My

My
wife and I are currently on a round-the-world trip and it was
during one of our initial planning sessions that we decided to
include a visit to one of the world’s most remote places, Easter
Island. Located in the South Pacific more than 2,000 miles off the
Chilean coast, the land mass was named by a Dutch naval commander
who arrived on the island on Easter Sunday in 1722.

We ended up staying for a week in the only village, Hanga Roa,
and from there travelled inland to the national park. A number of
sites are accessible by foot from the village – a hike at sunrise
to the volcanic crater (Rano Kau) and uninhabited village of Orongo
was a definite highlight for us. The legendary moai statues can be
seen all around the island and interestingly, nearly all of them
face inland with only a few facing out to sea. In Rano Raraku, the
volcanic quarry where all of the statues (900 in total), it is
possible to see a number of them scattered across the rock face in
various stages of creation.

It is difficult to comprehend how the moai were crafted so long
ago using such basic tools and how they were transported across the
island to their designated platforms. Ahu Tongariki is one of the
most iconic platforms on the island with fifteen statues standing
side by side and supposedly a great place to watch the sunrise.
Being able to walk amongst the statues and photograph them up close
was a surreal and unforgettable experience; a bit like walking
through a documentary.

@poetic_mouse |
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