Sunday, March 22, 2009

Paradise in Rapa Nui

Dave and I spent Spring Break on Easter Island, the most remote spot on Earth. Easter Island is owned by Chile and is located in the South Pacific Ocean - 2,500 miles from the nearest city. Easter Island is very small and in four days we traveled all over the beautiful island. The first day we took a bus tour and really learned a lot of the history. As you can see in some of the pictures it was raining most of the day. We enjoyed the day anyway and didn't mind standing in the rain to take pictures. Rano Raraku is a volcanic crater and was the quarry were the moais (statues) were built. Ahu Tongariki is the largest ahu (platform) on the island. It holds 15 moais. The rain stopped right before we went to Anakena Beach. The sand was pink!
Here is a completed moai with a pukao (topknot) and eyes (these are replicas).
The second day on the island we hiked to Rano Kau - a volcano crater.
We stayed in a guest house where "Michigan" lives. He is the smartest dog I have ever met. He went hiking with us for six hours. He scared off stray dogs and made sure we didn't get lost.
Day three, we rented a quad. It rained off and on all day which made for a wet and muddy ride...it was a blast! We were able to see some new sights as well as traveling back to the spots we saw in the rain on the first day. Here I am laying on our bed and taking a photo of the ocean. With windows open, we slept to the breeze and sound of the ocean. However, we did wake up a few times to the sound of stray dogs fighting. Needless to say, we stayed at a perfect place. It was a guest house owned by Sharon from Canada. Thanks Sharon for a great time!