You might know Irian Jaya by another name – perhaps Papua, West Papua, Indonesia Guinea or Western New Guinea, but you will have a mental image of the place, perhaps borne of a childhood dreaming of rainforest exploration and jungle tribes.

The Baliem Valley remains the focal point for adventurous travellers, an area of immense rainforest set in a central mountain range 1600 metres above sea level.

It’s a place where ‘koteka’ (penis gourds) are still worn on a daily basis, scientists discover new species of animals on a regular basis, and, allegedly, tribes of ‘uncontacted peoples’ still roam.