too to see. So you end up being a pleasant distraction for them in their long day.

A new market is being built across the road so when it is finished I will post some photo
s.

16 comments:

CaBaCuRl said...

Great pictures, Jules, I love the colour thing you've done.Do you shop regularly at the markets?

Unknown said...

I love looking at your photos each day. Rabaul is my home town and I have so many happy memories of growing up there. Do you live anywhere near Vunagam - our property?

M.Benaut said...

Open air markets, - they have a special ambience; especially in such a warm climate.
The floral dresses are so nice, they reflect the produce being sold !!

Anonymous said...

aww. how much i miss the market. haha.

erin xx.

Jules said...

cabcurl - yes I do all my fruit and veges at the market - there are some very cheap very good quality stuff.

Hi Laura - so nice to know you are visiting. I'm not sure where Vunagam is but will get a map and look it up. Where are you living now?

M Benaut - thanks - yes the women all dress in such bright happy colours. These dresses are called meri (women) dresses and were introduced by the missionaries to cover their bare bodies - such a pity.

Erin - I miss you coming to the market with me!!!!

Unknown said...

Hi Jules,

I'm in Brisbane but moving to Beijing in less than 2 weeks. Maybe I'll start one of your photo blogs from there? I'm not as good an innate photograher as you are. I used to teach at Sacred Heart in Rabaul. Vunagam is in Blue Bay about 10 mins to Kokopo. There are a few flats and a house the family rents out to people. I was there last Sept - good to know the 'bung' is being improved - it was a great market in the old days in Rabaul pre-eruption.

Jilly said...

Jules, love the market photographs. I used to live in Australia - for three of those years in Cairns - so not SO far from you!

Thanks for passing by Menton DP. That's how I found you. You aren't on the DP portal!

Great to see pics of PNG.

Jules said...

Laura - yes I know where you are now! I have a good friend who is also moving to Beijing - she is going to the Western Beijing Academy I think it is called - she is flying out on July 26 and we are hoping to visit her next year!! What a coincidence.
I am working part-time at the Rabaul International School - confusingly now relocated in Kokopo.

Hi Jilly - thanks for dropping by!! I have just this afternoon, with Denton's help, now been placed on the portal - hopefully!!! Hope to "see" you again!!!

lv2scpbk said...

Nice people photos and it shows their hard work in their faces. The first ladies dress kind of matches the melons. I loved your photo yesterday with the boy in the wheelbarrow. I like how you did your comments on it with the check. Cute.

Thanks for visiting my site for the first time and I hope you stop back.

Marie said...

That's great. Thank you very much, Jules. I think there is much more humanity in your photos than in mine. I love them, really.

It looks as if the background was in black and white. Am I wrong?

Percy said...

Jules

Great photo's and Blog, and like other I am very impressed with the lack of colour in the background, I love it.

Thanks for popping a link from your site to mine, and I am now going to return your compliment.

I am not sure if I have it down, but like you I am an Australian Expat blogging from a city far away from home. Oxford has been my home for the last 5 years, I am originally from Perth, not sure when I will get back to Perth??

Anonymous said...

The super attitude of hard working folks is always nice. I have posted some pictures of the market in Chania, Crete, on my photo blog. It was an interesting market. I do like the open markets.

Jules said...

Marie - glad you like them. Yes the backgrounds were not very nice and distracted from the photos I thought,so I took the background colour out of them. Hope you like the ones tomorrow too.

Hi Percy - glad I could oblidge - I really like your blog!!! I also like Perth although I haven't spent much time there. I called in on my way to South Africa a few years ago.
Expat life is a very mixed bag isn't it??

sonia a. mascaro said...

Beautiful photos, Jules. I like the color of their dress.

Neva said...

The colors are amazing.....so rich and vibrant....wow.

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