Hello, again and welcome to Window on the World. This week we will continue to travel south from Guam to the island country of Papua (Pop pew a) New Guinea. The official name for this island is the Independent State of Papua New Guinea. It was formerly an Australian territory until its independence in 1975. The capital city is Port Moresby.

Papua New Guinea is bordered on the north by the Bismark Sea, on the east by the Solomon Sea, in the south by the Coral Sea, the Gulf of Papua, and the Torres Strait, and finally on the west by Irian Jaya. Neighboring countries are the Solomon Islands and Australia.

The island of Papua New Guinea is 462, 840 square kilometers. It is 25 times bigger than the island of Fiji. Most of the coastline is swampy and covered with mangrove trees. There are some active volcanoes on the northern coast. A series of mountains cross the interior of the country. If you are ambitious, you could try climbing the highest mountain point, Mt. Wilhelm. It rises to 4,499 meters! I don't think I could climb that high!

The climate is usually hot and humid with temperatures that range from 21-32 degrees centigrade. You should be prepared for lots of rain. Papua New Guinea receives almost 5,080 millimeters of rain each year!