It is very strange to arrive in port and be greeted with a display of music and dancing with young men and women dressed up in some type of national costume.
I find it all interesting but quite ironical in many ways.
To start with the costumes all look either very theatrical or tacky – particularly the ones portraying the traditional hunter society. Some of those shields, spears and headdresses look to have come from a pound store.
The biggest irony is that they are lauding a culture that was systematically eradicated. I doubt that those highly decorous young ladies and fearsome warriors have ever been near a tribal village or engaged in real hunter gathering. This is a show for the tourists. Yet they are lauding a lifestyle and time that is long gone. It certainly lacked any authenticity.
