Wow!

The day started badly – we anchored near the port of Hanga Roa, the main (well, pretty much only) town on Rapa Nui (the name Rapa Nui was given by 19th century Tahitians because they thought it looked like their island of Rapa) . There was a gale down south and it was causing 3-4 meter swells in the ocean. The crew tried to set up the tender platform, but waves kept washing over it, and the captain was afraid we might lose a few passengers. David and I had gathered with about 200 other people in the lounge prepared to go on tours, when the captain came on the air and explained that things did not really look good for going ashore (mainly the problem with how to get people onto tenders without being swept into the sea). He said he was studying alternatives and would let us know. Everyone got very gloomy and started talking about "scenic cruising" – circumnavigating an island slowly instead of going ashore and really seeing stuff.

Then the captain came on the air again and said the shore agent had suggested that it might be calmer and possible to land tenders on the north side of the island, so he was going to take the ship up there. Getting there would take about an hour and getting the tenders and a pier set up would take another half hour and he would let us know IF and when we could get off and take our tours. All went well, and although the captain asked people who were “mobility challenged” (his words) to stay on the ship, we were able to go ashore at a little after noon (original time was 8:30 am). The tender ride was very exciting (the sea was quieter on the north end, but not calm), but we made it with no problems . We landed at a beautiful beach in Anakena Cove, one of two sand beaches on Easter Island. All the tour buses, taxis, customs inspectors, and vendors were set up and waiting for us. The beach also has a row of 5 moai and one single moa, so people who could not get off the ship could still get some pictures.

We got on buses and started off. Many sites on the island have had their moai restored, and there is also a quarry where hundreds of moai were carved but never taken out and erected anywhere. The guide told us that each moa was carved in the likeness of a great chief or warrior, so they are all different. The moa would be carved at the quarry and moved to the village where the chief/warrior's grave was located. We heard two different theories about how they were moved:

1.       The people cut down trees to use as rollers to move them, explaining why Rapa Nui was almost completely deforested by the 19th century

2 .       The moai were built with large bottoms and tilted or “walked” to their locations, then they were erected, the projections used to “walk” them were chipped off, and the eyes finished with coral.

The second theory is the one generally accepted today.

Once the moa was erected over the grave site and its eyes were finished with coral, the mana of the dead chief/warrior would flow from the grave through the moa and out to the village, protecting it. And the villages needed lots of protecting, because there were 16 different tribes on this small island, and they were constantly fighting over resources. They used to build chicken coops out of stone, because the chickens had no natural predators, just other tribes, so they would put a stone in the doorway to keep the chickens in and make noise so they would hear if someone was opening it to steal their chickens.

There are few roads on Rapa Nui, but there are also few vehicles. Many, many horses and cows, however, most of which seem to roam freely. We often had to stop to allow a cow or horse to cross the road. Many Rapa Nui do not own a car, but ride horses.

Because of the long delay in starting, we did not get back to the ship until almost 5:00. We decided it was too late for lunch, since we have the 5:30 seating for dinner, so today we had to go from 7:30 in the morning to 5:30 at night without eating. On a cruise – imagine! But it was worth it; today was truly a wonderful experience, all the better for the uncertainty at the start as to whether it would happen at all.