We are living in a security world, and I am a security girl

Milne Bay proudly boasts the reputation of "the safest place in PNG".

And, truly, I feel it.

But it's impossible to ignore that while it's comparatively safe, this is still PNG.

We live in a lovely house, in a lovely area. But still we have bars on all of our windows, locks on our bedroom doors and 24 hour security guards patrolling our street.

In saying that, I don't really notice it. The bars become just part of the scenery, the security guards are just friendly guys who we chat to in the street.

Things do go wrong here. Not often, but they do. When things do happen, it's the locals that get really upset about it. It's nice to see that it's not just something that is expected as it is in other areas. They are sad to see what is happening to their province, and quick to lay the blame on people coming in from other areas of the country (specifically, highlanders!).

I have found the local perception of, and response to, crime to be quite interesting.

In my first week here there was a particularly horrific event in which a junior police officer was shot dead by some criminals following a hold up.

The community was just absolutely devastated. But the blame wasn't laid on the criminals themselves. There was limited talk about retribution or anything like that. The response centred more around the sadness that services, the authorities, the administration had failed these people and they'd turned to crime as a result. For the most part, people weren't wishing harm on the young fellow who had masterminded the robbery, and in turn, the shooting, They were sending their prayers for him, that he would find peace and a life free from crime, and that his ultimate judgement would be fair.

It was horrible that these things happened and that people had been hurt, but it was humbling to see a community in mourning with such compassion and love for their fellow humans, even when they had strayed.

Living here, you are certainly afforded much more freedom than those in other areas of the country. But you still have to be mindful.

"Be alert, not alarmed. Walk with purpose. Think of plans B, C and D." Are the types of advice that we live by.

Your safety lies largely in your connections. I am really lucky to be working in the media because it means that my colleagues are very well connected, and through my affiliation with them have scores of people looking out for me. I know that if anything happened to me there would be hell to pay and it's really comforting to know that. Making friends who drive armoured vehicles and have bullet proof vests also helps :)