Blogs from Hanga Roa, Easter Island, Chile, South America - page 2

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South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa June 17th 2014

Today was one of those travel days that I like to call Holy Shit days. Meaning that I catch myself saying Holy Shit, I'm actually here. It's that moment when all of those photos you've looked at suddenly come to life, and the real thing is right there in front of you. Alive. Real. Holy Shit. Today was that type of day pretty much from the get go. Antoine knocked on my door early in the morning with the news that he had my car ready for me. What made this so funny was how serious he was about it. I renting the car directly from him, and I get the feeling it's his prized possession. He wants me to take very good care of it. I think he even has a name for it. He ... read more
Getting Closer
There They Are!
Moai Close-Up

South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa January 21st 2014

At our arrival to the Easter Island airport, we immediately got to feel like we have left (continental) South America behind and arrived in South Pacific, as we were met by Keka, the owner of our guesthouse, placing flower leis on our necks in real southern island style :) Keka was great throughout our stay, always asking how we are, offering fruits, and being helpful with anything we needed. Her guesthouse Vaianny was also a very relaxing place; nice garden to sit in observing chickens walking around, good kitchen, peaceful nights, nice people - couldn't have been much better! We met three other couples , who were also traveling around the world taking pretty much the same route as we, from New Zealand to Tahiti to Easter Island to South America, obviously we are just doing ... read more
one morning we woke up before dawn to see moais at sunrise
sunrise
Anakena beach

South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa January 13th 2014

January 12, 13, 2014 Tour today to see other sites on Easter Island. We started our day with a visit to the quarry where the Moai were all made. Very interesting place. About 400 left here in various stages of creation. The largest, not finished, is 21 meters high, about 100 tonnes, and would have been the largest ever made. Moai were moved as far as 25 KM from here to various places on the Island. There is also a kneeling Moai here. The only one in Isla Pascua. Also visited the largest group, 15 statues, on one platform, next to the ocean. Very impressive. Following a good lunch we drove to the north coast of the island to see the site of the last statue to be pushed over. This was in about mid 1800’s. ... read more
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South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa January 11th 2014

January 10, 11 2014 Isla Pascua, Chile. Easter Island was first discovered by Europeans on an Easter Sunday. Now we know ! January 10,2014 Arrived from Santiago, Chile after lunch and had a free day to roam around this interesting place. The main town is small ( the whole island is under 6000 people ) Walked from our hotel to the center of town and on the way saw our first Moais. These are the stone statues the island is so famous for. Spent some time in town and checked out some local restaurants. Should be a very interesting 3 days here. January 11, 2014 This morning we were met by our guide and driver on a group tour to see some of the highlights of Easter Island. Today we visited the top of the large ... read more
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South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa December 26th 2013

Påskeøen - verdens natur og kultur arv - fredet ved Unisco og det forstår man godt. Scenariet er ikke mindre end fantastisk, bjergtagende, uforståeligt og helt igennem imponerende! Øen er en stor naturpark, med kun 2500 fastboende indbyggere. Øen er verdens mest isolerede sted, ligger 4000 km fra Sydamerika midt i Stillehavet - nærmeste naboer er Tahiti og New Zeeland. Statuer sa høje som.....og ingen ved endnu helt hvordan det lod sig gøre. Vi talte om at det faktisk var befriende at menneskeheden netop ikke har svar på alt. Vulkankratere som skabte øen - vandretur til øens højeste punkt med udsigt -"all around the Island" Drømmen gik i opfyldelse - tænk sig at Mette har "gemt" historien om Anders og ungerne på ekspedition for Onkel Joakim pa paskeøen i omkring 35 år........måske Mette skulle have kontaktet ... read more
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South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa May 6th 2013

Another historical mystery of Rapa Nui is the birdman cult. After the moai had lost their meaning and warfair broke out among the clans a new cult arose. Every year a birdman was picked who would rule the island's society. Thus peace could be re-established. The sacret place for the rituals of the birdman cult can still be visited today. And what a place! At the rim of the crater Rano Kau the Rapa Nui built a small village called Orongo. On one side you look into the collapsed crater of the volcano, 200 metres deep and filled with water. Its steep walls encircle about 1,5 kilometre and open up on one side to the open ocean. On the other side of the crater rim the cliff drops right into the sea, about 300 metres deep. ... read more
Motu Nui, Motu iti, Motu Kao Kao
Birdman petroglyph
Orongo sacrate village

South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa May 5th 2013

Our first encounter with the stone statues, moai, on Easter Island took place at Ahu Vinapu at the north coast of the island. Typically arranged on a platform called ahu there are several moai in a row that faces the land, looking inwards from the sea. As it often is with iconic landmarks that you have seen many times on (arranged) photographs, reality can be a little disappointing. Our fist thought: This is just a pile of stones! The moai here were laying on their faces, some had even moved away from the ahu. We learned later that all moai have been pushed from their platforms during warfares between the island's clans. The moai cult then stopped and the statues that stand upright today are restored. After a less convincing experience with a guide we rented ... read more
Most massive hairstyles in history
Closing in on The nursery
At Ranu Raraku

South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa May 4th 2013

The fascinating Rapa Nui (Easter Island), most remote inhabited place on earth, is our next stop. At least 3500 km to the neighbours it belongs to Chile thus Spanish is the official language. English works not that well. They also have another currency and are in a different time zone than Tahiti. Now we are 4 hours back again towards our own time. The island has a certain rough charm. The coasts are mostly steep and lined with the remains of volcanic eruptions. The waves are strong and make it impossible to go into the water almost everywhere. The views are however stunning, endless ocean wherever you look. The inland is mostly planes and cooled volcanoes right in the middle of them. Several hundred years ago the island was covered with palm trees but the islanders ... read more
West coast near Hanga Roa
West coast
North coast Rapa  Nui

South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa April 21st 2013

Ce matin, j’ai mis à nouveau le réveil et vous savez quoi ? Pour aller à la messe ! Oui, une première si on exclue mariages et baptêmes. Je vous rassure (ou pas d’ailleurs), mais ce qui m’a attirée, ce sont les chants pascuans. La cérémonie (classique) a duré 1 heure mais heureusement, elle a été entrecoupée de beaucoup de chants traditionnels sublimes qui donnent tout de suite une atmosphère particulière même si bien sûr je ne comprenais rien à ce qu’ils racontaient. Puis derniers préparatifs avant de reprendre l’avion pour Santiago. >PDJ : aucun regret d’être venue en dernière minute sur l’île de Pâques, cela valait le coup/coût ! **** http://youtu.be/_lOxKd_l6BU http://youtu.be/B85meE6ivQs http://youtu.be/ouiyXBowUoM... read more
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South America » Chile » Easter Island » Hanga Roa April 17th 2013

A nouveau courte nuit et longue attente à l’aéroport et puis, en milieu d’après-midi, nous survolons, après 5 heures au dessus de l’océan, un bout de terre, avec des collines vertes. Pour souhaiter la bienvenue, une fleur d’ibiscus et des gouttes de pluie, il faut dire que le ciel est bien nuageux. Un peu plus tard, nous aurons droit à la visite express par notre hôte de l’unique ville de l’île (quand même 5000 habitants), pour nous permettre de nous repérer un peu car il n’y a pas de nom de rue visible, ou pas de nom du tout. Et même en passant en voiture vite fait, je vois déjà les statues mythiques au bord de l’océan, et elles ne sont pas mises dans le village par l’office du tourisme, ce sont des vraies, magique ! ... read more
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