69. Tag Rabaul, Papua New Guinea 01.02.2026

We arrive in Papua New Guinea in hot but also windy and partly rainy weather.
We are in Rabaul, on the island of 'New Britain', in the Rabaul Caldera between the active volcanoes 'Tavurvur' and 'Vulcan'. Both volcanoes last erupted together in 1994, which nearly completely destroyed Rabaul at that time. What exists now has been rebuilt since then, while some was relocated to the town of Kokopo, which is 25km away and situated at a higher elevation.
Papua New Guinea gained independence in 1975, after periods of German, Australian, Japanese, and finally Australian occupation. Rabaul was and is important, especially for large ships due to its deep harbor, 'Simpson Harbour', and was of enormous strategic significance for the Japanese during World War II.
We visit the hot springs at the foot of the Tavurvur volcano and enjoy the view from the volcano observatory.