This morning after the free breakfast it was off in a tiny SUV with 2 chicas from Lima for a 30 dollar tour to O'rongo - which I decided to do for one reason - I wanted some info from the guide.
The cave above is from a lava bubble, but the Rapa Nui people lived in these from time to time. I should point out, the people and the island are known as Rapa Nui. The town, the only town, is Hanga Roa. Their language is similar to Tahitian, 6 hours more flying west. The nearest inhabited island is 2000 Km or so, and that one is a troubled little place, but it cannot support jet aircraft landing so it's not a fair contrast. That island would be Pitcairn - incestuous ancestors of the Mutiny on The Bounty inhabit that place. Santiago is 5.5 hours east. The 767 we all arrived in has to return to Santiago if something is wrong - this is why it's classed as being remote, there are no secondary airports like in Hawaii or the Tahiti/Society islands for thousand of Km's. In terms of Kilometres, Hawaii is slightly more distant from any mainland, but there's more than 1 island in the Hawaiian chain, so any one of the Hawaiian islands is not very remote at all.
The bird man cult was the big annual event for Rapa Nui - they would dive off the side of the volcano I am on, into the pristine violet water (it is a unique colour here in the right light) and onto the larger of the two motu here. They would collect an egg from the nesting frigate birds, then, swim back. First one back won the contest (there were no rules, the young guys threw rocks at each other, tried to injure etc), but it was his sponsor - an older guy - that got the prize. He was the revered bird man for the year, and the ancient belief was that power was transferred from the birds to the man. He was wiser, stronger, and local art has human bodies with bird heads. Frigate birds they knew hand strength as they cross the Pacific.
A TV documentary being made. the woman here apparently is the director of the Rapa Nui national park. Rapa Nui came on canoes from Tahiti - it is thought - the tahitians travelled often with seeds and animals, coconuts made it to Hawaii from tahiti as they are not native there for instance so they were good sailors. It is thought they preceded the Asians over the Baring Strait into Canada and the US too, bones show up pre-dating American Indians, who it is believed killed the Polynesians. That said, some Southern American cultures have interesting links to here.
This is the crater of the volcano O'rongo. The lowered edge is where they dived down to the water, and we cannot go there because of erosion. The last few years have seen much erosion on the island by weather and pollution - which is ironic as there is no industry, shipping or river run off for over 4000 Km.
Hanga Roa above. You can see part of the giant landing strip.
Here's the two chicas from Lima, the driver and the guide. He was a very good guide too.
In this pic you can see both sides of this triangular shaped island.
The walls above are Incan, very Incan - or at least they look like they are. In Tiuanaku, on top of the Andes, I have pics on that blog of a Moai - the stone being from Easter Island. no one knows how it got there and up the Andes, its nearly 6 hours in a jet. But there's one more thing that makes that link:
These Moai are fatter faced, shorter heads, not the long faces of all the other Moai on the island. They are Incan faces.
Above is downtown Hanga Roa's shopping district.
This is the town's tiny beach :) Next to the dive shops that I decided to avoid because their English is not so good and the water is not warm enough yet. if you want to come here sometime Jose M. - I will come with - I can go diving, you go see ruins. We have to come further into the Canadian winter though...
Above, I am not diving nor snorkelling in that.
The clarity of the water is superb, it is said to be the world's clearest sea water, beating the Caribbean, however, parts of Indonesia were glass like too.
So I went on a hike next, among the cows and horses.
Past the town's Moai once more...
And to see yet another tiny beach. This was all I did today as I got bad sunburn on my kneck...but I had lovely empanadas for lunch :) I like those with hot sauces.
Tomorrow I am going to rent a car and see all the Moai around this wee island. You have not seen any Moai yet :) I already have the pics so I know :)
That said, I met this Australian guy in the hotel, he's been here for a week, his wife left him at last minute as she got a new job in San Diego - so we're going drinking from the fishbowls of booze they have here; the glasses are like gold fish bowls. he is three times the size of me but I can drink him under the table, lol. One glass and I need a new liver, kidneys - that sounds a like a restaurant in Buenos Aires! 2 bowls and it is Amsterdam all over again! Mañana !
No comments:
Post a Comment