Rapa Nui

Unless you are Thor Heyerdahl, it's unlikely that you'll end up on Rapa Nui - Easter Island - just because you were in the neighbourhood. There are only two flights - one from Tahiti, and the other from Santiago de Chile. We came by the latter. It's a fascinating place, one of the most striking that we've been too. Just about everyone on the island lives in the town of Hanga Roa, the only town on the island. We didn't notice any other settlements, it was in fact the striking absence of other villages that was so noticeable.


It wasn't the town we were interested, though, it was the moai, the statues. This is Ahu Akivi, the only inland moai, on the slopes above Hanga Roa, and the only moai facing towards the ocean.


Food is pretty expensive on the island, as is, well, everything. We found the food pretty uninteresting, so best to stick with basics. The empanadas were pretty good though.


Pukao, described as either topknots or hats. Mined from a reddish coloured volcanic stone, found in one location, Puna Pau, separate from the quarry of Rano Raraku, literally on the other side of the island.


The church of Hanga Roa, where the priest, a Portuguese man, had spent several years in India, and immediately came out to greet us as we walked past the church.


The moai quarry at Rano Raraku. Moai of different sizes, states of completion, and positions. Absolutely eerie place, as it looks as if the entire place was abandoned all at once.


Ahu Tongariki, just below Rano Raraku, is the most numerous collection of moai on a single ahu (pedestal). This set was erected by a Japanese team as part of early conservation efforts.


To get around the island, we rented a pretty rickety, and not very waterproof Jeep. It rained pretty heavily on some days, but traffic was so minor - sometimes we'd go hours without seeing another vehicle, so R. gave it a shot. She's a mini-Andretti, I tells ya!


The only sandy beach on the island is Anakena, which is also the site of the first set of moai that were re-erected using traditional means. It's also one of the few that have the pakao or top knots on.


The library of Hanga Roa.


The Orongo village at the top of Rano Kau, center of the Tangata manu, or birdman cult.


Moto Nui, home of the sooty tern, and a central part of the birdman cult. Each year, each clan would nominate a participant in the birdman competition. From the Orongo village, which was perched at edge of a sheer, rocky cliff, the competitors would have to climb down some 800+ feet, swim to the island, find the egg of a sooty tern, and then race back to the Orongo village. Each year, many competitors would die from falling off the cliff, from drowning, or from being attacked by sharks! To the victor, as ever, go the spoils.


Unfortunately, back then, they didn't have the Toroko Disco, which can be a heaving place.