Making Lime for Buai (Betelnut)

Chewing Buai or Betelnut (Areca catechu) is a national pastime in Papua New Guinea.

It gives a mild narcotic effect that briefly gives a small 'up' while also allowing small issues like hunger to be 'hidden' for a while.

The fruit from the Betelnut palm is chewed over nearly all of South Asia, the Pacific and even in East Africa.
Although there are many different ways and additions in chewing, there is one essential addition and that is Lime. It is needed for the alkalinity to enable the chemical release of the active ingredients and thus the distinctive red saliva juices!

While at Aluki village the local production of lime was seen.
Collection of mussel shells down at the beach gives a nice soup or stew but the shells are more important!

They are washed and dried, then stacked together with firewood.

The fire is lit from the top and gradually burns down turning the calcium carbonate of the shells into calcium oxide (lime). The shell pieces are collected and stored with this herb (had a smell like marjoram/basil) for a couple of weeks to make it 'sweet'.
It is then crushed and put into bottles. This stack would last them 'a couple of months'.
There is a 'mustard' fruit that is grown. It is this that is dipped into the lime continually and added to the betelnut that is being chewed.
I would just like to add a couple of pictures that Marilyn has found that show the terrible cost that chewing is taking on some of those that chew. It is causing massive extra costs to the health systems of many countries, especially PNG which cannot afford to treat the conditions that are not caused by lifestyle choices and are thus totally preventable. (to be added later)