How is Wabag, Enga Province to Live and Work. Any exapts in Enga?

Hi,  Welcome to PNG.  I too live in POM, but an working in Enga for a few months.  I am in Kumbas abut 20 KM from Wabag.  Ask your local friends or co-workers when you get here, they will be glad to show you around and answer questions.

I am afraid there isn't much good news.  But here are your answers and a few you didn't ask.

First, Enga is beautiful and cool most of the time.  It rains regularly.  Mt Hagan the centerpiece is about 3000 FT.  The rivers, waterfalls and mountains are really pretty.  The fresh organic fruits and veggies here are wonderful and cheap.  If you eat a lot of veggies it doesn't cost much to buy them here.

Electricity is spotty here.  It goes off most days.  You will probably have a generator back up, but they typically don't run them during the day for homes.  Depends on who you are working for.  Water is typically roof runoff.  It has to be filtered or boiled for drinking. 

Here is my expert advice:  Bring one or 2 good plug in rechargable lights (Brian Bell about K180.  Bring a good water filter that purifies on pour through.  Bring a couple of electric and solar rechargeable lights (K30 at a Chinese shop)  Bring a rechargable fan (Brian Bell or CMH K!50 about- tghe one we got from CMH has a light and and a fan and a UBS charging port.  In fact make sure you get all of the rechargeable with a charging port.)  You may want to bring a cell power cell too.  Of course this depends on if where you are staying has regular backup generator.)  At least a few rechargable lights are recommended.

Wabag city? It is about 10,000. It is more expensive for most things than Mt. Hagan. and Hagan is typically more expensive than POM,

How is the culture?  The culture is very rural, many traditional bush material homes still.  Poverty is high, by western standards.  There are not a lot of jobs and people mostly farm and sell produce and do whatever manual labor they come across. Culturally the region is rich, however you wont see a lot of tribal culture until the annual festivals.  Then you will be in for a treat.  Hagan in the next province over has one of the most recognized cultural shows in the country.  Wabag also has a cultural show that is good I hear.

How is safety?  I haven't been to Wabag yet, bu the locals I am with said Wabag is not as dangerous as Hagan, however watch your step at all times - even in POM.  There is always someone looking to take advantage of you dropping your guard.  You probably would never by physically assualted, but theft and pick pocketing is always a possibility - or a car break-in.  Myu wife lost her purse in POM a few months ago
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List of hospitals?  Hmmm, I hate ot be discouraging, but do not think of health care here in any way shape or form like modern medicine facilities.  Foursquare does have a rural hospital here, but it would be for emergencies only and probably an hour from Wabag.  Hagan has a hospital, but again, PNG hospitals are not like western ones.  Avoid them if you can.  That said, I work with Foursquare and if you need medical attention let me know and I will make sure you get whatever is available.

List of Super Markets?  Well, Wabag will have some local markets, but you will need to go to Hagan for a supermarket.  They have just built a Walmart style market and dept store.  Very nice and not too expensive, again it is 1.5-2  hours from Wabag, so plan on going monthly for essentials.

Any restaurants? Local Kai Bars - be careful of the cleanliness.  I eat is some, but take a look first.
Hagan may have some nicer rest, but I haven't seen one yet.  There is a nice Coffee shop with good food near the airport in Hagan.

Any Clubs? --- ha, ha, ha ,ha.   NO!

Recreation Centre?  Ditto

How many expats stay in Wabag?not sure

Cost of Living?Chap for veggies, higher for meats.   Buy local chicken and Eggs.

What is Enga province famous for? Their Culture and the fact that nearly 1 million people speak Enga across the province.  Not bad for a country with 830 languages.

How is enga weather? Cool and rainy.  Nice through for us Americans....Morseby is too hot and humid.  Bring a few long sleeve shirts and a light jacket (and a rain jacket).  If you are used to hot weather youwill probably be cold.  check the weather website for details. 

Which are the places to visit near Wabag?  The scenery is beautiful.  The roads are not real good.  I think there is some sort of cultural siplay in Wabag if I am not mistaken.  There are no tourist spots.


I trust this helps.  Inbox me for a private chat if you want.

Steve