I had woken up earlier in the morning and had a chance to see the moon. The full moon was out the previous night, and I was able to capture this amazing sight on my phone. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the photographs.
We had an leisurely start to the day. Our host dropped off fresh bread and eggs for breakfast. He has already stocked up basic essentials like salt, butter, oil, jam and also juice in the fridge. We had breakfast and got ready, excited to get to explore more of Easter Island today. Our tours today and the next day included pick up and drop from our accommodation which was a nice advantage and it saved us from the walk to and from the main village. Our guide for the day messaged us on WhatsApp and the bus collected us as scheduled.
Our first stop was Hanga Te’e Vai Hu. This was an ancient village with one of the longest platforms and eight toppled moai. The guide explained to us about the life and society there during old times and historical conflicts between clans etc.
Our next stop was Ahu Akahanga. Here there were remains of a village and toppled moai by the sea. Parts of the village were restored to give us a glimpse into how they stayed, their houses, structures they built for growing plants and trees, and housing poultry like a chicken coop.
Next we drove to Rano Raraku, the main quarry with 400 moai in different stages. This was also known as the “factory” of moai. Many of them appeared to be almost complete and yet others were still attached to the main bedrock of the quarry. It was wonderful to see the moai up close. We could also see our next stop, Āhu Toŋariki, in the distance.
Āhu Toŋariki was a short drive away. This was the largest platform on the island, with 15 restored moai. It was just spectacular. We spent a long time there, just admiring the view (and we did visit again the next morning for the sunrise tour).
Ahu Te Pito Kura was a quick stop to see the largest moai transported from Rano Raraku. There was also a magnetic stone nearby. We tried to test it with my selfie stick and a compass another person on our bus had with him, but we were not able to really figure out if the stone indeed was magnetic.
Anakena was the last stop for today, a beautiful white sand beach, the only real beach on the island. It had supposedly warm waters all year round, but the water was not really warm for me, in fact it was far from it. Yet I did manage to gather the courage to brave the cold waters and go for a quick swim. There was also a platform with restored moai there, Ahu Nau Nau.
After spending some time at the beach we packed a couple of Empanadas from a restaurant there before getting back on the bus for the return. After reaching our accommodation, we walked over the the cliff across the road to see the sunset. It was cloudy, so the view of the setting sun was not very clear, but it was nice to spend time there in the evening light and fresh air. After sunset we got back, had dinner and went to sleep.
🚌 Rapa Nui Dream - Full Day Tour
🍽️ Pae Pae Anakena
🛏️ Cabanas Christophe