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Published: February 10th 2023
A note from Merry Jo:
As children we see things that leave an impact on us for life. Our imaginations can run wild after seeing a photograph or hearing a story. How we process that information depends on our creative side and the imagery created with our minds. I remember very distinctly sitting on the floor of the den in my childhood home five decades ago looking at multiple National Geographic magazines. One that stood out featured photos of the carved stones on Rapa Nui often referred to as Easter Island. I knew someday I would arrive in this mysterious land that is isolated from the world. To get there you fly to Santiago, Chile and then fly 2200 miles (5 hours) over the ocean to this remote island. As I walked down the airplane staircase towards the tarmac emotion filled me a tear slowly ran down my cheek. If you dream it…. it can come true.
This island and “special state” of Chile actually is known by three names: the familiar “Easter Island,” which was coined by Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen in 1722 when he discovered the island on…what else…Easter Sunday. As an aside, Roggeveen gained credit for
discovering Bora Bora and Samoa. The island is also known by its Spanish name “Isla de Pascua,” which is the Spanish name for the island. The third name of the island is the local one, “Rapa Nui,” which is also the name of the people and the language. We like this one best.
Rapa Nui is incredibly remote as islands go. The nearest settlement of any kind is Pitcairn Island (pop. 50) which lies more than 2000 km away. The nearest continental point away is in Chile, almost 2200 km away. That, dear readers is the ultimate definition of remote. Find a map and see for yourself. They are back to having daily flights from Santiago. At one time there were three flights a day pre-pandemic.
We enjoy visiting countries during celebrations and festivals as it gives us a deeper dive into the culture and history of the people. In doing research on Rapa Nui, we discovered their annual cultural festival took place the first two weeks of February so our fate was sealed that our trip must coincide with the Tapati Festival. The Rapa Nui are of Polynesian descent who navigated the seas from Tahiti to
the shores of this land about a thousand years ago and in modern times have ties to Chile. The festival celebrates the first Polynesian settlers and their king Hotu Matu’a and has been going on for about 40 years. Chile declared the island to be a National Park in 1935, and in 1996 UNESCO designated the island a World Heritage Site. Rapa Nui has a rather complex relationship with Chile, having gained full citizenship in the 1960’s. The relationship they have with Chile is somewhat similar to the one between the U.S. and Puerto Rico and yet very different.
The owners of the B&B sent a pick up truck to pick us up at the airport and a brief tour of the town. We were able to see where the festival activities would take place, encouraged us to visit the local cemetery and viewed a few recommended restaurants. We also purchased our National Parks pass, which allows entry to all the sites. Once we settled into our home for the next few nights we headed out for ceviche and local beer. Our next few days were filled with ancient and sacred sites, fresh seafood, great conversation with the locals
and the enjoyment of the Tapati Festival.
A few of the festival relay races and boat races take place during the day around 3pm at various locations. The majority of the events, the food and trinket vendors and performances take place near the center of town on the coast and began around 8pm and lasted until midnight. Naps were required a couple of days to fully enjoy the events. Part of the reason for this was that we are more mature travelers, staying up later at night and the other is that a certain rooster would awaken us in the wee hours well before sunrise.
Our guide Claudio filled our heads with ancient stories of his Polynesian culture as we enjoyed our first day on the island visiting the key sites of Vaihu, Akahanga, Rano Raraku, the well known Tongariki, Te pito kura and Anakena. It was key to gain an understanding of the people who inhabit this island, how they got here and the unique phases of history that molded them into the people and place they are today.
Most people who have heard of Easter Island associate the island with the large unique rock statues.
These statues, reaching up to 20 meters are called Moai and some 900 of them were completed by the end of the 17
th century. When you visit the quarry where these impressive carvings were created it can be mind boggling to understand the process to create, awareness of the basic tools available, and visualize the process to get them to stand and move them to their sacred location on the island. The island believes in conservation and preservation not restoration. In many instances around the island, you will see Moai that were never completed and never will be. It is important to leave them in their natural state to present more accurate picture. The recent fires on the island did leave some damage but the plant life has grown back already. Damage to some of the Moais occurred, but most were unaffected.
Easter Island is a unique and starkly beautiful landscape with three volcanic craters, lava formations, brilliant blue water, beaches, low rolling hills and cattle farms. Its triangular shape is measured at about 15 miles by 8 miles in size. The main attraction here are the enigmatic 30+ foot tall statues. After three days of hiking and
touring, we rented a car and went off to enjoy the beach with our friends Dez and Humberto who we are traveling with on this trip. It provided us with a great down day at a most attractive beach.
While some may have this image of a Polynesian island with its serene setting and peaceful time, there was a period in Rapa Nui’s past where the various tribes on the island did not get along. As all over the world people strive for power, food and resources. The angst between the tribes caused wars and during this time most of the stones were toppled according to historians. As a side note, one of the main researchers in our lifetime was the well-known Thor Heyerdahl, who was famous for his voyage on the Kon-Tiki and his research of the Polynesian culture. His contributions to the understanding of the Rapa Nui people were quite helpful.
This island used to have many palm trees and at a point in history the value of these trees was not understood, and all were destroyed. In recent years a few trees were brought from Tahiti, but they are not in abundance. Historically, the largest
Beautiful Islands off Shore
Part of the Birdman Competitionpopulation on the island reached nearly 10,000. Currently there are about 8,000 residents. At one time these people were almost exterminated as the population went as low as 115 people in the late 1800’s when many were sold as slaves to the Chilean people, only to have some returned to the island where they infested the remaining natives with diseases they had acquired while in Chile. The population was decimated, but slowly recovered.
Sacred history…. The birdman cult is another fascinating aspect of the Rapa Nui, an extinct religion where the bird played a central role. Every year, a competition would take place in which four noblemen were selected by prophets to retrieve the first egg of the season from a nearby island. Rather than do it themselves, the noblemen would choose a servant to climb down the treacherous cliff face and swim towards the island. Many died in the process, but upon returning with the egg, the winner allowed his master to achieve the illustrious title of
Tangata Manu(birdman). This newly entitled birdman was considered sacred and given a special hut in which he should do nothing more than eat and sleep for the next 12 months.
Crater View
Rapa Nui has so much to offer. One of the most fascinating aspects of these ancient people was the innovation of mulching methods and crop protection using local volcanic stones to ensure proper irrigation and a healthy crop. They were very resourceful in using the same volcanic rocks to build chicken coops to protect their animals from theft. They houses were used for sleeping only and daily life was all outside.
As we do all around the world, we went to the local grocery for supplies and they are short in variety and quantity. Fresh fruit stands are in strong supply throughout town. Life on this island presents challenges as you don’t just go down the street to buy a car or furniture. In modern times these items are ordered online and flown in at a cost of 4,000 pesos per kilo for shipping.
Horses and cows roam free so be cautious as you are driving around the island. Education and healthcare are provided on the island and locals fly to Santiago for healthcare emergencies, complex medical care and higher learning at the university. Locals do not pay income or property taxes. The island was closed for 2 ½ years during COVID and
just reopened in August of 2022. As we’ve traveled around the world, we’ve seen small towns or isolated areas where the young people have left for university and not returned. We found it interesting that a good number of young people return to Rapa Nui after university. That speaks well for the quality of life.
Twice we visited the iconic statues featured in many famous photos. Once during mid-day and once at sunrise. We recommend you do the same. Another day of touring the island took us to the crater and navel of the world where we are told north on a compass becomes disoriented when holding it over the stone. We viewed historic settlements to gain a better understanding of the life of these ancient people throughout the years. We encourage you to take the hike to the caves if you want to see a bit more of the island.
This was our first trip traveling with our friends Dez and Humberto. We met Dez when we were working in California about a decade ago. The friendship has grown over the years and we decided to travel together. We have had a wonderful time and meshed well.
We are eagerly planning future trips.
LATAM Airlines: Flights from Santiago reopened in August 2022. When we booked our flights they were only flying in twice a week. Now there are daily flights. Prior to COVID there were two or three flights daily.
National Parks Pass: You can apply on line (which we had difficulty with as is it is Spanish only or pick it up in town at the Tourist Office. It took 5 minutes to obtain. The pass is good for 10 days and must be kept with you at all times. Since the island reopened, they require a guide with you when visiting the sacred sites. Keep a copy of your passport with you as they check it from time to time. A photocopy of the passport is sufficient.
Where we stayed: Hare Henua Bed & Breakfast – a small quaint family owned and operated Bed & Breakfast. Well run and comfortable – kindness. Located across from the Super Market and easy location for walking to town. From the moment we made the reservation Carolina (responds quickly via What’s App +56 9 9091 1340)was contacting us to see how she could assist with ours,
Boat Races
Tapati Festival Activity car rentals and information for the island. She sent us the Tapati Festival schedule once it was published. They assisted us in renting a car for the day so we could have a relaxed beach day and explore on our own. It’s not every place you can swim in the bay while looking at Moai Statutes!
Our Guide: Claudio Tucki – excellent guide who speaks Rapa Nui, Spanish, English and French fluently. We highly recommend using this exceptional guide. We were with him for 3 days. He has a clean and comfortable vehicle. He provided non-stop information, history, local lore and answered all questions. In our opinion he was far superior to other guides who we passed along the way who didn’t seem to provide the level of information we were experiencing. (available via What’s App. +56 9 8759 2221). ctctucki@hotmail.com
We signed up for the following tours:
- Full day exploration of the island and major Moai’s.
- The Caves hike which was exceptional.
- We went back to Tonariki for sunrise. We highly recommend sunrise!
- Birdman Tour: which takes you to one of the craters and other significant sacred
sites on the island.
Other options: Hiking or horseback to the highest point on the island, scuba diving, boat rides and Stargazing.
****
We absolutely recommend you visit during the Tapati Festival to experience their pride, heritage, dancing, singing, relay races, body art and string competitions.
Recommended Restaurants: they have very good food on the island La Taverne du Pecheur
Topa Ra’a
Ira Bar & Bistro
Ariki o te Pana’
Takeo Restaurant
Taina Pizza
Te Moai Sunset
Te Moana
Opinion: Before we went to Rapa Nui people asked why we were staying on the island 6 nights as they heard you could see the island in two days. Generally, we travel slower than others to immerse into the culture. In this case limited flights were being booked and we didn’t want to miss their cultural festival. Yes, you can see it in very busy 2 days. We would recommend 4 nights to take the 3 days of tours we did and possibly others. We didn’t have any trouble enjoying our last two days on the island. As expected they have weak and intermittent internet on this isolated
island.
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Michael Huffman
non-member comment
Wow!
The racing apparel and the dancing would have me there tomorrow if I could catch a flight :-). After spending a month in both Samoas I can definitely say that these folks look physically very different from that other Polynesian culture.