♦Guest post by Dhruv Sud♦
Circa June 2017, on a couch in Washington DC:
Jeffrey: Aaaaand done. We’re going to Easter Island for Turkey day!
Me: Sweet!! We should let Alysia and Jimmy know. Think they’ll come?
Jeffrey: I sure hope so. We should tell them that we can do Thanksgiving dinner and sip wine in front of the Moai statues!
Me: You can do that??
Jeffrey: Of course not, but let’s say it anyway.
Me: Okay!!
And so began the (mildly nefarious) planning for yet another memorable trip with the Lovgrens. We had all celebrated a spectacular Thaigiving the year before, and Jeffrey/I knew we just had to catch these nomads one more time on their next round around the globe. Long story short, the Lovgrens graciously agreed to reverse course after Europe, hitting up Costa Rica and Argentina before meeting us for some delicious food and wine in Santiago (that blog here), and finally in Easter Island. Now, when one hears the name Easter Island, usually this image comes to mind:
It turns out that there is (literally) so much more to these “Moai” heads than meets the eye, but let’s zoom out a bit. Easter Island, or Rapa Nui (Polynesian), or Isla de Pascua (Spanish), is one of the most remote inhabited places in the world, being located in the Pacific Ocean about 2400 miles from the east coast of Chile and about 1300 miles from the British territory of the Pitcairn Islands. Along with Hawaii and New Zealand, Easter Island makes up the Polynesian Triangle, which loosely defines Polynesia and encompasses Tahiti and Samoa.
Only two flights per day travel to Rapa Nui from Santiago, and you wonder at the end of the 5-hour flight how a tiny airport is going to land this Boeing Dreamliner. As we discovered later, the airport has a 2-mile long runway that was built by NASA as an abort site for the U.S. Space Shuttle. This, despite the island being only about 15 miles by 7.5 miles! It turns out that being able to land widebody jetliners has been a major factor in the boost to tourism that Rapa Nui has experienced in recent times.
The first thing that strikes you as soon as you disembark is how Rapa Nui really looks like any other gorgeous tropical island – mostly pristine, with stunning landscapes and blue/green waters. It really is a surreal setting for some incredible history.
We arrived the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and to give Alysia’s injured foot the rest it needed for the days of intense walking and hiking to follow, we focused our initial shenanigans on a traditional presentation of Rapa Nui food and culture at Te Ra’ai, a family-run venue where the first order of business is to get your face painted with a clay/mud mixture as a nod to the prominence of tattoos in Polynesian culture. Indeed, almost every Polynesian was tattooed in ancient times, with the belief that it reflected their spiritual power.
Now it turns out that how well your face paint shows really depends on how…swarthy…you are. So while Jimmy and I rocked the look, Alysia and Jeffrey just looked like they forgot to shower after a roll in the mud.
Once seated, we were treated to some guava-and-liquor deliciousness while the host family entertained us with a soft music and dance performance.
The venue included what looked like a dirt-covered pit surrounded by seating. The host informed us that the pit was, in fact, an earth oven known as umu pae, and food has been cooking in this one for hours beforehand beneath the dirt. The cooking process begins by heating stones with a fire and placing the hot stones in an underground pit around food that is wrapped in banana leaves. More banana leaves and a layer of soil are placed on top, and it takes a few hours for the food to fully cook in this manner. The cooked food was slowly uncovered and removed as we looked on, and included everything from sweet potatoes, taro, and carrots to chicken, pork, and fish, and smelled incredible. One of the stones was passed around and was still a bit warm for some to hold.
While the food was being uncovered, the host asked everyone to join in for a ‘101’ on some traditional dance steps. There was a lot of squatting and thumping for the guys, and swishing for the girls. Since there is no photographic evidence to prove otherwise, let’s just say we all crushed the traditional Polynesian dancing 🙂
For now, it was time to eat. Other than the food from the umu pae, there was a healthy amount of accompaniments as well as wine. Most of us seemed to really like the spiced chicken, as well as the taro. The meal ended with a delicious, sticky-sweet banana bread. We later learned that this dessert, considered a pudding and called po’e, is a Rapa Nui original and found everywhere on the island.
The next part of the evening was a more extensive song-and-dance presentation called the “Haha Varua”, and the host, who had now changed into traditional garb himself, informed us how the dances would interpret important events in the history of the island, and featured themes such as “Hoko” (an energetic and warlike dance), “Moai” , and “Tanata Manu” (birdman ceremony, more on this later). The dances were beautifully done, with the aggressive posturing of the men in contrast to the delicateness of the women’s movements. Thankfully none of us was called upon to wreck the quality of the dancing.
The dancing was accompanied by traditional instruments such as a bamboo flute or Hio, and also a horse jaw called Kauaha that is played by beating against the ground. The evening was a perfect introduction to Rapa Nui culture, and we were raring to get to the historical sites starting the next day (Thanksgiving!).
Our guide, an engaging New Zealander(!) who married a Rapa Nui woman, picked us up to start our adventure, but before diving into history, he told us that you can do pretty much anything you want on the island; just DON’T touch or climb on the statues! It’s not every day that you see a “don’t surf on the Moai” sign.
Much of the history of Easter Island is still a mystery, and scientists are trying to piece together the facts using DNA evidence, archeological findings, and local myths and stories passed on for generations. The original Polynesians are thought to have arrived on the island sometime between 400-1200 AD, and the Moai building period lasted for a few hundred years during the peak of their civilization. During this time, there was a hierarchy that ran from a King to a warrior class, and only a person who could trace his lineage back to the King could later become King. Around the end of this period, the selection of a leader shifted from being ancestry-based to a fascinating event known as the Birdman competition, and it is at the venue for this contest that we started our tour. The site for the venue is the crater rim of Rano Kau, one of the (now extinct) three volcanoes that are believed to have led to the formation of Rapa Nui. The view from the rim, which has a gap that allows you to see the Pacific Ocean on the other side, is spellbinding, though it took a bit of effort not to be blown away by some very strong winds that day.
We finally reached the ceremonial stone village of Orongo, where the Birdman competition was held annually from the 1700’s for the next 100 years. As with everything else, the setting for the village was quite the sight, on a 300-meter cliff and with views of two smaller islands, the larger Motu Nui and the smaller Motu Iti.
The contestants would each have a representative, or hunter, whose task was to climb down the cliff, swim the mile across to the Motu Nui, collect the first egg of the tropical bird sooty tern (or manu tara to the Rapa Nui people), swim back and climb back up to present the egg to their contestant. The first Ironman maybe? While not well documented, it is imagined that quite a few of the hunters must have died from falling off the cliffs, or drowned during the swim, or even been killed by other hunters, Hunger Games style. All this to elect a leader in the name of their god Makemake, and there were petroglyphs depicting the Birdman and Makemake everywhere.
The stone houses themselves were fairly spartan and surprisingly small structures, likely not even tall enough to stand in.
The doors to the houses are also really small (we originally thought they were windows), and our guide told us that the Rapa Nui people thought this would make any evil spirits that have attached to them fall off when they crawled through these doors.
Our guide also commented that back then and even now, Rapa Nui people spent most of their time, and entertain others, outside their homes. This is likely why the stone houses were sized this way, really meant for sleeping and little else. I guess that’s what happens when you have tropical, breezy weather year round to enjoy.
Our guide also took us to some caves near the shoreline where the Rapa Nui had created a lot of rock art. All good so far, but we’re ready to see some Moai already! We finally made our way over to Ahu Akivi, one of the more popular sites on the island. Ahu Akivi has seven Moai on an “ahu”, the local name for the stone platform the Moai stand on.
While there are quite a few Ahus on the island, Ahu Akivi is famous for being the exception; where the Moai on the other Ahus face inland, those at Ahu Akivi face the ocean. The Moai were supposed to represent ancestors watching over and protecting the Rapa Nui people, so it made sense that they faced inwards. Those at Ahu Akivi, on the other hand, are thought to represent seven scouts that were sent out to find the island when it was first inhabited, and they are considered to be looking out to the ocean waiting for the first King to arrive.
It was amazing to consider how these statues, each 16 feet tall and a few tons in weight, was carved out using primitive stone tools and moved over ten miles to this location from the quarry. To this day, nobody knows exactly how these statues were moved, but some of the theories include that they could be “walked” using a rope pulley system or moved using a combination of log rollers, ropes, and wooden sledges. No cranes, no wheels, no large animals.
For a fun perspective, our guide, being an accomplished photographer, made us line up behind and between the statues.
We had also told our guide earlier that day that we were celebrating Thanksgiving that day, and some reason, that made him think we should really do the YMCA. Sure.
At least one person has asked us since why we were spelling “YOCI”, I blame Jimmy’s guns and Jeffrey’s English. Obviously, Alysia and I nailed it.
With the touring done for the day, it was time to switch gears to celebrating Thanksgiving. Alysia had made peace with not being able to dine with the Moai, and we had figured we weren’t going to top the private beach dining experience from Thailand last year. Based on several local recommendations, we ended up at Tataku Vave, which was a more than adequate compromise with its waterfront deck and views of waves breaking on volcanic rock at sunset.
Some strong and fruity drinks were in order, and guava sours, made with fresh guava puree and pisco, seemed to be the consensus favorite. Predictably, the food in Rapa Nui leans heavily towards seafood, with locally-caught tuna taking up a sizeable portion of the menu. The restaurant was famous for its “Ceviche Rapa Nui”, which was a generous portion of very fresh, tuna-based ceviche in a seashell, and served with a side of sweet potato and a sweet, soy-like sauce.
No Thanksgiving meal is complete without dessert, which includes a dulce de leche-filled crepe with strawberry ice cream. All in all, a worthy celebration of being on Easter Island, of another fantastic Thanksgiving with chosen family, and of Alysia’s foot doing a bang-up job of hanging in there!!!
Day 2 of touring, we were raring to get to some of the more significant ruins today. The first stop was Ana Te Pahu, a cave system that arose from lava channels formed by volcanic eruptions in ancient times, and is estimated to be a little over 4 miles in length.
The resourceful Rapa Nui folks used the caves as a dwelling, and also as a water reservoir, since its natural design permitted fresh water to accumulate.
Ana Te Pahu also served as an ideal location to grow bananas, yams, etc., since the openings in the surface permitted sunlight to enter but kept the gusty tropical winds out. There are still a large number of banana trees that grow near the entrance to the cave.
We then headed over to Anakena beach, one of two sandy beaches on Rapa Nui, which has a very rocky coastline otherwise. Legend has it that Hotu Matu’a, the first King, founded the first settlement on Rapa Nui at Anakena. When the Birdman competitions started, this beach was also the site of victory celebrations. And deservedly so, the white sands and palm grove make for a gorgeous backdrop. Now if only they had bottomless brunches. Oh well. #firstworldproblems
The Moai at Anakena beach are special because most of them still have their hats, or Pukai. Turns out that as the Rapa Nui people got better at the craft of making Moai, not only did the Moai get bigger and more intricate, but they also got hats in the last 100 years or so of Moai-making. The hats were made on the other side of the island at Puna Pau, a quarry of light red volcanic rock.
Our guide speculated that the hats may have been one way to distinguish between different Moai, with those having hats considered more important. As before, it was amazing to think that not only were the Rapa Nui people now making these 6-10 feet, multi-ton hats, but finding a way to move them around and place them to the top of the Moai.
Speaking of the state of the Moais, it is worth noting that the ones that are upright have been restored. We visited a few Ahus with Moais that toppled and broke (usually at their necks) over time, whether due to human destruction during the Birdman years, Tsunamis, or just structural instability. Exactly why and how all the Moai were toppled is another one of the Easter Island mysteries.
One of these fallen Moai, at Ahu o Paro, was our next stop. This one is spectacular because it is the largest Moai ever transported from the quarry and erected, with a height of over 10 meters, and with a hat (pukao) of almost 2 meters height.
Right by the Ahu o Paro is a stone formation called Te Pito Kura, which translates to “navel of light”, and is thought to be related to (yet another) Easter Island name, Te Pito O Te Henua, meaning “navel of the world.”
Rumor has it that the stone was brought by the first King, Hotu Matu’a, from his native land, and concentrates a supernatural energy called mana. Not sure about that, but it turns out the stone does have a high iron content and can throw compasses off. It also made Jimmy strangely pensive.
“Maybe I’ll pick my navel for lent? Why do Adam and Eve have bellybuttons?”
As the Rapa Nui folks became better at making Moais, the statutes got significantly bigger, proving that size really does matter. And nowhere was this more evident than at our penultimate destination, Ahu Tongariki, which has the largest Ahu on the island, at 220 meters long, and hold up fifteen sizeable Moai in all sizes and shapes.
The complex also includes a “traveling” Moai, separate from the Ahu, which provided for some good photo ops.
Even better photo ops were made possible thanks to our guide, who managed to make us tower over, then get in line with, and then get dwarfed by the Moai.
Our guide explained that, size notwithstanding, all these Moai were toppled during a tsunami generated from a 9.5 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Chile, moved inland hundreds of feet, and have been restored since.
We took a quick break for lunch (more banana bread!) before heading over to the highlight of the trip, a visit to Ranu Raraku, the quarry and volcanic crater from which the Moai were carved. The material in the quarry is volcanic ash, which is softer and easier to cut when done so with a harder stone.
So while seeing 2, 5, 15 Moai at a site is impressive, nothing quite prepares you for seeing hundreds (397, to be exact) of them strewn about as far as the eye can see. Call it shock, awe, disbelief, or all of the above, we were definitely feeling it.
The Moai here are in every state of completion, from incomplete carvings, to those standing up hillside for finishing touches, to those lying mid-transport in the plains. One gets the impression that everyone just disappeared, or stood up and walked away, at some point. How many giant, incomplete Moai can you find in the pictures below?
What also stands out about these Moai is how large and intricate they are compared to what we’ve seen so far, with some exceeding 13 meters in height and having sharply defined features. Those Moai heads? They have complete bodies underneath that got covered up when the pits they stood in filled up over time. The heads are only one-third of the total height of the Moai.
Even scarier, archaeologists have found human remains underneath more than one of the statues as they were nearing completion, signaling that many of the people making these monoliths died for their efforts; likely in the process of breaking them away from the crater and moving them down the hillside.
Enough of being awed. Time to take some more snazzy pics.
Thoroughly over-stimulated and exhausted from hiking around the crater, we ended the tour and took a break before regrouping for one last evening on this glorious trip. The venue of choice was Te Moana, and with our curiosity piqued due to the movie with the same name, we finally learned that Moana means ‘water’ in Maori. And now you know! Name aside, Te Moana served up the can’t-go-wrong trifecta of waterfront dining, Polynesian cuisine, and a sunset over the Rapa Nui shoreline.
Some large, strong, and fruity drinks were ordered, as was a generously portioned seafood appetizer with Ecuadorian shrimp, a brothy tuna dish, and seafood empanada. Shrimp in curry sauce and a tuna risotto were the dishes of choice for the main course.
And since this was Jimmy’s way-to-early 40th birthday celebration, we had to round off with some chocolate cake and tres leches cake. Besides, it was still Thanksgiving weekend, wasn’t it?
Jeffrey and I departed the next day, and the nomads stayed on for more Rapa Nui adventures, including horseback riding to remote Moai sites and getting up early to get the perfect sunrise picture.
And after Jeffrey and I somewhat expectedly failed to deliver our promised Thanksgiving picnic in front of the Moai, Alysia eventually managed to sip some wine in front of the Moai at the very least. There’s no keeping that girl down! Cheers!
The trip was a bucket list item for all of us, and became the experience of a lifetime. As for what happens on Thanksgiving next year – do we end up getting together again? Where will it be? Will our dance moves be better? Will Jimmy’s guns give him spelling issues again? WILL THERE FINALLY BE EDIBLE SOIL??? – stay tuned!!!
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