The Rapa Nui came to the island from Polynesia at some unknown date. Due to the usual disastrous combination of Europeans, disease, and the propensity for slavery most of them died and so little is known about their past. They are most famous, obviously, for the moai.
The moai represent clan chiefs who are buried underneath the platform. They were carved in a single quarry from volcanic rock and rolled to sites all over the island. Over 900 were made, although only 400 were erected (and only 3 were women--booo). They weigh, on average, 20-25 tons, with the biggest weighing it at over 80.
The thing on their heads is hair, not a hat, although I must say the Rapa Nui had odd hairstyles
However, the good moai times would not last. In a classic case of overpopulation, the Rapa Nui multiplied from a few explorers to 20,000 and quickly used up their natural resources. The island is devoid of its native vegetation, with only a small number of exotic species dotting the landscape. This led to a prolonged civil war between the clans in which all the moai were toppled. Most of them remain that way. So let that be a lesson to all of us....
During the war the king's clan was annihilated and the islanders needed a new way to choose a king. This is how I imagine the conversation went:
Drunk Rapa Nui #1: "Heyyyy, you know what? Why don't we have each clan send some guys over to that cliff, have them climb down, swim across the shark-infested waters and find a bird egg, then come all the way back! Whoever gets there first wins!"
Drunk Rapa Nui #2: "That's the best idea I've ever heard!"
That island
Along came the white man and the Rapa Nui were no longer isolated (or alive, most of them). Nowadays there are only 5,000 inhabitants concentrated in a single town, Hanga Roa. The men are super sketch. I guess they're used to getting a lot of action from the tourists so they were really aggressive. Latinos are nothing compared to these guys-- they just whistle, the Rapa Nui actually whooped at us. Men.
Hanga Roa
Only a few moai sites have been restored because it's expensive and also part of the heritage. Only about 35 have been re-erected, and of these, only a handful have the eyes intact.
The trip went well, although after traveling solo all semester being stuck in a group of 21 all the time was chafing. I was amused at the northeast city kids who flipped out every time we saw a horse/cow/chicken. It was also disappointly chilly for a tropical island. Everyone packed warm weather clothes but we ended up in jackets the whole time. It rained the first day there :(
Rainy day at the beach
The last night we went to a traditonal Rapa Nui dance show. It was super touristy but fun. They pulled a bunch of people from our group on stage to dance (not me, thankfully). For those of you with facebook there's a great video of it. The dancers were pretty hot (both sexes) but we posed for pics with them afterwards and, once again, the guys were really sketch. Oh well.
I also went snorkeling with a few friends. We went to that island where they had to get the bird egg (the sharks are all gone by now--sad) and saw a good number of fish. It was pretty exciting. Along with us were a couple men who had participated in the Easter Island annual triathlon that morning and were then scuba diving. I have no idea how they did it--they came in 2nd and 3rd places.
That's about it. Oh, and the plane was sweet. Even though EI is a part of Chile it was considered an international flight and we got really good food and tons of movies to pick from. Yayy Lan. More photos here.
My upcoming schedule:
June 12-go to Buenos Aires to see Jenelle
June 19-fly back to Santiago, fly a few hours later (I'm a rip-the-bandaid person)
June 20-arrive in Atlanta and connect to Memphis!!
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