Easter Island part 1

My next destination was Easter Island, a real bucket list item for me. Easter Island, or Rapa Nui as it is now called, is one of the most remote inhabited islands on Earth. It was inhabited by the Polynesians around 800 AD. After a 6 hour flight from Santiago I landed in a tiny airport in the small town of Hanga Roa. I was staying in an amazing hostel right by the sea, where I could sit outside and watch sunset. The town was small and chilled, with hardly any traffic and with original moai dotted around.

Moai are the stone statues that Easter Island is famous for. There are 887 statues that were carved from 1100 to 1680. Each moai represents a deceased leader of a tribe on the island, and they were created as a form of ancestor worship. They typically face inland to symbolise that they watch over their tribe. One of the exceptions is the site of Ahu Akivi, where 7 moai face the sea, supposedly to help sailors navigate to the island. According to legend the Polynesian king dreamt of Rapa Nui, and sent scouts to look for it. When they found the island, 7 of the scouts stayed behind awaited the arrival of the king. The moai at Ahu Akivi are meant to respesnt these scouts. They also have an astrological purpose, as they exactly face sunset during spring equinox.

Exploring the island is facinating as you see many moai in various states of repair. All of the moai had fallen down, and conservation efforts are gradually restoring many of them to their original glory. There are also other important archeological sites to see such as old villages made of stone, and the area where the top knots that some of the moai wear are quarried and carved.

I also visited Orongo, an old village on the rim of the extinct Rano Kau volcano where the tangata manu, or bird man ritual took place. Leaders on the island would each sponsor a strong man to race to an island off the coast of Rapa Nui to collect an egg from a type of sea bird called a sooty tern, swim back with it and climb a sheer cliff with the egg still intact. The leader of the winner would then shave their hair and be declared tangata manu, a sacred person that lives in a ceremonial house, receives food and gifts, and doesn't have to do anything other than eat and sleep for the next year.

Aside from visiting these interesting places, I enjoyed the town of Hanga Roa which included watching the turtles in the bay, watching sunset with the horses, stray dogs, and moai, and trying some of the excellent Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and incredibly fresh ceviche.Read more