Traveling from Europe to Papua New Guinea, starting with Port Moresby and then proceeding to the remote interior (towards Kokopo and Rabaul) is a challenging journey. The pre-expedition team members arrived in Port Moresby in a haphazard manner, not without encountering a few obstacles.

The first group arrives on 11 January (Bernard, Natalia, Jean-Marc, Mehdi, Katia, Michel and Didier). The flights are on time, but Bernard has lost a piece of luggage, left behind by the airline in Hong Kong. The next flight between Port Moresby and Rabaul/Kokopo will be more eventful. Mehdi leaves without a hitch at 5 a.m., but Katia, who is scheduled to fly at 3:30 p.m., will ultimately see her flight cancelled and postponed until the next day. It is also more complicated for the other five, who were scheduled to take off at 9:30 a.m. Michel and Didier are notified during the night that their flight will be delayed until 1 p.m. At the ticket counter, the team then learns that they will all be leaving on the 1 p.m. flight, which will ultimately take off at 2:30 p.m. Three days later, Lionel and Franck, tasked with scouting locations for purchases, arrived in Kokopo on 14 January without too much difficulty.

The film crew (Yann, Luc-Henry, and Patrick) were not as fortunate and almost had to stay in Paris. Their special film operator visas were ready at the very last minute. It was thanks to the invaluable help of the French Embassy in Port Moresby, that a multitude of factors (including the prolonged end-of-year and New Year holidays in Papua New Guinea) could be overcome. However, they lost their plane tickets in the process and were forced to buy new ones in the heat of the moment. They arrived in Kokopo two days late, but just in time to catch the boat to Palmalmal.

Without a doubt, the most difficult part was the boat trip between Kokopo and Palmalmal. Initially scheduled for 2 p.m. on 15 January aboard a ‘conventional' ferry, and in order to wait for the delayed film crew to catch up, the first team finally decided to postpone their own departure via a cargo ferry scheduled for later, around 4 p.m. This was yet another false start, which ultimately left the film crew, still delayed in Port Moresby due to a change of plane, with no chance of catching up. But there was another twist in the tale... this ferry was also delayed until 6 p.m. And just as it was finally about to set sail... the film crew at last took off from Port Moresby. At the port, negotiations began between RAMS operations manager, Bernard and Mehdi. The negotiations finally bore fruit, resulting in an additional hour and a half waiting time for our filmmakers to arrive. A big thank you to the RAMS shipping company for agreeing to this effort, which allowed the film crew to embark for Palmalmal...

What followed was more painful, with bad luck striking again. First, the ferry was too heavily loaded and, at low tide, was unable to leave the port. Second, a piece of rope got stuck in the propeller, requiring nearly two hours of effort by two divers to remove it completely. The departure finally took place at 3 a.m. at high tide. However, a few hours later, mechanical problems with the engine meant that speed had to be reduced, and for a moment it was even considered turning back!

In the end, the gruelling journey lasted 21 hours. Despite this epic series of events, the entire Centre Terre team would like to warmly thank all the operators at the RAMS shipping company for their efforts in assisting the expedition with this sea transfer.

In Kokopo, activity is intensifying. Denis, Sylvain, Carlos and Christophe are welcomed on 17 January in Kokopo by Franck and Lionel, who are already hard at work. Christophe, who lost his luggage in Hong Kong, almost missed his flight due to a silly mistake in the spelling on his visa. This team's mission is to purchase supplies and provisions for the two-month expedition to the Nakanaï Mountains (food and various technical equipment for the camps).

In Port Moresby, Bernard, accompanied by Michel, Natalia and Didier, are invited by Mr Pierre Fournier, French Ambassador to Papua New Guinea, and Mr Clément Brousse, First Counsellor.

The consular services were a great help in obtaining permission to film in the country and in resolving the many issues involved in obtaining visas at the last minute. During the exchange, Bernard suggested to Mr. Fournier that a conference be organised at the end of the expedition to present the initial results to the authorities and the local scientific community, an idea that was welcomed and which we will work together to implement.

In Kokopo, Bernard and Michel meet with an adviser to Mr. Levy Mano, provincial administrator of East New Britain, who is supporting the expedition. This is another occasion for the team to share the latest provisional timetable for the expedition.

Finally, other formal meetings take place in the Pomio district. One with the district chief himself, Mr Joha Liska, and the other at the Local Level Government, with the Honorable Ward Counselor of Galowé, Mr Charles Legere, and his Ward Commitees' representatives. This is a crucial meeting, as the expedition is taking place on village land and the ward council's authorisation is therefore essential.

At first glance, the meeting is tense because the political situation in the village is currently complex. Since July, two municipal elections have taken place and there has been a succession of opposition to ward governance. As a result, the current authorities were not notified of our project and our arrival early enough and within a reasonable time frame. This situation rather displeases Mr. Legere.

This meeting will last three hours, during which Bernard will explain the reasons for our visit. He will detail the planned cooperation with the inhabitants (with the involvement of several villagers in the team) and the potential benefits for the village.

The meeting ends with the selection of a drop zone on the outskirts of the village, from where team members and equipment will be flown by helicopter to the exploration camps in the jungle.

The agreements are finally sealed with a coconut of friendship and a handshake.

The film crew shoots scenes for the documentary film: filming in villages (Galowé, Rabaul), meeting with the Galowé ward council, diving on the Pomio coral reef and visiting the Marena Kapate cave.