One of the things I wanted to do this time around on Easter Island was head out to Tongariki for the sunrise. There are excursions offering this for US$60 per person for a 3 hour trip (ouch!), so I decided to rent a scooter instead (even cheaper) to ensure I got out there to see…
Final day on the e-Bike was a bit of an easier one as I was just exploring the Rano Kau volcano and Orongo, both of which are right near Hanga Roa. Started out early and was at 90% assistance getting up the volcano. Everybody who comes to Easter Island visits Orongo at the top of the…
Back on the e-Bike today but not as much riding 🙂 First stop – Puna Pau – where they quarried the red basalt for the topknots (pukaos). It is thought that these represented hair rather than hats, and seem to be very late additions to the Moais (only a fraction of the Moais actually…
Decided to give the butt a rest (yes, it was sore!) and hike the west coast north of Hanga Roa. Started early to try to get good light on Tahai Complex – I was the only person there at 8am! Continued further north to Hanga Kio’e, and then sat down behind a pile of rocks watching the…
I had always had a fascination for Easter Island (Isla de Pascua / Rapa Nui) ever since I was a kid, and made my first trip to the Island back in 2003. I stayed 5 days on that occasion and could not understand how the majority of people who were visiting said they were bored…
Suddenly having 6 extra weeks in South America, I was considering what to do. Then one of my friends (thanks Alain!) suggested that if I had the money – Antarctica was the best trip he’d ever done. Ohhhhhh – now that was a good idea! And surprisingly, not one that I’d thought of at all….
For those of you keenly awaiting my blog posts on Easter Island and Antarctica – they are coming, I promise! The delay has been caused by my absolute immersion in the Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant – the Unbeliever, the final installment of a fantasy series written by Stephen Donaldson. I have always loved…
The other reason (apart from Kuelap) that Chachapoyas won out over the other towns with archaeological sites was that the Sarcophagi of KarajĂa really captured my imagination. I’d come across them on the Atlas Obscura website that Charlotte put me onto and I just had to visit another site with “big heads” given I’d done…