From Tahiti to Easter Island to Chile

---

Journal No. 44 4/22/06

About 15 days ago we were in French Polynesia. We first stayed in Papeete, Tahiti and it was very boring. The hotel had no cooling system and I didnt get any sleep. The next day we took a ferry to the island, Moorea. When we got our bags off, they were covered with fish guts. We took a bus to a hotel on the water and stayed there for 6 days. All I did was kayak and do school work. I would kayak to the Sheraton Hotel to eat or do internet. We left our hotel and went camping on another part of the island. There I went snorkeling and had a traditional polynesian dinner with poi, pig, fruit and fish. We returned to Papeete during the Easter Festival and watched polynesian dancers in the main square. We had to sleep in the airport and catch a 1:00 am flight to Easter Island.

Journal No. 45 4/26/06

A few days ago we arrived in Rapa Nui or Easter Island. It is famous for its large statues called moai. The moai are mad of stone (basalt , trachyte and red scarpie). Some of the moai were standing on alters. When the moai were first discovered by Europeans, they were all knocked down by the waring clans of the island.There are about 288 moai re-erected on the alters and about 887 moais on the island.

I noticed that all the moai had the same features. They all had long pointy noises, wide jaws, big ears, flat heads, thin lips and no eyes. Some had huge hats carved out of a red colored stone. I later learned that the hats were supposed to be hair, not hats.

I was impressed that the Rapa Nuis were so dedicated in making all the moai; there were so many of them. I personally liked the ones that were still in the mountain, half carved.

The moai were all facing towards the island rather than out to sea. They were supposedly statues of the ancestors of the rulers of Rapa Nui.

There are several theories on how they moved the stones to the alters. The most likely one is by Charles Love. He thought they used logs to roll the statues and in an experiment he was able to role a huge moai 500 meters in 2 minutes. Putting the hat on top is another story. They may have built ramps and rolled them up.

We flew on to Santiago, Chile from Easter Island.

We are now in Cuzco, Peru and are planning on being here for a month or more. We are renting an apartment.

NOW IS THE TIME TO COME AND VISIT!

---

Photos

Flying to Tahiti
We were excited to be traveling together as a family again!

Looking Across to Tahiti
The blue waters of Moorea.

Moorea
We met a Tahitian family on Moorea.

More of the Same
Moorea means same old, same old; white sandy beaches, palm trees, coral reefs and clear water.

Goodbye Moorea.
Last night in Moorea.

Open and Treeless
Easter Island is a very small island with lots of treeless fields. Horses run loose, while any cultivated areas are fenced off. There is a forested areas in the middle of the island; mostly eucalyptus trees.

Easter Island 1
The quarry were the carved statues came from.

E S 4
Half finished statue.

ES 9
Top-knot, red rock hair.

ES 10
White eyes out of a different stone.

ES 11
Crater; Rapa Nui is made up of several extinct volcanos.

ES 12
Easter Island is the belly boutton of the world. It is farther from inhabited land than any other place.

Comments

[meghan mcgowan]

Wow, this all looks so amazing! Every blog I get, gets my wheels turning to take a trip somewhere. Although Boulder is so wonderful, I feel like I'm living in a bubble when I see your pics. What an amazing experience. Are you sick of traveling yet, or could you do this forever?

[jim]

good blog, good pictures
nice work,Paris