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Published: March 7th 2007
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Ocean Rainbow
How lucky were we to catch a rainbow arching right over the maoi? A beautiful blue sky greeted us this morning when we got up for the start of an epic hike around the perimeter of the island. We had considered joining a tour but without a bagful of cash to pay for it, we opted to try and see some of the sights ourselves on foot.
We set off along the shoreline and made our way past the five Maoi we met yesterday wondering if we might hook up with Gomez, our stray dog friend, again. Just as we approached the five Maoi, the skies turned dark and we were hit by a sudden heavy rain shower. We had been warned about how quickly the weather can change here so thankfully we were armed with umbrellas and raincoats and didn't get too drenched. When the clouds cleared, the sun reappeared and cast a gorgeous rainbow across the water, right behind the row of 5 statues. We couldn't believe how lucky we were to be there just at that moment to catch such an awesome sight.
Alas, we couldn't track down Gomez so it was just the two of us that made our way along the shore for a trek in the
Black Rock
The beautiful volcanic coastline of Easter Island. wilderness. The rugged black rocks rose higher and higher as we walked along the water's edge until dropping away in a sudden series of sheer cliff faces. We picked up the dusty dirt road and followed it for a while until we were tempted away by a track through the grassland leading towards the hills. The grassland proved to be trickier to walk across than it looked with loose volcanic rock strewn about all over the place and hidden underfoot in the long grass. After an hour of walking inland, it seemed like we had made very little progress so we hiked back over to the road and tried to work out where we were. Our map wasn't very clear but we could tell from the road layout that we were a long way from where we had expected to be after walking for over 4 hours. Sadly that meant biting the bullet and heading back the way we came - we had obviously vastly underestimated how big the island is from the basic map in our guide book.
Back at the hostel we wondered what to do. We knew we couldn't really afford to take a tour but
In the Undergrowth
Much trickier terrain than it looks. we also didn't want to miss out on seeing more of the island's cool Maoi - it was a dilemma. While Glynn cooled off in the shade of our room, I wandered back into Hanga Roa to see if I could find a half-day tour we could join. I had no luck on that front as the half day tours only go to the 5 Maoi just outside town which you can walk to anyway and of course the full day tour had left hours ago. Someone suggested I take a taxi so I flagged a couple of cabs down and haggled for the best deal to take us to Rano Rakeru and Ahu Tongariki which worked out to be US$34 (about £19). It was more than I had been hoping to pay so I let the taxi go and went to join Glynn in our room.
While I took a shower to cool off, I kept mulling over in my mind about the price of the taxi. On one hand it's a lot of money for us to spend in one go but on the other, when would we ever have this opportunity again? I couldn't imagine we
Rano Rakeru
A lone maoi keeps watch over 'The Nursery'. would ever be able to afford to visit Easter Island again in the future - we could only go this time because we used up a couple of our One World flights instead of forking out around £400 each just to fly from Santiago. By the time I stepped out of the shower, I had decided to take the taxi tour and just needed to persuade Glynn to come with me.
On the main road, I waved down another taxi (there are plenty here), negociated the price again and we were off. We sped off along the main road and out of Hanga Roa where after about 5km we were stunned to see a sign saying that it was a further 13km to Rano Rakeru, the volcano from which all the Moai statues were carved. Thank God we hadn't walked after all because it was much, much further than we thought it would be. Our driver was called Noberto and he agreed to wait for us for 45 minutes while we went off to explore the famous birthplace of the Maoi, affectionately known as The Nursery. The volcano itself was much bigger than we were expecting but the thrill
Maoi Galore
This giant head spotting lark is easy, says Jude. of being here was apparent the moment we stepped our of the car: there were just loads and loads of giant heads everywhere!
We raced up the slopes to take a closer look at the groups of Maoi scattered about the hillside and couldn't believe that we could walk right up to them all and even touch them - there were no signs or rangers to tell you otherwise. Some of the heads were even more massive than the ones we had seen near town and there were also some that must have measured at least 10 metres in length that hadn't been fully carved out of the volcano yet, like an ancient piece of unfinished art. Almost all of the upright statues faced out to sea though a couple had fallen over onto their backs or onto their faces. There were also a few wonky ones standing at extreme angles that made the whole scene look almost comical. Climbing around the slopes was immense fun and there was no doubt that the taxi fare was well worth it already.
If it hadn't been for the fact we had both forgotten to reapply sunscreen this afternoon, we would
Chinese Whispers
Glynn shares a secret with one of the locals. He seems to be a good listener... have lingered around the volcano for a lot longer. As it was, the sun was beating down and we could feel ourselves frying so we beat a retreat back to the taxi after the agreed 45 mins and travelled the short distance to Ahu Tongariki, a line of 15 restored Maoi next to the ocean. The row of statues had previously been damaged by a big tsunami in 1960 and left scattered in pieces far and wide. In 1990, a Japanese company came over and put the Maoi back together and the sight of so many statues standing together is amazing. Every statue has been carved slightly differently and they all vary in height too. Some of the topknots (like hats) haven't been replaced yet and are just lying about in the field with all the horses and rows but even these stones are pretty damn big too!
On our way back to Hanga Roa, we definitely felt that taking the taxi had been worth every penny and we were both glad we made the effort to see just how magical a place Easter Island is. Although we've only had a very brief stay, we've certainly had a good
Bearded Brothers
Glynn gets to stroke two beards for the price of one. taste of this Polynesian paradise. If you should ever get the chance to come here, I can certainly recommend it but bring lots of money and plenty of camerafilm and you'll be sure to have an adventure you'll never forget.
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