Hopity Hopity Hopity........

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Today was the first morning we had to set an alarm as our flights were at 09:30. Michele and I both are early risers, and there was NO way I would miss my flight to Easter Island! wootwoot!

Vladimir picked us up for the last time and he and Mauricio drove us to the airport. Chile has not decided if a flight to Easter Island is Domestic or International (go figure) so Vlad came inside with us as checking in for these flights is a challenge. The self check in kiosks didn't work with our tickets, but the agents kept sending us away, so thankfully Vlad helped us out. He was told we would go through international, meaning my bottle of wine (grin) in my carry on could not be brought through security, but we got checked in nonetheless. We parted from Vlad, and then found out that we were actually going through domestic after all, so wine would be brought. Score! Everything is so much more expensive on E.I. that we wanted to be prepared.

Aside from me fidgeting in my seat and the Brazilian couple showing us their version of soft porn in the seats in front of us (public displays of affection with them are SO common) the flight was uneventful. Michele would look out the window every so often and simply say "Calgary." Meaning flying over the ocean, you could be anywhere, so our catch phrase was "Calgary." 4200 KM west we went, about 5 hours gate to gate. WELCOME TO EASTER ISLAND.

I hopped and hopped and hopped on the tarmac while the rest of the tourists took photos of them in front of the plane (um, can you tell where you are?) while Michele slowly walked away from me! Baggage collection was a bit of a gong show, lots of locals bringing back everything plus the kitchen sink and other small animals. We met our local guide outside, Ferida who was born in Santiago, raised in Germany and now has lived in Easter Island for the past 7 years. He studied to be a park ranger and had worked on the island prior as well, so we knew he would be a wealth of information on this "belly button of the earth" we had just landed on.

Ferida took us to our lodgings: Hotel Gomero for the next 4 nights. YES - finally no packing and unpacking, we were both so excited after never being anywhere more than 2 nights this was luxury! We had the afternoon to ourselves, Ferida gave us an orientation drive around the town so we could go wandering on our own. We had a beautiful room, overlooking the courtyard filled with flowers and a small pool and a large deck and lounge chairs. We were living the life baby, living the high life!

Easter Island is small, if there was a ring road you could walk it in a day. Inhabitants are roughly 5,000 people plus tourists, that mostly comprise of Europeans (Germans, French), Japanese, Brazilians and Chileans. The only way to fly is either via Tahiti or Santiago, both over 4,000 km away. I could spend the next 5,000 words just talking about the Island and it's history, mystery and legends; suffice to say no one is 100% sure who inhabited it first (Latin American's or Polynesians) but the going theory is the Polynesians. I must say the influence is strong in the local language, culture and feeling of the island. You knew you were not "in" Latin America anymore. And Rapa Nuians don't consider themselves Chilean and vice versa. Bit of an irony there (read back on domestic vs international flight?) but politically Easter Island is considered part of Chile.

After settling in, we went for a wander around the island and the town, getting pleasantly lost, but ultimitely always knowing which way our hotel was. It's virtually impossible to get lost here, unless in your own thoughts while you stare at the magnificent heads overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

We had homemade empanadas at a local shop, did some window shopping, saw our first heads, and just soaked up the scenery. Later that evening we went for dinner on the other 'main' street (there really are only 2) and randomly chose a restaurant that advertised some veggie options and had a patio. Everything is small, rustic and nothing moves quickly here. Dinner is generally a 2 hour excursion, just for one plate and a pop, be prepared to relax. Best part about our dinner this evening was our waiter was topless, handsome and sweaty! We kept joking about our stud of a waiter, he even bent over, put his hands on our shoulders and said "Bon Apetite" in a very Rico Swave voice! OMG - it was all we could do to not burst out laughing!

Eventually we got our bill and paid, Ned with her left overs stuffed in her pockets for the local dogs. Lots of local dogs were homeless, yet everyone seemed to feed them, but no one seemed to own them. Most were healthy looking, and friendly, while I didn't pet them, I did leave my left overs every night in the park for one of them to find!

We went to watch the magnificent sunset overlooking the open air museum and the Moai Heads. It was obviously a popular things to do, and I could understand why. I wished for a more dramatic sunset, but with the landscape it was still hard to not be awe stricken. I. Was. On. Easter. Island. Seriously! My heart was glowing, I had a huge smile on my face, the weather was perfect, and I wantched the sun set over the Pacific Ocean slowly going behind a Moai Head. Breathless, and for once, I was silent.

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Photos

Welcome to Rapa Nui
Main Street, Hanga Roa

Easter Island
Local housing

Easter Island
Gorgeous Coast Line

Easter Island
Sunset