Hanga Roa

Our trip to Rapa Nui was absolutely amazing. It was a must needed break from school (we don't get a spring break, so the semester just seems to go on forever.) It was Iván's first time on a plane, and I personally think he got pretty spoiled. The flight was about 5 hours, all of them over the ocean (obviously). We had seat back TVs and they gave us a full on meal.

Here's our airplane. There are not "gates" at the airport, just one long strip of tarmac. That's because there's not a whole lot of air traffic: there is one flight from Peru, one flight from Santiago, and one flight from Tahiti. And not every flight goes every day. It is probably the most relaxed airport I have ever seen. You can practically walk up to where the planes taxi and take-off/land. And, of course, we had to do the old walk out on the tarmac and climb up the stairs to the plane in this airport.

 When we arrived, we were greeted by this dance show! Pretty cool, a typical dance to welcome us to the island. I think we just got lucky, because there was someone from the government on our plane so they wanted to show off a little. Rapa Nui is part of the Polynesian chain of islands, like Hawaii, but while the decorate with flowers in Hawaii (for example, their skirts and what not are made with tropical materials), in Rapa Nui they use a lot more feathers (not their outfits). The climate is also not tropical, like in Hawaii, but a lot more dry. However, it is possible to note some similarities (I think hypothetically they both stem from the same ancestors).

This is one of two fake moai that they had at the camping we stayed at. We were greeted at the airport with flower leis plus flowers for our hair (for the ladies), hence, the decoration. After wearing them ourselves, we attached them our tent to decorate for the rest of week.

Since we arrived in the afternoon, we decided to explore the town and the nearby coastline on the first day. Of course, I was pretty stoked when we came around the first bend in the road and I could spot the first set of real moai. (Extra points if you can spot them in the picture.) We put on swimsuits in hopes of having a quick dip into the water--even though the best beach is on the other side of the island, there are two swimming spots in town--and headed out on the road. Where we were staying was on the outskirts of town. It was about a 15 minute walk to the town center along the coast or a 10 minute walk if you walked through town on the main street. We usually opted for the coastline because it was really beautiful, and we were on vacation, so we weren't in any sort of hurry to get anywhere. 

Here's the main road that went along the coast. We got to know it fairly well, walking to and from town. And, of course, we brought a soccer ball :)

These were the first real moai we encountered (not the same ones pictured above). They are right in the middle of town (well, sort of, I mean, there on the coast in the middle of town). These two are a bit more worn down than a lot of the other ones, but it was extremely exciting to have our first encounter with a real moai after reading about them for months before our trip.

This is the main little bay where everyone parks there boats (hence, all the brightly colored boats). It's also one of the main swimming spots in town because it has a mini-beach and the water is nice and calm. I only went into the water for a few minutes before wimping out because it was fairly cool and the temperature outside was getting colder as well.

After hanging out at the beach for a little bit and seeing that part of town, we headed to other end of town where there are several ahu (moai platforms). There are 3 ahu--one with 6 moai and 2 with one moai each. The one that is pictured above is the only moai on the island that still has eyes. Apparently at one point, most of them had eyes. However, most of their eyes have fallen out by now because they are rather fragile (made out of coral). I think I like them better without eyes anyways, it's like they're always watching you when they have them...creepy. Oh, and most of them used to have the "hat" on their heads as well, but a lot of them have fallen off/were never replaced by the archaeologists when they were fixing up the moai. There is a debate about what the "hats" actually represent, but more on that later at the "hat" factory. 

Of course, we decided to stay for sunset since the sun sets right behind the 6 moai. It was a pretty amazing sight. I really liked this ahu. Just sitting in front of it and looking out at the moai and the ocean and thinking. It was pretty peaceful. I also like how on this ahu there are moai of all different states of repair/disrepair (however you want to look at it). And, how you can tell that each one is unique in how it looks.

Here's a picture of the whole complex. The nearest moai is the one with eyeballs, the farthest ones are the 6 together. And, you can kind of see the town in the distance.

Ever since our first day arriving on the island I fell in love with it. The people are very nice (although I've heard if you try and stay they can become not-so-nice), and the whole island is so calm and laid back, but at the same time everyone works really hard at what they do. It never seems like anyone's in a  hurry and they just take things as the come.