The Cave

It is probably worth noting at this point that these entries are being made in retrospect. We’re now living in a castle in the south west of England. Relocating, finding jobs, painting walls and digging the garden have left us rather behind with the blog. So…time to continue:

As we walked through the arrivals gate, we began to contemplate what we actually knew about Easter Island…

…something about some big stone heads, and a mystery?

And that was about it.

We didn’t even know quite how remote the island was until we were on the flight there.

So how did it make it on to the “absolutely have to go there during Phase 3″ list? Well, we didn’t know anyone else who’d been there, it’s not on the usual backpacker trail, it sounded interesting, and…why not?!!

Having done next-to-no research on the island, we were totally unprepared for the striking beauty and fascinating history that was awaiting us. To say our breath was taken away is an understatement. Without a doubt, Easter Island was one of the main highlights of Phase 3.

The island is quite small, and much of it is unpopulated. There is an awful lot to explore - on foot, horse, bike or (to a certain extent, though not fully) by mini-van.

We signed up for a guided tour run by the little guest house we were staying in. The group was small - only four of us - and the tour guide was brilliant! She was a very knowledgable lady, who gave a very balanced view of the theories and known history of the island.

The food was absolutely gorgeous. An abundance of wild guava as well as bananas and avocados (amongst other things) are free for passersby to pick and eat. The restaurants serve beautifully fresh fish, and delicious wine (well, Easter Island is, strictly speaking, part of Chile after all).

As for the Moai (the “giant stone heads”), we had totally underestimated how many there are. Hundreds! Spread around the coast in groups (all looking inland, except for one group looking out to sea), as well as scattered around the old quarries. They are all different, all striking. Some are huge, some just plain massive! There were certainly some excellent photo ops!

We had a fabulous 5 days here, exploring as much of the island as we could (including spending time on the only sandy beach, scattered with palm trees, swiming in the warm sea).

Leaving was very, very difficult!