La Isla, that is how the local people call their homeland, the most remote populated island on earth. And if it’s true that all islands have that special charm, that sense of being different from the continent, it’s even more true when the continent they belong to is so far away. This is the case of Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, as it’s its original name. The island is very small, just 20 Km in length of triangular shape, where the corners, which are long extinct volcanoes, were the first to be formed during the island’s creation.  Our plane arrives in Easter Island at 6 in the morning, and as we hadn’t booked accommodation in advance we rely on someone at the airport offering us something. We are sure lucky enough that the someone in question is Oscar which is a super nice and friendly guy with a lovely guesthouse. He drives us the 2-300 meters there, we leave our luggage and immediately walk to the sea to see the sun set. The place is wonderful, simple houses scattered around, nice gardens with plenty of vegetation, mango and avocado trees and few horses here and there.

We didn’t expect to be able to see moai just about anywhere in the island, but so it is. It’s enough to walk down to the coast and there they are. Very close to the only town of the island, Hanga Roa, is the Tahai platform, where one of the moai is still wearing a pukao which represents its hair. So early in the morning the site is very peaceful and and the colors of the sky and the sea mix perfectly. I wouldn’t mind to wake up to this every day!

We learn that each moai was erected as a tribute to a deceased tribe leader, the smallest are the oldest and the biggest are the newest. On Easter Sunday 1722 (when the island was first discovered by Europeans), the moai were standing. However, between then and the beginning of colonization, the moai had been toppled over. Presumably during conflicts between the island’s tribes. Since then, almost all moai have been put back standing on their ahu (the altar or platform they stand on). Almost all ahu are at the coast, but looking inland to watch over their people. They are simply fantastic!

On the site there are quite a few dogs, which I of course just love. It’s enough to pay one of them some attention and he starts following us on the way back to the guesthouse. Well, some company is always appreciated. After few meters one more starts following, 200 meters are we are already 4. By the time we reach town we look complete idiots: two foreigners with 10 dogs happily following them, like we are Moses or something! People are laughing, but we love them all: injured, old, limping makes no difference, they are all very friendly.

For our fist dinner here we walk down to the coast for some fish. There are no lights to reach this restaurant, but with the flash light of the phone nothing is off limit 🙂 and we get there in time to see the sun setting in the pacific ocean leaving us with a powerful view of the rocky, volcanic beach.