The last of 'arse' leaves in Lae   To see more of the Papua New Guinea I came to see, meant returning to the Highlands and searching out even more remote areas.  That was the plan, if I stayed; new zone, new trails.  My 90 day visa wasn't too far from expiring so that was an issue as well.  I didn't feel that over-staying a visa was much of a crime compared to the rascal situation, so I was not too concerned about that.  However, I did do what I came here for, or so I felt.

There was another option to consider.  According to my Shell Oil map, there was a road from Lae to the border of Irian Jaya, the other half of this huge island.  Irian Jaya actually belongs to Indonesia.  Did I need a new visa?  Apparently, this part of the world is even more remote than Papua New Guinea, hard to imagine, and the only remaining region with headhunters that I hadn't biked through.  This sounded like a good option as well.  The remote coastal region of Irian Jaya is known for cannibalism, a point that I was not in favor of though.  Could I trust cannibals?  I had spent many a hungry night in the past two months.  Had I not been alone, Irian Jaya would have been much more appealing.

By lunch time of the second day in Lae, I had made up my mind.  My hands were still not great.  The thought of having to defend myself again with rocks.  Who knows what I will find to eat.  And roads, were there any?  Plus, being a young lad still, pretty women were never too far from my mind.  Did I mention sleeping on a pile of leaves, battling insects most nights, hoping it doesn't rain?     

As much as out-of-the-picture it may sound, a travel agency operated right there in Lae.  Turned out that no matter what; renewing a visa, buying a bundle of new film, or leaving the country, it was necessary to return to Port Moresby, unless it was back to Mt. Hagen in the Highlands, or Irian Jaya.   Returning to Port Moresby was not something to look forward to.