After New Years we were pretty keen to get out of Kokopo - it's a completely unprotected anchorage and the waves were making things very uncomfortable aboard. We hoped over to the Duke of York islands, offering the promise of calm waters in any one of several island-flanked lagoons.

Yesterday we met a man who is on the local council for the Duke of York islands, 21 council members represent around 12,000 people. He came across to us in an outrigger canoe with an ID card verifying that he was an elected representative to the Duke of York LLG (whatever that means - the words 'local' and 'government' are likely in there somewhere). He said one of the councils main jobs was to organise and decide between various projects when there was central government money available, village water tanks was one example.

We asked about whether there was ever conflict between the wishes of this LLG body and the local village chiefs - he laughed and said no, he was the chief. It turns out that in every village their local council member and chief is the same person. Slightly worried about the democratic implications of this we questioned him further and he explained that every 5 years there is an election for the position of councillor/chief in each village - it isn't a hereditary position at all. He also said women were able to stand, although all his compatriots were men. This has become a constant question we ask when talking about politics, the response here is typical - women can run 'of course' but there are no women currently elected. Maybe we should start shaking things up by asking people if they think there should be a quota system of some sort - could be revealing.. But despite this the local council system seems perhaps a fair and reasonable working way of grass roots control in government democracy. Maybe Democracy in New Zealand could be improved by having such small local bodies with decision making power.

Later on walking around in a nearby village we were as the pied piper, as we walked through more and more kids joined us and we became an over-excited convoy around their village. They showed us their well and cave that legend says a sleeping giant once occupied, they pointed to many areas that were taboo for women. They said if women went there they would die! (That makes the rebel in Ella want to jump straight onto the other side). The kids enjoyed asking our names over and over again and shaking our hands. Two boys named Jack and Francis were our self-appointed guides. Eric says he would not like to be famous, all these people watching you all the time with constant attention. There is no escape, even in our boat where children standing in their canoes can see right in our curtainless windows. All day there is no privacy.

Then finally we tried betel nut. The flora that all the locals throughout the Solomon's and Papua New Guinea chew and spit. The red juice it leaves stains peoples teeth and the streets of cities. It takes up fully half the stalls in many local markets, selling the betel nut with a sort of bean and a lime paste to hide the undesirable taste.

So what is this betel nut fuss all about? Some people have told us that it like their version of tea or coffee. When someone comes over to visit you ask if they would like some betel nut. Others say that it is like having a beer, but everyone has been quick to assure us it is not a drug. At the first the sight of people's teeth made us think that it was more of a potent drug like Kava in Vanuatu - making us a little afraid of the people that have red or black teeth - but not so. Although if you swallow it, it will give drunken-like tendencies as Ella found out, not quite understanding how to consume this foreign substance (it seems to be a skill rather like chewing tobacco). Eric managed to figure the system out a little better but each spit still drew roars of laugher from the 40-50 kids surrounding us. It is part of their custom and as a young boy tells us that now we are "Duke of Yorkers" like them.