Port Moresby

Capital city of Papua New

Guinea

Located on the south-eastern Gulf of Papua, Port Moresby, with a population of 365,000, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. The city emerged as a trade centre in the second half of the 19th Century. During WWII it was a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942-43 as a staging point and air base to cut off Australia from Southeast Asia and the Americas. The place where the city is founded has been inhabited for the Moto-Koitabu people for centuries. The first European to see it was Captain John Moresby in 1873 and the town was named in honour of his father, Admiral Sir Fairfax Moresby. We went on a morning tour of Port Moresby passing the Koki Market en route to the PNG Arts Store. Then a visit to the National Museum & Art Gallery and a quick visit to the Port Moresby Nature Par before being taken to the airport for our onward flights.