Easter Island And All Its Secrets
Easter Island is famed for archaeological sites, including nearly 900 monumental statues called moai, created by inhabitants during the 13th–16th centuries.
January 21, 2014
Easter Island, Chile
Each time someone would ask Bert which country would he like to see on this cruise, his answer was “Easter Island.”
As for me, I also wanted to visit this isolated island because of the strange “Moai” (Mo eye) statues, scattered around the coast. Their National Park which was opened in 1935, comprises more than a third of the island, and nearly all the remainder belongs to Chile. Easter Islanders, (or Rapa Nui), said that the statues walked! Archaeologists are still trying to figure out how.
It took us three and a half days of cruising after we left Callao (Lima), Peru. At times we were in ocean depths of more than 14,000 feet.
When we left Peru, our Captain announced, “We are now sailing towards our nemesis, Easter Island,”
Apparently, last year during the World Cruise, only a few people were able to land and they had to call off the tender service. Two tender boats had some smashed glass, and people got soaking wet because of the swell. They also had to position the tender boats side by side, docking style and people had to transfer from one boat to the next.
Easter island has a certain reputation: it is arguably one of the most isolated islands in the world and no doubt a very challenging Island to live on, and visit. It is roughly triangular in shape, with a volcano in each corner. It is subtropical, fertile and approximately 24 km long by 12 km wide. But today, luck was on our side and it was a perfect day. The weather was beautiful and it took us less than twenty minutes for our tender boats to finally get to Easter Island. When we set foot on Easter Island, hundreds of people from the ship were crowding the pier, but the car rental people were there. We had reserved a car rental with Insular Rent A Car which I booked in November 2013.
A smiling, Dominique led us to a nearby parking lot at a restaurant where we had to show my husbands driver's license, passport, and credit card. She presented us with a map and explained where we should go first. She also told us the important places we should visit and also where to find the only gas station in the island. Dominique's instructions took us along Hanga Roa , where there is a 20 kph speed limit.
Outside town, we took a dirt road. There are very few vehicles on the Island though, and apart from driving sometimes on red dusty dirt roads, the driving was relatively stress free. Outside Hanga Roa, nearly the entire east coast road and the road to Anakena are paved. Side roads to some of the archaeological sites are not paved, but most are in decent condition. Along the coast, we saw the ever breathtaking deep blue ocean, and the waves constantly crashing on very jagged rocks. We stopped many times to take pictures, and to listen to the sound of the crashing waves. The coast was all black lava rocks of every sort, form, and size. On our right there were herds of wild horses grazing, and sometimes cattle chewing their cud. It was a serene scene for complete meditation, a postcard perfect scene at every angle!
One of the most remote inhabited locations on Earth, Easter Island is famous for the thousand or so enigmatic, towering statues that dot its landscape, called moai.
We stopped, walked, and took pictures each time we spotted a possible moai location. The first one we saw was at Ahu Vinapu. There were six toppled gigantic moai laying face down with three of their top knots lying in front of them. The torsos of the final three had been used as a cave like-shelter, with rubble filling in the gaps, and large stones positioned to form an entrance way. They were covered halfway with wooden slats to protect them. Obviously it needed some kind of sign or explanation, but there was nothing of the sort. These didn't strike me as very distinct, and supposedly of great status in the ancient world. I was expecting to see the one with clear and distinct faces.
“Let me take a picture of you ladies,” David commanded us.
We did the same thing when we got to the first standing moai we saw. It was encircled with rocks which set the boundary lines. The lone standing moai was just at arms length away. There was nobody there but the four of us. It was tempting to touch the moais and feel its spirit and the energy.
“Uh, oh, Joyce!” warned David as she appeared to move her hands to touch the statue. I walked further to what looked like a pile of huge black lava rocks. I went to the front to examine whether they had faces that I could distinguish from the rocks. Suddenly, a whistle came out of nowhere and a guy came screeching up on his motorcycle. He was clad in a thick bullet proof vest, with matching helmet and riding boots.
“That's an unrestored platform and you cannot go there. The trail is out there!” he shouted at me, pointing to a direction.
“I didn't know, there is no sign out there,” I shouted back. “There used to be one, but they removed it,” he continued.
He went on to say that it is not allowed to touch any of the rocks. “You can't touch any of the rocks. If someone sees you, they will report you even if you didn't do anything. They will say that you damaged it!” he warned. “Surely, you could replace the sign,” I murmured.
I walked away thinking why don't they have a sign when they are charging US$60.00 per person as an entrance fee to the National Park. Though we were not in the vicinity of the National park, the areas containing the various moais did not have signs. At our next stop, there was a half buried Moai which looked really unusual. It appeared as though it had been thrown off the platform, and then later on been buried by the shifting sand. I wondered if it was a reject because of it's unfinished look, and then just abandoned? At every stop, there was always an interesting find. It was like we were in a natural, open air museum. There were times, when we were mesmerized by the dramatic scenery, and then soon after that we got excited when a trail would lead us to another Moai site. We noticed in some cases, that they were not carved with the same look. Some had the top knots (like some sort of weird hairdo), while others had very distinct noses, lips, and ears. Some had long ears, while others had shorter ears. There was also an inland Moai with astronomical orientation, which was noteworthy because it had four hands?? Finally, down the hill, we found at last,what we came for. Our joy ride delivered us to the Ahu Tongariki ceremonial stones.
Moai statues are massive megaliths at Easter Island, and these are what this island is famous for.
“Hold on, wait a second, let me park the car first. You will get there,” Bert cautioned.
We got out of our car. The wind was blowing up a nice breeze and, our two friends, Joyce and David, and I climbed down the banks where a sharp rock almost gouged my shoes. We could see 15 Moais positioned with their backs to the Pacific, as if standing watch at Ahu Tongariki.
“Wow! These are the best!” I exclaimed. That's all I could say while I was mesmerized by the fifteen mysterious Moai, while at the same time, I was trying to frame my camera.
At a small entrance from the parking lot there were makeshift small souvenir stalls, and there was a Rapa Nui selling small pineapples for US$4.00 a piece. To the left was a Rapa Nui man with a top knot hair style selling some wood carvings and postcards. My first thought was to photograph the Rapa Nui first before he could pack up and leave. I also wanted to try and taste the apple sized pineapples. But my view of the Moai brought a shriek of excitement all together that sent me running down the hill to get a closer view. Joyce was posing in front of David's camera. A few Japanese tourists were walking behind their guide. Bert was still at the gateway where the pineapple sellers were sitting under their umbrella's. I continued half walking, half running hurriedly to get even closer. The gaze of all the other tourists were upon the fifteen Moai, their necks craned to look above them. Two ladies were clambering over the rocks that serve as a barrier to the platforms. They wanted a closer photograph. They crept closer until a loud whistle blew from somewhere, and it stopped them in their tracks. A park guard came out shouting in a loud angry voice with much gesticulating.
Ahu Tongariki houses the largest stone platform on Easter Island. This platform, known as an ahu, is lined up on 200 metre (650 foot) long podiums.
The Ahu Tongariki is by far the largest of Easter Islands ceremonial stone Moai platforms and it is an exceptional sight. How they got there, and when the last one was done, no one knows for sure. Carved centuries ago from volcanic tuff, according to the the Rapa Nuis, these colossal human statues embody the defied spirits of their ancestors. These are but few of the sacred sites that represents the Rapa Nui's rich cultural and geological heritage. They are still honored by the islanders who fully recognize their sanctity, and the means by which to bring in dollars from the tourists.
From Ahi Tongariki we arrived at Anakena beach where once again I was struck by the enigma of the Moais. From the parking lot, I could see palm trees, a white sand beach and people walking. And then, as my gaze followed these people, there it was, emerging from the sand hill, another platform of moai standing high. There were five of them in one platform. One is missing its head. Beyond this line up, at the top of the hill another bigger more remarkable moai emerged as if standing mighty and proud. In an instant, I was out of the car and running quickly toward the platform.
“I'll meet you there,” I told Bert before he could get out of the drivers side of the car.
Soon my eyes were rolling from side to side on all the Moai and I was clicking my camera as fast as it can. For a moment, I shared the moai with three tourist from mainland Chile. No words passed between us, just smiles. After they left and walked away, I stood alone curiously watching the statue in a single file. The sunlight flooded the beach and the strange moai stood out on bold contrast to the surrounding palm trees and white sand. I'm now alone face to face with these remarkable but enigmatic stones with hardly any barrier. There is just a wooden log serving as an enclosure around the platforms. I thought it was great to be allowed so close and not ruled by some very strict rules where you can't even get a close -up photo.
Easter Island's ahu were meticulously restored in the early 1990s after the island's civil war toppled the moai and a tsunami later displaced them inland.
Like all tourists, we are forbidden to touch the moais. While I surveyed the moais on the beach I suddenly lost the adrenaline rush to my body, the cheap thrill of doing what the sign tells you what not to do. I had an uneasy feeling instead. Watching these colossal statues is like stepping back in time. I imagine what it would have been like a thousand years before it became a landmark. I realized that from an outsiders perspective, life seemed to have moved elsewhere. Here, there is a feeling of peace, solitude and timelessness. One doesn't think it's all reconstruction. The beauty and the landscape is enough for me. Anyway I look at it, I know that somehow, it is connecting me deeply with the powerful natural world in this isolated land, and with the people who live in it. Then my husband touched my shoulder and asked if I wanted my picture taken with the moai. So I obliged and walked away.
At the beach, people congregated to swim and relax and sunbathe. A number of snack bars were busy serving clients. I can smell the smoke of barbecued food and a number of tourists were moving about between the juice bar and the souvenir stalls. I took one last glance at the moais before we got into the car as if to say goodbye and to excuse us for what occurred to mar the tranquility of their primeval existence. We saw a lot in a day and the only place we missed was the quarry where the moai with coral eyes are supposedly preserved.
It is so easy to spend so many hours around the island and be mesmerized by the moai in all sorts of preservation and forms. It is also easy to be carried away by the dramatic cliffs and jugged coastline coupled with the almost ghost town atmosphere that pervades in some areas. Easter Island may be so isolated and too far but once you get there, it allows visitors to find out what they came for: stand in silent awe of the moai and by doing so you get to know their secrets. It's guaranteed, you will have no shortage of stopping and gawking allowing you to listen and honor if not to pray and worship such cultural hallmarks! We just did it!
Comments
Thank you for the beautiful E.I. profile. We enjoy the Lima blog too. Keep being safe and healthy. Just got back from a short cruise. We did do the Swimming with the Dolphin and not to the Stingray as you did at the G. Cayman Island. From Kim L., on Jan 25, 2014 at 01:25 p.m.
I've heard about Easter Island, and wondered at first if it was an island with tons of Easter Bunnies running around in fields of wild flowers... Lol Keep blogging Charlotte :0) From Kim Connelly, on Jan 26, 2014 at 08:05 p.m.