This company Oil Search  have 50% of all the helicopters in PNG and they are the biggest tax payers up there. It’s a land of many contrasts, people from a stone age era. but these people are using the internet and all the technology in the camp and then when they leave they go back to their villages with dug out canoes. Oil Search is a very impressive company with a great corporate culture and it’s driven from the top. The respect that all the different people had for each other was really wonderful, the friendship, the emphasis on safety was amazing. That’s why they had me up there. I gave a talk at a forum on safety and risk. (I actually ended up giving five different talks). They had people from all over the world talking about vehicle safety, site safety. They had people there from the World Wildlife Foundation talking about environmental safety. This company is passionate about working with the villagers and protecting the environment. I was really impressed, these guys are really walking the talk! What an experience.

Tom at the oil rig site being set up in the jungle.
Almost all the equipment has been bought in by helicopters.

Tom & Christine with the bakers and cooks at 'The ridge" camp for Oil Search

Climbing the bridging

Christine going for a ride in a helicopter, Moro, PNG

 

Back from Canada and Europe but still bloody travelling!

First I was off to New Zealand. Had a great time there speaking at MICONZ, a Motor Industry Convention. I met Dick Johnston, one of Australia's great icons, and some other terrific speakers from within the motoring industry such as Peter Robinson, who is an international motoring journalist, John Mellor, David Martin from the USA, plus many more. MICONZ is the first Convention of this kind to be held in New Zealand. A lot of people there were talking about this website which won an award for the best designed site. Check it out at www.gethard.co.nz

Tom with Dick Johnson 3 times winner at Bathurst

Now I'm off to New Guinea for 5 days helping a big company there with a program about leadership and managing change. Pretty amazing to be going back to PNG, an amazing place. I was there in the highlands more than 30 years ago. It was right at the time that they got their independence.

That's me!

Years ago people found little orphaned tiger cubs. No one wanted them because the grow to be such huge animals, but this monk took one and looked after it and since then this temple has about 16 tigers. And these tigers are as friendly as anything. You’re not allowed to sit in front of them or sit down because they’ll attack anything lower than them. But they get the tigers out and take them for exercise on the afternoon and we got to walk the monk and with the tiger. You put your hand on it so the tiger knows your there. We thought that was pretty exciting but then you get to go down into this canyon and they take photos of you with these tigers. Wow. It really is a unique experience. You can’t imagine it happening here in Australia what with public liability and insurance and all that.

Its an amazing place and people go there to work there from all over the world, its quite famous. It’s a very special experience that they are giving to people. It’s something quite different and that brings people from all sorts of countries up a dirt track. And people are donating money there like anything to help rehabilitate these tigers. People are always looking for something different and you get great service. It was very personal. You felt very comfortable and very safe. It was the experience of a lifetime.

Here's a link to their website Tiger temple

Tom here in Germany . We have been in Canada the last 8 days with our son Peter, now in Germany for a few days at the World’s Biggest Bakery Show.  Lots of whiz bang machinery, plus heaps of beautiful bakery food. We have met up with a few of our  friends at the show and hope to catch up with more when we go today.

We had a great time in Canada, we hired a car and visited quite a few cities  and small towns in the province of Ottawa. We saw hardly any bakeries, but we experienced a lot of great service, the people have been so helpful. 

Tom and Christine at iba 2006 Munich

Heres a link to info about iba on the Leading Edge magazine site

Our son Peter who's been staying here in Canada took us to Swartzs Deli in Montreal. It’s a bit out of the way had to get a bus and a train, but it’s really well known and it’s famous. It’s a Hebrew Deli and been going since 1928. You’ve got to queue up in this long narrow building. We didn’t have to wait long but sometimes people have to wait half an hour or more. Sometimes they queue up out into the street. They do these smoked meat sandwiches. They were launching a film today about the deli and there’s been a book written about it.

But I was fascinated that this place in the back blocks of Montreal can have people so keen to come and buy something. It just goes to show how you can be famous. Its magic, I love it. They’re just doing a simple product, Not trying to please everybody, but doing everything really well. Wonderful to see.

Have a look at they're website Schwartz's Deli