Hotel Oceania Rapu Nui Easter Island

... photographed of all the moai.




As we had the car we drove up to Orongo. Orongo which is a ceremonial village, located at the heights of the Rano Kau crater on the slopes closest to the motus. This village consists of 54 houses that are directly related to the religious cult of the Manutara and the Tangata manu (Birdman)competition.

This is where the ...

... of creation scattered down the hillside. The reconstructed temples are a fabulous sight, some containing over a dozen statues each 6+ meters tall dominating the landscape. A wonderful, mysterious island with bags of charm and intrigue. This has really added to one of our favourite periods of our trip – more memories to last a life time.

Here are the photo’s.

Next stop – the Chilean capital of Santiago.

... everything for you. It was the Museo Antropologico Sebastian Englert. We learnt about the history of the island, its creation, discovery and inhabitants. It was really interesting but a lot of reading. There were also displays inside of weapons used, moai kavakava (the strange 'statues of ribs') and replica rongo-rongo tablets. After spending some time in the museum we walked back alone the coast and sat in the sun for a bit before walking back down the main street ...

... it was then supported on rocks while the keel was chipped away - I wouldn't want to be the one to crawl underneath to do the final chipping. The statues, when erected at their final destination, had a top-knot, made from red rock, balanced on the head. White rock eyes were added, at which point the Moai became sacred. We climbed up the volcano into the crater which contained a lake & many more finished Moai. It was quite a climb but as we ...

... constructions, perhaps of ritual character - I could not say more certainly as my guidebook was oblivious of this part of the island. As I moved on and on, the heat and humidity grew stronger and by 7pm they still climbed up - the sun being hopelessly high. In one detail the guidebook was right - there is no shade on the island and walking under afternoon sun may be a masochistic excercise. I got to the village after 8pm when the heat just started to subside. It is ...

... a Kevin Costner movie about Rapa Nui, it was a little far fetched to say the least, but if you are going to watch that movie, then Easter Island is the place to do it. After my experiences of diving in Galapagos and also again in Argentina, I was decidedly nervous about once again venturing under water but it was a fantastic experience. The visibility was about 10 to 15 m, the sea was comfortably warm, and we had a great dive swimming past a sunken Moai ...

... in hat so was auf jeden fall nicht: Als wir auf dem kleinen Stoppelfeld-flugplatz ankamen, wurden alle gaeste von ihren Leuten abgeholt und sie sind mit blumenketten empfangen worden, nur wir nicht! wir blieben ganz lock**, schliesslich hatten wir ja schon suedam**ika hint** uns und puenktlichkeit ist definitiv nicht eine ihr** tugenden;;;; also nach 20 minuten kam dann uns**e "Erika" - wir wohnten in d** Pension "Chez Erika"; sie hatte die Blumenkraenze v**gessen ...

... and the tidal wave in the 20th century. The moais were completely restored in 1996 thanks to the cooperation between Chilean and Japanese archaeologists, as well as the people of Easter Island. After that I head back ...

... the cones of extinct volcanos that litter the countryside, and on closer inspection, the green shrubs were guava trees and the forests were eucalyptus, and I thought, no, this is pretty unique. Another first impression: the fresh air! It really is incredibly fresh...I guess it would be if you're thousands of miles away from everything. Probably because of the fresh ocean air, I've been sleeping here for at least ten hours every night!  Our first stop was ...

... This really gives you a flavour of what they must have looked like, though only one of them has the top knot. They are huge and the photos do not do them justice.

After Tongariki we made several stops but the final one of the day was a Akankena Beach where Thor Heyerdhal was involved in the reconstruction of Ahu Ature Huki. It is also where Ahu Nau Nau stands. Of the seven moai there four have their top knots and some of their 'eyes' survive. We had some ...