...then the ancestors came back and sat down for a chat

---

It took five hours to fly from Santiago to Easter Island. The name of the island is Isla de Pascua in Spanish, but was known as Te Pito O Te Henua (navel of the world) to islanders in the past, and is usually called Rapa Nui today.

As we approached Rapa Nui we circled around the tiny island, giving me a panoramic view. Then we landed. As the plane turned around on the runway, I noticed that the runway seemed to go on forever, disapearing over the horizon. I thought to myself; "Welcome to the Space Shuttle emergency airstrip."

I am not joking. NASA built the runway at Mataveri airport, Rapa Nui, so that the Space Shuttle would have an emergency landing strip in the middle of the Pacific. That would be quite a picture - the shuttle coming in to land over the famous Moai (statues) of the island.

When we got off the plane, we were met by the owners of various residencia. Generally the residencia or cabanas are owned by islanders. So I placed myself in the hands of Cecilia, who took me to Residencia Chez Cecilia. Her price card showed a price of 24,000 pesos but she gave an instant discount and charged 20,000 pesos a night (about $US40).

I spent much longer on the island than most people. Some people only stay for 3 days. I think you need at least 5-7 days on Rapa Nui. I was there for 13 nights.

Rapa Nui is the worlds most isolated inhabited island. The Polynesians who arrived here sometime between 400 and 800 AD developed one of the worlds most extraordinary cultures. They also developed architectural and monumental stone statues (Moai); a unique un-deciphered script (Rongo Rongo) and astronomical knowledge. That is the islands true mystery, the rise of a complex culture in extreme isolation.

Rapa Nui is triangular in shape, with sides of 16, 17, and 24 kms long with a maximum width of 12 kms. The island rises 3,000 metres above the ocean floor. It was created by a large number of volcanic eruptions. The three main volcanoes are Poike, Ramu Kau and Maunga Teravaka. Maunga Teravake is the highest volcanoe at 525 metres above sea level. Where it is reputed that you can see the curvature of the earth. Certainly, you can see how isolated Rapa Nui is from the top of that mountain.

Although the island is isolated and only has a population of 4,000 it doesn't lack modern facilities. The only settlement is Hanga Roa. It is a sprawling tropical village, which has restaurants, hotels, residencias, internet cafes, dive centres, supermarkets and an ATM (cash machine). You can even use your cellphone on the island. If you do go to Rapa Nui the ATM doesn't accept Visa credit cards. It only takes MASTERCARD or Cirrus.

Tourism has increased dramatically in recent years. From 1970 - 1979 only 700 people visited, but according to an article in the Santiago Times there were 48,000 visitors in 2005. That is in itself a problem. It may seem that I am being hypocritical. After all, I am part of the problem. It is not just those other "unwashed tourists" who have visited the place. Rapa Nui is a small island with a fragile ecology, culture and historical sites. Too many people can damage all that. The most virtuous form of tourism is not to travel at all, but to stay at home and be a virtual tourist on travelblog! Then you will not be responsible for damaging things that can not be replaced.

The tragedy of the oceanic islands lies in the uniqueness, the irreplaceability of the species they have developed by the slow processes of the ages. In a reasonable world men would have treated these islands as precious possessions, as natural museums filled with beautiful and curious works of creation, valuable beyond price because nowhere in the world are they duplicated.

(Rachael Carson)

When I was on the island I was told of a plan to build a casino, which seems very inappropriate. A tour guide also told me that there is a limit to the number of tourists that should be allowed. The island lacks resources, too many tourists would exhaust the limited water supplies. The Santiago Times newspaper quoted Mario Taki, who is a Rapa Nui fisherman and schoolteacher. He also serves on the council of elders. The newspaper claims he said that the plans for a casino would bring

the instantaneous destruction of the island as we know it.

It could damage the balance between cultural tourism and preservation, replacing it with a much more crass form of tourism. If you want to know more about Easter Island I would recommend the website of the Easter Island Foundation. Their mission is to promote the

conservation and protection of the fragile cultural heritage of Easter Island and other Polynesian islands.

(http://islandheritage.org/sitemap.html)

So what did I do on the island? I swam on the beach, went snorkelling and visited all the main sites 3 or 4 times. Despite the number of times I visited various sites, each time I went I noticed something different. At one point I even ended up as an informal guide. As I had already visited the sites I was able to guide 2 Canadians and an Englishwoman around the main sites. I shared a car with Bob and Vera, the Canadians and Adele. I saved them some time navigating as I had already been around the island several times on foot, on a push bike and on a scooter. Also on the last Saturday night I had a long session with Bob and Vera. We talked and drank beer and wine from 5pm till 2am. My friends Dorian and Kasia from Leeds would recognize the scenario. When I lived in Leeds Dorian would just ring and say "More Booze!"

---

Photos

Tahai Complex at sunset
Ahu Vai Uri. There are boat houses, a wharf, canoe ramps, caves and stone circles in the area

Ahu Tongariku
The largest Ahu on the island with 15 Moai. Excluding the pukao (hats on the top of the statues), the 15 Moai on this Ahu are 5.6 to 8.7 metres high and weigh 40 to 88 tons

Rano Raraku stone quarry and volcano.
This Moai is in the process of being carved out of the side of the volcano

Birdman Islands
The islands of Motu Kau Kau, Motu Iti and Motu Nui seen from the the ceromonial village of Orongo.

Orongo village
This was the centre of the birdman cult.

Island of Motu Nui
This picture was taken on a snokeling trip.

Rana Kau Volcano
The village of Orongo was built next to the volcanic caldera, overlooking cliffs down to the sea.

Abandoned Moai (statue) near Ahu Tangariki
This Moai was never erected as it has no eye sockets. The eyes were finished on site.

Moai Tukuturi at the Rano Raraku stone quarry
This Moai is not typical. It is kneeling. It is probably an earlier form.

Standing Moai at Rano Raraku.
Statues were stood up in pits for finishing. They have been partially buried by the passage of time.

Comments

[Cessna152]

Found your blog for the first time yesterday. I've now just finsished reading th whole thing. Amazing adventure! And the image that will stay with me most is one of you in a dodgy hotel in Chad, sharing a bed with a bunch of cockroaches. Nice!