Magical Easter Island
I love Easter Island. It is one of the most beautiful and provocative places I have ever been. It is charged with an energy that can only be described as magical. The first time I stayed on the island I did not bring a camera. Feeling the need to somehow capture what I was seeing I bought a children’s sketch pad and a box of colored pencils. No sooner had I opened the pencils a picture started to emerge from the page. I watched as my hand drew anything and everything - flowers, boats, moais - as though it were detached from my body. It was surreal. But more amazing is the drawings were good ! I was possessed by the spirit of the island and have been in awe with the place ever since.The Seven Seas Mariner had a very lucky day; we called on the island under blue skies and calm seas. Our tenders were able to come ashore though they had to detour quite a ways to avoid the huge waves breaking off the rocks. It was a gorgeous day; the sun was bright, the skies were clear, the temperature was mild and the air had a crispness that made everything look vivid and bright. It has been about five years since my last visit and much has changed in the town of Hanga Roa. There are several new cafes, restaurants, shops and rental agencies for cars, motor bikes, and bicycles. The road from the tender pier passes in front of the Hanga Roa Hotel which is under construction for a complete renovation including 75 new rooms. There is a large, new Santander Bank with Rapa Nui designs on the façade and several ATMs. The town was a-buzz with visitors who arrived via the daily flight from Santiago on LanChile. But most impressive to me was the new infrastructure put in place by the Chilean National Park system to guard and protect the ahus and moais. Ahus are the platforms upon which the moai or carved statue of a revered ancestor was placed. The ahus and moais are located along the perimeter of the island; they were raised to look inland to protect the land for their descendants.
Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, was designated a UNESCO patrimonial center in 1995 and the Chilean government is dedicated to conserving its heritage. In the area of the quarry at Rano Raraku where the moais were carved from the volcanic stone, the park service has constructed a fence enclosing the outer most moias. There are over 400 in various stages of completion on the flanks of the volcano. Years of people threading irresponsibly on them have damaged several.
Today there are now marked trails with park service “rangers” making sure no one goes astary. The Park Service charges a $10 entrance fee at Rano Raraku. The ticket is also good for entrance to Orongo - site of the Bird Man petroglyphs. Money from the fees has gone toward the building of a small visitors center, restrooms and interpretative signs. Faced with the fact that hundreds if not thousands of people arrive on the island each year via cruise ship island officials are considering implementing a head tax for cruise ship visitors like the head tax collected in Alaska. Since they eat and sleep aboard ship and rarely have time for souvenir shopping the head tax will help generate needed revenue to continue island efforts to protect this historically rich and magical island.