Tribespeople in Papua New Guinea Give It to Us Straight

Image courtesy of Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority

We asked tribespeople in Papua New Guinea where they'd travel to if they could go anywhere in the world. Their answers may surprise you.

It's easy to take our ability (and means) to travel for granted. Last summer, I had the privilege of interviewing tribespeople in Rabaul, Papua New Guinea. I asked them about their travel aspirations, and it really blew me away that so many locals couldn't even fathom the possibility of travel.

Thinking in the hypothetical "If money were no obstacle, where in the world would you travel to?" was a challenge for some. Some felt the question was pointless. They would never have the means to travel to a different country, so why even give it thought?

For all the globetrotters out there, hearing these stories helps put our wanderlust into perspective a bit. Let's always keep in mind how extremely fortunate we are to have traveled to places near and far.

"Because I don’t have enough money, because there’s no good money available, I can’t really think of anything at the moment. It’s not something that I’ve thought about.”

"We have no funds to travel out. We no have funds to travel to another country.”

“I have some friends in Australia, but I have no money to travel out. So I just stay.”

 “If I had the money, I would travel, I would like to see the cultures of the other people around the world.”

My trip to Papua New Guinea was made possible by Travcoa and the PNG Tourism Promotion Authority. Views expressed are my own.