Easter Island

It was a 4:15 AM wakeup this morning as we needed to be in the lobby packed and bags taken to storage with the concierge. I think I was having flashbacks of oversleeping in Istanbul so we were ready really early and were the first of our group to be in the lobby.

We had a boxed breakfast and loaded the bus for our trip to the airport.

We are a group of 19 so checking Iin took a bit but we were at the gate close to 2 hours early.

As a side note, Easter Island makes you document your hotel and departure flight. They clearly welcome you coming but want to make sure you leave. They also restrict the number of visitors to 2,000 per day.

Our 9:10 AM departure was delayed and we didn't actually depart until a few minutes before 11 AM.

Surprisingly, our plane was a 787-8 with nine seats across. We are in the back of the plane. The legroom is not bad but the plane is older and all the cushioning in the seats have long since disappeared.

During the flight, I worked on finishing up my posts from our last cruise. I am hoping to be better on this cruise but without Patty's great descriptions or my sister's assistance, I am not very optimistic. But this cruise is not nearly as jam packed as the Adriatic and Mediterranean Cruise nor the Rhine River cruise.

This is the first cruise that Bob and I have taken without traveling companions. This may stretch my hermit tendencies.

We checked into the hotel. Our room is a lovely cabana.

We had a quick lunch before heading to our first site which is Ahu Tiva. This is the only Moari site that is inland. The Moari are ceremonial burial sites. Important tribes people are buried under the platforms and the Moari are placed on top of the burial site.

Next we headed back toward town to Tahai.

Martin, our guide, explained the history of the Island. There was a period of conflict between the tribes which was very bloody. The tribes even engaged in canabolism. Their thinking was that by eating their enemies they would obtain the enemies ' strength.

We observed a bunker used during this conflict.

We headed back to the hotel for a brief time to freshen up before dinner.

Dinner was at a quaint restaurant overlooking a spot where the locals were surfing and swimming. We had salad and an entrée of tuna.

Bob and I opted to skip the evening 's show and walk back from the restaurant. We went to the restaurant and had a beverage on the deck while watching the sunset. We think we made the best choice.Leggi altro