Rabaul

Walking the forlorn streets of eastern Rabaul is like stepping into an apocalyptic film. On 19 September 1994 Mt Tavurvur, which looms ominously to the southeast, erupted, spewing huge amounts of ash over Rabaul and the Simpson Harbour and Karavia Bay area. It buried much of this once lovely city in a desert-like landscape of black and brown ash. It’s still active; it announced its latent potency with a sizeable eruption in 2014, and although ominously quiet throughout 2015 you can see it steaming gently or occasionally belching huge plumes of smoke into the sky.