Friday, December 21, 2012

Back to Easter Island....

Hey Everybody,

I am really trying to get all caught up...This post will include photos to give you a view of the whole island. The next post will be more Moai 'cuz it's hard to get enough of them!

I stayed in a small family-operated hotel in the center of town. The closest sunset hike was through this area, which passed the beautiful cemetery.

This is a slightly different view of the same area on the island.
On the first full day of exploring we (a small group from hotel) stopped on the island's second highest point - looking toward the highest point.
Only natives are allowed to own land here. If I were to marry a native I still could not own land, but our children could. One of the interesting facts about the island is that there is no begging on the streets & no poverty. I don't mean all the natives are wealthy, but rather each has a piece of land (to grow food) and a roof overhead.
There is a misconception that there are wild horses on the island. The reality is that they are free range horses. One reason for the confusion is a poorly translated sign that reads: Danger Wild Horses.
Wouldn't be a Polynesian Island without boats and palm trees....
Probably the most beautiful house I saw during my stay....
For the tent campers....here's the island campsite, just across the road from the Pacific Ocean.
This next spot is important because: (1) the Green Sea Turtles often hang out here; (2) the ice cream shop is among those buildings & they have some very good favors; and - Dana, just for you! (3) it turns out that being the only person in the water around 8am on a cold & windy day is the perfect chance to meet Chile's National Stand Up Paddle Board champion. He is one of just two SUP boarders on the island & there are only about 100 in Chile right now. He said the sport is just starting to gain popularity there.
Finally, a small group of houses with an interesting path....
That's all for tonight....gotta get some sleep. Tomorrow I get to hang out with middle schoolers again & talk to them about traveling! The best part of it for me is when they start talking about the places they want to go. Tanks for stopping by....more soon!
 
 

2 comments:

  1. Love that cemetery, especially with the flowers bloomimg.

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  2. Love the wooden octopus - that's cool!

    ReplyDelete