WOW!
So Chief Menasae and Dixon suggested that the village perform a “kastom dans” for the Picton Castle crew, preceded by a traditional meal at the meeting house on the edge of the village. The crew was excited at the prospect.
When the time came on a sunny blue-sky day, we all trooped into shore, along the beach, through the woods until we got to the thatched meeting house in the clearing. And there prepared for us was a big old feed of yams and cassava, some corned beef (very popular is corned beef), some green leafy stuff, all smothered in a creamy coconut sauce. They were going ask three dollars each for this meal. We haggled them up to five dollars each, much to their amusement. Then it was time for the “kastom dans.”
“Kastom” simply means old school and traditional. There are some villages in the hills who have opted out from modern trappings almost entirely, eschew western clothes and gadgets – but steel machetes and actual pots for cooking remain popular, even in these places. These villages chose this traditional throwback way of life with intention and are known as Kastom Villages, quite logically. For the dans we were led out of the village into a clearing that was taboo, meaning sacred, not forbiden. There were all the guys we knew with not more than a small piece of leaf wrapped around their dingaling, some war paint feathers and that was it.
Then followed four or five dances of great ferocity and different meanings that were all introduced and explained by Caleb. Much stomping, clattering, whooping and cheering. Scary, charming and very cool. The rest of the week they are Presbyterian. After the dance we were all ined up and introduced ourselves formally, stated where we came from and what we did in life or the ship.
The Picton Castle women also went to a dance just for them by the Banam Bay women. Men were taboo, and in this case it did mean “forbidden.” We all felt privileged to have witnessed this kastom dans. That night was our farewell party with lots of dancing for fun and that pesky old kava. We made our our find goodbyes this evening. This can be hard.
Dirk got an outrigger canoe, and the next day we got up early early to sail for Santo, 50 miles away.