Written by Annelise from www.travelinculture.com
We are flying into Easter Island after a 3,700 km long journey across the ocean. From the aircraft, we discover the contours of an island which a moment later turns into solid land beneath the wheels.
Finally, I’m going to see the famous statues, I have heard so much about. For many years I didn’t think that I would ever get the chance to experience them in real life.
The Easter Island moai statues have been shrouded in mystery, tucked away from most of the world. Not much is known about the first island settlers, the Rapa Nui people, only that they were of Polynesian origin. They arrived around 1200 AD to the remote, volcanic island where they soon established an absolutely unique and thriving culture.
Much later, on Easter Sunday in 1722, the island and its mysterious statues were rediscovered – hence its present name Easter Island or Isla de Pascua in Spanish.
It all becomes very real when we step out at Mataveri International Airport which is actually one of the tiniest airports I have ever landed at. The runway spans from one side of Easter Island to the other and has been extended by NASA such that it can be used as a primitive landing strip for space shuttles.
In fact, the remote island is the southeasternmost vertex of the so-called Polynesian Triangle – with the other vertices being New Zealand and Hawaii. Already at the airport, we get a glimpse of the native Polynesian culture since visitors are received with colorful flower necklaces here.
We have rented part of a house owned by a local Rapa Nui family, and the daughter now meets us outside the airport in their 4×4. Right away she takes us on an improvised tour of Hanga Roa, before going to their house, the Cabaña Tongariki. She speaks Rapa Nui, Spanish – and English, so it is easy to talk to her.
A few minutes later we catch sight of the first moai statues at the Tahai ceremonial complex. Our female guide willingly explains about the ancient, flourishing Rapa Nui culture and the eye-catching moai statues dispersed over the island. The moai date back to the moai carving era, when the huge statues were created by the island settlers, carved from the particular volcanic rock at the Rano Raraku quarry. When completed, they were brought to their final locations, raised on ahu platforms, and as a last thing, their coral eyes were inserted.
She now takes us along the dirt road to their house in Make-Make Street, where her parents expect us.
Continue reading: https://travelinculture.com/hanga-roa-rapa-nui-people-easter-island/
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