The traveling was a lot of fun and we loved it. Being home, feels great though as well. If we want to see our parents and friends all we have to do is walk somewhere or drive for 20min. Being able to reach the people we love so easily is simply awesome. On top of that Slovakia has been blessed with proper winter after over three years of lousy ones. Just take a look.
After 133 days of absolutely awesome traveling around this beautiful planet of ours, we have finally arrived home. It is 01:00 in the morning, here in Pezinok, Slovakia. It’s -3C and snow is all over the streets. Seeing our parents, hugging them, chatting with them is priceless. We thank God for keeping us safe and in good health. We thank everyone who has faithfully followed us, supported us and prayed for us. This has been a trip of a lifetime for both of us and we feel deep sense of gratitude and humbleness. May this blog be a reminder of those awesome adventures to me and Katka and may it be of help to anyones who decides to take on such an adventure himself.
After 4hrs of sleep we wake up with our room flooded with moonlight. Richard and Begoña already prepared some tea and freshly cut strawberries, pineapple and plums. It’s 06:00 in the morning on Saturday morning and these two lovely people are going out of their way to take us to the airport, wait with us in the lines and even wait until we disappear from the sight. We can’t thank them enough.
The lines in immigration are long but they proceed with surprising speed. We stock up on Lindt chocolates and board the LAN flight to Sao Paulo, Brazil. As we take off we fly across the Andes. It’s a clear day so we get to see this amazing mountain range in all of it’s beauty. It really is massive! The rest of the flight is smooth. As we approach for landing in Sao Paulo we fly for almost 10min over houses and high rise apartment buildings. Pure urbanists nightmare. Then we land and are stuck in this lifeless airport. The wifi is here but in order to access it one needs a card only sold outside-totally stupid. The login web page is only in Portuguese and there is no way of buying access online. So much for São Paulo airport in 21st century. English doesn’t get us anywhere and attempts to speak Spanish are frowned upon. Really awesome place to be for over 5 hrs. Our luggage is checked in to Lisbon, Portugal but we need to check ourselves in. Of course that can only be done 2hrs before departure. No such thing as an automated self-checkin. We are really tired and there isn’t a place to stretch.
After waiting for 4 hrs at this fully unequipped airport we finally get to check in. The person from TAP showed up less than 1hr before we are to board the plane. We get seats 40E and 40F which are in the back/center. However the last slap comes as we board the plane and realize that there is NO entertainment system. For the 9:50hr flight TAP puts a plane without it. What kind of an airline is this? We are speechless. To top things up, the staff has two seats the size of 1st class curtained off right next to us. They can actually lay down flat on their back here. Thank you TAP for making it easy for us to NEVER fly with you again! Idiots!
As we take off from São Paulo we enter rather uncomfortable turbulence zone which last more or less for 80% of the trip. Every time we flew on this route, whether from Brazil or the southern Caribbean, it’s always the same shaking. All those Discovery Channel’s plane crash shows do NOT come handy at this time. Without almost any sleep we land in Lisbon, Portugal at 05:50 local time. We pull long pants and warm clothes out of the backpack and then check it in all the way to Vienna via London. Then it’s just waiting at the airport until check in at 10:00.
The British Airways flight is on time but the plane is worse than any of the low cost airlines we have ever flown. I’m kind of glad the crisis hit these giants and made them look at their costs and the services they provide. Except for Emirates and such I see absolutely no point in flight “reputable” airline anymore. They simply do not offer anything of added value. The bloody sandwich we got on the BA flight was the same fast food trash one gets for €5,- on a low cost airline. As always, we circle Heathrow for 15min before we are allowed to come down. We pass all the controls and then wait till 14:35 till they figure out the gate and make it public. We leave London with 40min delay and all is smooth sailing from then on, except the landing. The pilot smacks the plane down as if he was trying to break off the landing gear. Now we need to pick up our luggage and hug our parents 
This trip around the world has been a long lived dream of ours. We have wanted to do it for the past 10 years, but at first we lacked the resources and later on, when the money was there, we were too tied up in our jobs and “regular” lives. Now that our trip is almost over a few notes and observations seem appropriate:
It is hard to believe that it has been over 4 months (or 131 days) since we left Slovakia on Sept 21st, 2009. We have had absolutely awesome time and even as the last several hours are here, we feel content. Content with our lives, with this trip and all that it has brought to us. We packed last night, left all the unnecessary things behind and hit the hay around 02:00. I am not sure how is this staying up late going to effect our dealing with the jet lag but I hope we will make it in the end.
We wake up to the loud phone conversation in French, courtesy of our not so courteous French neighbor. She smokes in her room despite the obvious “no smoking” sing and is in general the opposite of Alex and Claire. Being packed and ready we just chill, before we start our almost full 48 hrs journey back home to the land of -15C and snow. The schedule below shows all our flights and times. Since we have quite some time in Santiago De Chile and Katka’s former colleague (Richard) lives there, we will crash at their place for a short while before continuing further.
LAN AIRLINES 29JAN EASTER ISLAND SANTIAGO 1410 2050
LAN AIRLINES 30JAN SANTIAGO SAO PAULO SP 0800 1250
TAP PORTUGAL 30JAN SAO PAULO SP LISBON 1820 0610
BRITISH AIRWAYS 31JAN LISBON LONDON 1050 1335
BRITISH AIRWAYS 31JAN LONDON VIENNA 1440 1755
We walk to the main square to watch the start of the festival. When we hear the Chilean anthem it sounds … just as any other one. But when the Rapa Nui one sounds through the speakers it sends shivers down our spines. It really comes from the heart. Then we walk last time down the road towards the harbor and stop to have awesome pancakes and freshly squeezed “piná” juice. Last walk past the beach, we take a shortcut through the field to Elvira’s place and then we chill for 1hr before we need to go. Tavi comes by to say goodbye and she brings us shell with a feather attached. We all hug and drive to the airport. We say goodbye to Elvira and the little boy who comes with us, pass all the controls and after a short wait we board the LAN flight to Santiago de Chile. We have seats in the last row next to the window and there is so much leg-room that in KLM it would be a first class.
The flight takes 4 1/2 hrs and except for one major! turbulence it’s smooth. As we reach Santiago, we are impressed with huge mountains, some of which are covered in snow and the setting sun illuminates all of this in beautiful shades of pink and red. As we walk out Richard (Katka’s colleague from VU in Amsterdam who moved here 5 mths ago for the love of his life) and Begoña are already waiting for us. They are such a cute!!! couple and the South American hospitality takes over. We are not allowed to pay for anything! After dropping the bags at their place we drive to downtown Santiago and have a wonderful dinner. Fresh salmon and other sea food in company of warm, welcoming friends-life is beautiful even more. Having been on the receiving end of things feels really awesome. I manage to sneak “Sander’s bathroom” trick and at least pay for the dinner. On the way back we stop to have a wonderful ice cream and then it’s showing a few photos, chatting, shower and bed! Richard and Begoña take excellent care of us.
Before we went to bed last night I decided to call it quits with attempting to wake up for the sunrise. This island has been such an amazing surprise to us that despite all our travel routines we might come back here one day. We get up around 09:30 and make it a slow start. It is quite windy and some clouds are covering the sky but the biggest surprise of the day are the waves. They are massive. The biggest waves we have ever seen with our own eyes. The wind being off shore, it rises them up and they come in perfect sets. Looking out towards the ocean we can see them lined up like airplanes waiting to land.
We watch a chick-flick “Bride war” and then I watch a documentary on the colossal “mess up” of US in Iraq called “No end in sight”. A rather disturbing document. Katka grabs the camera and walks to the harbor to photographs the waves and the local riders. Also Nicole and Tavake are in the ocean so she gets a few good shots of them as well. When I finish watching the movie, I drive down and as I step out of the car I stop frozen with awe. The waves are really really big. We have never been to Hawaii, so we cannot compare, but from what we have read and seen in movies, this is serious stuff. When the guys who ride them drop in and do a bottom turn, the waves are many times twice or even three times as big as them. Many of the locals get really awesome rides. After we realize that Tavi and Nicole are out, I spot even bigger waves braking next to the Moai site close to where we live. We drive over there and get a few shots of the waves and the bodyboarders riding them. As these waves break directly on the lava cliffs, getting out of them in time is absolutely crucial. The guys look like they know what they are doing.
We drive back to the surf spot and order fresh baked tuna with veggies and huge (1L) freshly squeezed pineapple juice. Price? 10000 pesos, which is around EUR 14,-. For such a great and healthy food, a bargain. While we eat, we show the photographs to Tavi and Nicole and the local “macho riders” seem to recognize us as well. Before we know it we are showing them the shots Katka and I got and they are quite impressed. If we had another 2 weeks here, we could actually start a small business by doing dedicated photo shoots. In the end, I agree to give them a small size version of the shots for their personal use in exchange for a surf board rental. I drop Katka off at the dance practice in the amphitheater and I go back to pick up a board and a rash-guard. As I paddle out, some of the waves are so big that the whitewater washes me 15m back towards the beach. Eventually I make it to the small lineup with about 15 kids on bodyboards. I manage to ride two waves and to paddle into another 4 before my arms give up on me. Also, I step on a sea urchin with my toe which doesn’t rise my spirits. Lucky for me, the spike is still sicking out so I manage to pull it out. As I paddle for the last wave a sea turtle surfaces about 1m from me and scares the living daylight out of me.
Done “surfing” I meet with Katka just as the dance practice ends and we ride home. The sun is setting on our last full day here on this amazing island. People keep to their traditions, they are very protective of all the moai sites. Any local will quickly make it clear to a tourist that there is not touching the statues or walking on their “ahu-the foundation”. Everyone is very active so there are more men with 6packs and chicks with great figures here than in any other place we have been to. The mystery and history is ever present and it feels up the air. It is easy to get around and do whatever one pleases as long as one speaks Spanish. We download the photos and start processing them when two locals show up to collect the copies. I tell them to come back in two hours. I type this blog as the night takes over. It has been the trip of a lifetime for us!
All the resolutions from last night are killed by a swift move of my fingers across the iPhone’s screen as I turn off the alarm. Somehow it doesn’t feel right to get up at 06:00 this morning to go watch the sun rise over Ahu Tonagriki. Yes, I do regret it a few hours later but such is life. We scramble out of bed around 09:30 and are met by cloudless sky and almost 15 kts of wind. I knew this island is good for kitesurfing. We quickly have cucumber and tomatoes from Elvira’s greenhouse for breakfast together with toasts and spreadable processed cheese.
Then we jump into our white off-roader and drive to Anakena, on the other side of the island. With the sun rising so late and moving across the sky in such a gracefully slow mode, the light is still great when we get there. While I take photographs Katka scathes some of the Moai that turn their backs to the ocean. While we are busy capturing the beauty, some stupid tourists need to be reminded by the ranger that the “don’t go beyond this point” sign and “do not touch the moai” really mean just that. Arrogant idiots like that should be drowned. One thing we appreciate here is that the signs specifically say “Do not touch, beware of cumulative impact” – meaning if a million people touch the moai, they will be seriously damaged. Great job by the Chilean government.
After the “creative” part of our morning is over, we hide our stuff in the car and walk over to the beach. The waves are coming in beautiful sets and are absolutely awesome for bodysurfing. Again, my love for water keeps me in for the next three hours. Katka joins me twice and she courageously bodysurfs the biggest wave of the day. As it reaches its highest point I judge the face to be above 2 1/2m. It comes down with tremendous force and Katka surfaces with her bikini “slightly” misplaced. We keep applying 30+ SPF through out the whole trip but today is Zink time! Despite that we still get slightly “scorched”. I go in for second round and dare to catch bigger and bigger waves. The sensation of the endless power of the ocean captured in the wave rolling under my body is awesome. After we have deplete our strength bodysurfing we walk over to the shacks and have another freshly roasted tuna with pineapple juice.
Then we ride back to Hanga Roa, take quick showers and do some blogging, reading etc. I quickly run to the ATM to draw some cash so that we can pay for the car, fuel it up etc. As the sun starts its descent from the sky, I decide to drive one more time to the other side of the island and try my luck with different locations. Katka stays in town and watches the girls practice their dance for the upcoming festival.
As I leave the town, I follow the central island road and then cut to the right along the rugged coastline. Again, I pass many horses grazing. They look so graceful and peaceful in the setting sun. I pull over next to the ocean and just sit there while watching the waves crash on the rocks below. I do not know how I got this fascination with waves and ocean in me, being a boy from a land locked country, but it’s there. I arrive at Rano Raraku around 19:00 and buy a ticket for 5000 pesos. Instead of going to the side where we were with Katka I hike up to the crater and walk along the lake. It is almost covered in tall grass and the water has dark blue color. I have a company with me, a cute local dog walks all the way to the top and back with me. I gave her some water to drink as I was putting my shoes on and she “pays” me back by keeping me company. Animals are truly special companions. To my surprise, the moai statues are also scattered on this side of the crater. The slope is covered in high grown weeds, so they are not so easy to spot, but they are still magnificent and mysterious. On a closer look I realize that there are many more unfinished laying all over the place and they are massive. I walk along one such “slab” of rock and measure it at 12m. Massive. The setting sun and the clouds put on an amazing color & shadow show. The emotions swell up in me. I walk all the way to the top from where I can view the Ahu Tongariki positioned way below, right next to the ocean. Right next to me is an unfinished moai laying horizontally. Awesome. Then I quickly make my way back, pass some horses drinking from the lake and take a few shots at the other side of the crater.
I part ways with the lovely dog and drive at rather fast pace to Ahu Akivi ( the place where the moai are facing west and towards the ocean). Unfortunately, when I get there the light is dying and the cloud cover on the horizon doesn’t help either. As I drive away, suddenly the sky to my left turns the lightest shade of pink and blue. It is so subtle I have to look twice to believe it. I put the car in gear and fly across the dirt road.
Arriving home I find Katka chilling on the bed. As I go to inquire from Elvira why is the internet not working, we run into Tavi, Nicole and Dasna who are leaving for a local party. They invite us to come along, so we all drive to Dasna’s house to pick up her ticket and then to the restaurant, not far away from the bank. There is a live band and as a bonus we get a performance by a local group of Rapa Nui macho chicos. They really know how to shake ass and I cannot blame the ladies drooling all over them. We have fresh tuna shreds with spring onions, veggies and yams as the band play great rhythmic tunes. It is amazing to see how multi-skilled the local guys are. Durning the day they surf, the they may play soccer, then they join the dance practice and in the evening they are playing in the band. On top of that 85% of them are supper athletic. Before we know it’s 02:00 am, we excuse ourselves and go home. We really cannot get enough of Isla De Pascua!
We are truly blessed by God to be able to wake up healthy every morning in such a beautiful place as Easter Island. Somehow, we stayed up last night chatting with Tavi and Nicole almost until 02:00 so waking up this morning did not happen until 10:00. Then we just sat on our porch and tried to get the whole body awake.
The clouds passing today dropped some rain but overall still a very nice and pleasant weather. How cool is it when one can walk out in shorts while it rains and not feel cold? Absolutely awesome 
Around noon we drive over to the pareo “factory” together with Tavi and then to the main street to check out some stores. We drop her off in the house and drive to the harbor/soccer field where we both have “churrasco con atunn”. It’s a “hamburger” made with roasted fresh tuna. Unbelievable! For drinks we get freshly squeezed pineapples and all of it costs only 4000 pesos pp. The “goodness” of our lunch however backfires when we go surfing later on.
We meet up with Tavi and Nicole again and they are both so nice to go into the waves wit us and help us get the courage to try and surf the waves here. I rent a board (7-1) for 10000 pesos for 3 hrs but as soon as I start paddling out I know it is a mistake. First of all, my lunch is being squeezed in my stomach as I lay on the board and being completely out of shape is not the best base to attempt to ride 1m waves. Nicole and Tavi simply swim out and hang on the rocks where the wave breaks while waiting for me to get there. I ride and manage to stand up on 3 or 4 waves but then I am done and I let the waves wash me to the shore. Katka jumps in and she does very good but is also rather beat after 20 min. As I watch her from the beach a boy sitting next to me REALLY wants to talk to me but as he is fluent in Spanish and nothing else we eventually give it up. The sea turtles surfaces for air every few minutes and I am sure there are at least 4-6 of them. As Katka comes out I take the board and this time manage to ride another 5 waves before I give up. Surfing is fun but it is hard (especially the paddling part). Next time no food in my stomach at least for 3 hrs before surfing.
We part ways with NIc and Tavi and ride home to “recuperate” a bit. Then I take Katka to the dancing practice and I drive along the coast to Ahu Tongariki to try my luck with sunset again. The light gets funky towards the end so the shots are not worth much, but driving alone, along this rugged coastline with huge waves increases the sensation of remoteness and over all awesomeness. I stop to watch the waves crash into the lava cliffs, I watch the horses graze on the dry grass. I get stuck behind a herd of cows slowly making its way home on the road. By taking a right from the central road I find the road to be in better condition and the drive to Ahu Tongariki to be shorter.
I get back home after dark and find Katka sitting on the front porch and browsing the web. Another day on this unique island has come to an end.
Somehow we managed to go to bed “earlier” than yesterday but when the alarm goes off at 05:45, we struggle. We grab our things and drive across the island in complete darkeness. Once we leave the smooth central road, we negotiate the dirt road and then the “tarmac spiced with holes” one. Every now and then we slow down to a crawl to pass between herds of horses. As we approach the Ahu Tongariki we realize we are not the only ones who came to see the sunrise over the 15 erected moai. There’s already about 5 or 6 other photography freaks. Unfortunately the light doesn’t cooperate because there is a thick layer of clouds “sitting” on the horizont but it’s still magical to sit down, listen to the crickets and watch the day being born above this beautiful remote island.
We wait till the sun crawls over the clouds and then drive to the near by Rano Raraku. It’s an extinct volcano from the side of which the moai were carved out. It is a beautiful site, as the unfinished and also finished moai are scattered all over the side of the hill in the grass. Some of them just stick out from the ground above their lips, some are fully erected and some stand at weird angles. There are many horses and cows grazing and running around. We decide to come back later in the afternoon when the light should be better.
The drive home is slow since we are both very tired and in need of bed. Arriving in town, we stop at two “mercados” to get some bread and fruit. Back home we prepare breakfast while watching the “huge wave show” out in the ocean. This place is seriously one of the most amazing we have been to.
I am not even sure what happens next but we wake up around 15:30. We really needed to rest after the sunrise wake up. Then Katka sunbathes for a while and I go down to the beach to watch and photograph the giant waves that keep rolling in. Although it is almost 17:00, the sun is still so high that it penetrates the waves and “frees” their color.
Then the two of us, Tavi and Nicole jump into the car and go get some groceries, sun lotion and look for a pareo for Katka. Nicole and Tavi then go to the beach while the two of us drive to the other side of the island to take advantage of the light.
As we drive along the dirt road we pass many horses which are just grazing on the grass. These animals are so graceful and beautiful. Watching them roam around the whole island freely is truly a special experience. We slowly make our way to Ahu Tongariki and then proceed to Rano Raraku. With the sun slowly making its way down the shadows become longer and the light warms up. The ranger informs us that they close the gate at the entrance at 21:00 so our photo session is cut a bit short but still we get some great shots. Also, we find out that the ticket we bought for 5000 pesos pp is only valid for 5 days and allows us to enter Orongo and Rano Raraku only once. As long as the money is used for up-keeping of the moai we don’t mind to pay.
On our way home we stop to take a few shots of Ahu Tongariki and then negotiate the dirt road. Back home we have a quick dinner and then Katka chills with Tavi and Nicole while I update the blog. Another awesome day on Isla de Pascua is nearing its end.
After going to bed at 04:00 in the morning we crawl out of bed around 11:00 but we are not even close to being rested. We pay Elvira for all 8 nights and also for 3 days of using the car, so that we have no debts. Then we check emails and just chill.
Around 15:00 we get Felipe, Tavake and Nicole to go surfing. We all drive down to the harbor, explain all the signals and cover ourselves in zinc sun protection. I am not sure what is the reason for the sun’s position here but at 16:00 it still sits so high in the sky that it feels more like noon back home.
The waves grow bigger and bigger, and at times I feel sorry for those in the water because they take serious beating. As we drove down to the harbour we noticed a few guys riding giant waves just east of the cemetery. The waves crumble without standing up much but they easily reach 5m in hight. After we switch places to get closer to the girls we shoot for a little while longer and then go pick up some cash from the house.
We drive down to the harbour, park and get some food in the shacks overlooking a soccer field where a game is in progress. This island is definitely a very active one.
From the soccer field we just drive back home, sort the pictures with Tavi and Felipe and then relax for the rest of the evening. We are so out of sink that we don’t even have the energy to go see the sunset at any of the cool places.
With the slight jet lag and many things to do we went to bed at 02:00 in the morning. Though the internet connection on the island is painfully slow it does work and is just perfect for email and blog updates. Strangely enough, our iPhones connect just fine but the MacBook Air struggles for some reason. Also, the screen has been acting funny in the last few weeks so when we are back in A’dam I will have to apply the Apple Care!
We decided last night to skip the sunrise in order to get some sleep so we scramble out of bed at 10:30 and drive to town to get fresh bread and veggies. My Spanish doesn’t exist so I put myself into all kinds of funny situations by saying hi and how much does it cost but when the reply comes I just have this stupid look in my face. But thank you in Rapa Nui is “maururu”. Back home we prepare our breakfast (local bread shaped like our “pagáč”, avocado, tomatoes and tea) and watch the huge waves roll in and break. Fascinating.
We drive down to the harbour where we run into Felipe, Nicole and Tavi. The waves are even bigger than yesterday and the surf competition is running its final heats. Felipe goes bodyboarding and asks us if we can take pictures of him. We agree and snap away for almost an hour. He is great at making sure we know where he is by always waving at us. We also manage to take a few shots of Tavi and Nicole.
Then we drive to the top of Rano Kau, the volcano crater at the SW point of the island. Upon arriving there we check if Katka’s sunglasses have been found but the rangers don’t know anything about it. We walk around the Orongo ceremonial village and take in the stunning views from here. Everywhere we look is deep blue Pacific ocean. Total tranquility. When the sun peaks through the clouds it sparks shades of blue in the ocean and shades of green in the crater. Truly stunning place. As we walk back to the car past the ranger’s station we check in again, and there is the old grumpy ranger from yesterday with the sunglasses. Katka is so happy she gives him a big kiss on the cheek which he apparently didn’t expect but is pleased with.
From Rano Kau we stop at the ocean side to watch the massive waves rolling in and sending huge spray in the air as they crash onto the lava rock just off the shore. I could sit here and watch them for days. The power of the ocean is so transparent and raw that there is some strange attraction in it. When the sun shines through the clouds it turns the waves into beautiful pale green giants.
We plug dead batteries into the charger as we stop at home to get some food and then drive on the road crossing the island to Puna Pau. It’s an old volcano which contains a lot of red rock used by the original inhabitants for the “hats” placed on some of the moai. They actually represent a hair pulled into a knot. Right next to it is a perfectly shaped oval hill with three white crosses on top. Since the whole island is 90% covered by grass, as the clouds “float” above it they created beautiful shadows on all the rolling hills and volcanos. Quite a few of the hill sides are giving in to the erosion which looks good on photos but is a rather sad sight to see. We jump back into the car and drive to Ahu Akivi (a site where 7 erected moai; the only place on the island where they face towards the ocean). We take a few photos, some of them creative. Standing next to these mystical statues feels truly unique. As we are about to walk back to the car we pass a woman selling peeled pineapples. As it turns out, Elena, is only 30 years old, a mother of three and a teacher. She was born here on Rapa Nui and together with her husband they have a farm where they grow pineapples and breed horses. Although she speaks mainly Spanish to us, we find out after talking to her for almost an hour that she also speaks good English. I have to note that she is very beautiful and I take advantage of Katka practicing her Spanish with her, to shoot some nice photos of her. Her husband offers horse back rides to the edge of the Maunga Terevaka crater for 25000 pesos pp. We say goodbye and check out a near by cave (Ana Te Pahu), which, as we are told, leads all the way to the ocean. We do not try to prove this information right.
Driving back we slowly negotiate the dirt road and then drive to the North coast, to Anakena. A place where 7 moai are facing backwards to the only beach suitable for swimming. It has nice white sand but when we get here, the cloud cover is so thick that we cannot get a simple good shot. We decide to drive back to town as we have a reservation for a show for tonight at 22:00. It only takes us 20min before we are in Hanga Roa. We stop in “mercato” to buy tomatoes, peppers, eggs and drinks, because I mentioned to my lovely wife that I’d love to have “leco”. Back home, we take quick showers, Katka miraculously whips “leco” and then we check with Elvira if it is ok to have the car for tomorrow as well. When she finds out that we are going to the show she immediately takes action to make sure we book through her. She ends up driving us there, though it’s only 5min walk, and securing her commission. The price is the same for us so we don’t mind and the more money goes to her the better for the family. She is really nice to us and we can tell she does her best to make the place look nice, clean and homey.
The show is a local Rapa Nui show and it is really good. The costumes are very traditional (read cover only the necessary parts) and the whole performance together with music is one nice package. The girls are very nice to look at and the guys … not bad either. Actually, I think the ladies are getting their money well worth It’s over in one hour but it was really nice. (front row seat is 12000 pesos pp).
As walk back we hook up with the kids (youngsters) and we go through the pictures I took of them yesterday and today. They are so stoked to see themselves riding that they grin all the time. They don’t even try to hide the excitement and their Spanish becomes “rapido”. It’s almost 02:00 in the morning when we finish resizing, croping and exporting the photos to their PC but it’s well worth the effort. They are so grateful and so nice. We agree that if the light conditions improve we go again. One of their friends stops by and she shows us the traditional tattoos on her body. Unlike the tattoos in Europe and US, these are very tasteful and beautiful. They actually make her look nicer. The detail and the smooth lines are complementing her natural beauty. As I type the blog (at 03:00 in the morning) I hear the waves crashing into the cliffs some 300 m away. Some of them have to be really massive giants because they sound like thunder. Another awesome day in Easter Island is coming to an end … or a start?
Due to going to bed after midnight, the flight from Tahiti and the time difference it’s extremely hard for us to get up on time. The alarm goes off at 08:00 but I snooze it twice and the third time I actually kill it. Then Katka rolls over and asks me if we haven’t overslept? For what? Oh, for the local surf competition. The kids of Elvira told us yesterday that at 10:00 a surf competition starts in the harbor. It’s 10:30 when we shoot out of bed, brush our teeth and drive down. We take the white Suzuki jeep that Elvira offered us for 30.000,- pesos a day, which is a very good price, considering that a normal car is 35.000 pesos at the rentals here on Easter Island.
Arriving in the harbor, we see that we are not late, the organizers are only setting up the stage for judges. All is good and everything runs on Isla Pascua time. The waves are rolling in in nice sets and they are even bigger than yesterday. I am endlessly impressed. We drive back home and have bread with avocados and tomatoes for breakfast. Then we drive back again and spend the whole morning and a good part of the afternoon watching the heats. The juniors and girls are not so good but the “men” and the “open” categories are putting on a very nice show. They do massive cutbacks ,floaters and some even pull 360s. The son of Elvira, our landlady, rides like a devil. All the locals look really good. With their darker skin, slim six-pack bodies, strong muscles and good looks coming from mix of Maori and Chile blood, this place has to be girl’s heaven. As for the girls, they are also very attractive. They have very nice symmetrical faces, slim bodies and there are quite a few good looking ones. The DJ is playing a mix of Polynesian songs, South American tunes and some older English and US hits. The biggest shocker for me is to see a cow being roasted right next to the judges bench. Yep, South American influence can’t be denied. My lack of Spanish is very frustrating, because these people would be definitely so much fun to chat with. When I talk to them in English I can see that they are not comfortable with it. I feel dumb. Katka slowly works her way through and saves us many times when there is not other way to communicate than in Spanish. The sun peaks through the solid cloud cover every now and then and it burns like crazy.
Around 16:30 we walk to the same restaurant as yesterday and have freshly grilled fish and rice again while we keep watching the last few heats of the competition. Then we have some ice cream and hop in the car to go explore the island. The sun sets around 21:15 so we still have good three hours of light but what we do not know is that the roads here are in very bad condition. Our friend Arnoud would say: “They do NOT have any infrastructure here!”. It’ either a dirt road or a tarmac road with hundreds of huge holes. We first drive to the western corner of the island (Rapa Nui is basically triangularly shaped) There is a huge volcano crater filled with a lake that has some plants overgrowing most of it but it looks stunning. Since the light is very bad with the overcast sky we are mainly driving around and exploring to get an idea how big is the island and what is there to see.
We purchase the entrance tickets to the two locations which foreign tourists have to pay for (5000 pesos pp for 5 days) at a ranger station. The range speaks less English than I do Spanish, which would be ok, but he is not the friendliest person we have met. From here we drive past the airport to another site. We witness large herd of wild horses running past us. To see horses in the wild is a truly amazing sight. They run with such grace.
Most of the Moai (statues) on Easter Island have been destroyed during 18th and 19th century. The only ones standing are the ones that were raised by Japanese scientists or some other contemporary groups. As to the reason of the distraction of the Moai, there are several theories. Some quote tribal wars as the reason others turn to earth quakes and tsunamis. Either way, to see the beautiful statues laying face down makes us feel sad. They are however truly unreal even so. We both feel that the choice of Easter Island as our last stop has been a great move. The climate is awesome, the ocean blows us away with the massive! waves that crash on to the rugged rocky and lava coastline, the culture here is vibrant mix of South America and Polynesia and the mystique Moai give us deep sense dream like reality. The remoteness of the island multiplies it all. We are falling in love with Rapa Nui.
Driving on we follow the coastline and I just CANNOT get enough of the waves. They are so huge and so powerful that I feel endless attraction to photograph them and watch them From any higher point on the island we can see hundreds of them rolling in in perfect sinusoids. They travel the ocean, undisturbed until they crash here. To see the small “hump” of the wave slowly rise as it nears the shore and then become a giant which roles in to a pipeline is fascinating. Katka doesn’t share the same attraction but patiently waits for her crazy husband every time he pulls over and watches. I love you for that!!!
As the sun starts setting and it send rays through the holes in the clouds the volcanos of Ester Island come to life. Their perfect cone shapes are overgrown with green grass. There are no trees except for a few “restoration” areas. One of the cones is giving in to the erosion which exposes the reddish soil and this all lit up with the setting sun is stunning. The wholes in the road get progressively worse and we are slowly realizing we might not make it back before midnight.
Then we stop in silent awe as we pull over next to 15 moai (Tongariki) erected in one line, facing the island. They look absolutely amazing and even though the light is failing us fast … we are speechless. This is where we are coming for sunrise.
We drive on, dodging the holes in the road and avoid occasional wild horse as the darkness sets in. As we are getting rather desperate, we run into the road which runs in the middle of the island. Salvation. It is smoothly paved and we drive 80 km/h on it almost all the way to Hanga Roa. The bugs here have to be rock hard because as they hit our car we worry about the windshield. A sign saying Hanga Roa 3km sends us into town through some wild shortcut which is un-passable for a normal car. Thank goodness we have the 4×4 Suzuki off road.
Arriving in town we stop at one of the local shops to get some bread and then drive home. Stepping out of the car we realize that Katka misses her sunglasses and the only place we think where she could have left them is with the “lovely” park ranger. We will have to go back tomorrow. We had an awesome day here in Ester Island!
The delayed flight meant that we had to “enjoy” the humid and hot hall of the airport in Tahiti for several more hours. Katka just spread out the sarong and we laid down on it. With the alarm set to 02:30 we tossed and turned but also managed to get a few 10min sleeps. Then we passed the customs (no stamp since we are EU citizens) and suddenly we entered the lounge like are with electric sockets to charge our laptop, comfortable chair and even Mana Wifi Spot (it’s paid and an hour is 660 francs but at least it’s there). On top of that, just as Katka went to the ladies room right before our boarding, she found out that there was a shower! How come the airline staff nor the personel in the kios didn’t know about it? André, our Danish-Brazilian friend knew! It would have felt so great to take a shower before the flight.
We have never flown LAN so we are a bit apprehensive about this flight but it turns out to be just fine. The plane is a new Boeing 767 with enough leg room. The stewards are a bit rude or firm for our taste but since LAN has monopoly on the flight from Tahiti to Santiago De Chile with the stop over in Easter Island (or Rapa Nui or Isla de Pascua). We watch “Love happens” with Jennifer Aniston (ok movie, not the greatest) after which I sleep a bit and Katka watches a few others. Since we fly east we lose about 4hrs which puts us 6hrs behind Slovakia. As the sun rises it illuminates the whole space below the airplane with one of the most amazing slades of pink. Simply breath taking. It feels as if we are flying into some dreamland. We are not sure what it is about us but no matter what we say or do we always get the wing;) Just before we land we fill up the immigration forms and we have to give it to the Chileans that they are the masters of buerocracy. We have to fill three long forms each.
We land at 14:30 of local time in Easter Island, the most remote island on this planet. After we pass customs and get sniffed by dog for whatever it is they look for we pick up our luggage. The airport is tiny and as we stand there a bit lost a few people scream at us “Senior, senior”. Katka asks a lady in one of the booths representing some accomodation and then we go to another one. She turns out to be our new host, a lady in her sixties with four kids. She is very nice and though she only speaks Spanish, Katka does a great job communicating with her. She agrees to take us to Te Ora Hotel and then show us her accommodation (Keu Henua ; Elvira de Pakomio, keuhenua@hotmail.com, ph: +32 2 2551281) and we can choose. It’s a very generous offer. We hop in her car and ask her to first show us her place. It’s a nice and clean room in a house next to her. She provides free wifi, which is absolutely amazing and asks 25000 Chilean Pesos for the room per night. For Easter Island it’s very cheap. The location is about 5 min from the town and the ocean. Nothing is really far in here. Then she takes us to Te Ora Hotel where we learn that they are full but we at least chat with Sheron, the owner, because she is a Canadian or perfect English speaking person.
Then our sweet lady (Elvira) drives us to the only bank accepting both Visa and MasterCard cards where I get 600 000 pesos. While we inquire about renting a motorbike or a car at Te Ora, she quickly informs us that at 30000 pesos we can have her jeep for 24hrs. A great deal since the other places charge that much for 8 hrs. Easter Island is cheaper than Tahiti but still quite pricy. But as it’s our last stop on the world trip we don’t look so closesly to our wallet anymore.
We drive past the ocean where amazing waves break and we see many locals surfing or buggyboarding them. We are a bit shocked by this, because we didn’t expect Easter island to be surfing destination but from what I see the waves come in beautiful sets. We agree to stay, drop our bags, shower and head to town for some food.
We find an awesome restaurant right on the beach, in the harbor, where we have delicious fish for 30000 pesos for both of us while watching the locals surf the blue waves. They are very good and the ocean just blows me away. While we sit here Katka cracks the code of the restaurant’s wifi 
So far we are falling in love with Easter island.
We watch the surfers a good while longer. I somehow can’t get enough of this great show. Then we slowly walk up the street, get some local ice cream, bread, avocados and tomatos. Along the way we stop over at a local school gym where the locals are practicing the traditional dances for the big festival which takes place the first ten days in February. We are really bummed that we will not be here to see it. As we walk around we see some guys and couples riding horses as a form of transportation. There are many dogs on the streets but they seem healthy and calm. Walking back to our place we stop to sit down on a bench near the beach and watch the sun go down and the waves to crash on the shore. It calms our souls.
Back at our place we chill, read some emails and enjoy the fresh cool breeze and no humidity. We talk to Nicole and Phillipe (a girl and a boy from Chile) who are staying here with Elvita’s family as they go to school with her kids. We talk about Teahupoo and other surf spots and Nicole let’s me know that the waves I admired so much today were actually not so big. I’m impressed een more. As we say goodnight, I type the blog, listen to crickets and horses and watch the clouds pass under the brightly lit moon. It’s hard to believe we are blessed so much that we made it to this special place.
We sleep reasonably well. The fan keeps the air moving a bit and the mosquitos might bite but not in the same onslaught as on Moorea. No one else joins our dorm so we are not awaken durning the night by late arrivals. We get up little before 07:00 without the alarm, wash up, drink some water and then go about renting a car so that we can go and check out the massive wave just off the shore of Teahupoo.
The Hertz Rent a car is only about 1/2km from the Teamo Hostel. We walk there and wait for them to open. The rate is 8090,- francs per day and we can drop it off at the airport. As we are waiting for the lady to copy my driver’s license Katka notices that KLM/AirFrance frequent flyers have better rates. I produce my Gold member card and suddenly the rate drops to 7450,- francs. Not much but better than nothing. We get the keys, check the tiny Peugeot 107 for dents and drive off. We follow the northern coast of Tahiti Nui with its rugged dark waters.
In one small town we stop to check out a surf shop and even though we don’t buy anything Katka gets two bracelets as presents. Nice. Then we stop in a supermarket (which is stocked better than the best Albert Heijn in Amsterdam) buy fresh baguette, cheese, cherry tomatoes and Orangina. We follow the coast for a while and pull over under the tall palm trees next to a surf spot. While we eat put breakfast we watch the locals surf the short murcky waves.
From here we drive further and follow the perfect coastal road. The French influence is so visible here. The roads are in perfect condition, signs look just like the ones in France, everything looks very civilized. Of course, everyone speaks French and English isn’t of much use to us.
After about 75km and 2 hours of slow driving we teach Teahupoo on Tahiti Ini. It’s a village at the end of the road and the place where every year the best of the best surfers of this planet come to compete. The ocean is almost like glass but we can still see the wave breaking onto the reef. It’s very small but the kind owner of the café shows us a book which has shots from when it’s big and it looks scary. I call a guy who runs the water taxi business (the sign with the phone number is right next to the café) and we agree he will take us to the wave around 14:00.
Since it’s only 11:00, we drive back to Taravao and take the northern road leading to Tautira for a few km and then take a right to a lookout. It takes us a few times to find the correct “right” but we eventually find it. The road is very narrow and winding but we eventually make it to the “belvedere” and the view is really nice. While I type the blog Katka puts a nice new layer of paint on her toes. Tahiti Nui is covered in clouds half way up.
We drive down the steep road and head back to Teahupoo. I call Mike and he takes me out on his boat. The ocean is dead calm so nothing spectacular but still amazing to be right there where all the action happens. The reef curves and drops down into depth. Mike steers the boat so close to the reef that the wave runs below and immediately crashes on the reef. It’s a shame that the waves are not bigger but looking over them towards the island I recognize the view. After about 40min we pack up and he gives me a ride to the beach.
In the mean time, Katka has negotiated with the local restaurant owner that he will give us lunch for the Chivas Regal Whisky we bought in New Zealand for the lady from couchsurfing.com. Unfortunately for her, she wasn’t home when we arrived so we had the bottle left over. I have to note again that Katka is an amazing negotiator and knows how to get the most value out of things. We sit down and order grilled Mahimahi.
Just as we kicked back and relaxed, waiting for our meal to come, I see Carolina and two other girls walk into the restaurant. Not surprisingly, they missed their last bus. Ilse, one of the girls, is a very sweet Dutch girl of Korean origin and a surfer. She has been traveling Indo and Bali for almost 11 months, chasing the waves. We offer them a ride as long as they can fit in the tiny 107.
Once they also finish their meals we thank the owner of the restaurant, rearrange our luggage in the car and then squeeze all five of us in. We drive back on the southern road, pass several churches where locals in their best neat dress are gathering. We also see some people selling whatever fish they caught today and what comes as a shocker, we see many people running along the road. In this heat, they have my utmost admiration.
We drop the girls off near the hostel and drive to the airport. We park the car, drop the keys off and pay with a credit card. Then I prepare all necessary things to upload the blog, we buy Mana Spot Wifi cards for 660 francs per hour. Katka reads up about Rapa Nui or Easter Island in the Lonely Planet. Our flight is not until 00:30 and it’s only 19:30. It’s going to be a loooooong wait on this bloody hot airconditionless airport.
Well, I have to scratch that! The LAN flight is delayed until 04:00 so we can “enjoy” even more of the humidity and thick hot air. We check in, call our parents & Bob and then get on wifi for 1 hr. Well, such is life of travelers
The night is complete hell. It’s again extremely hot, the air barely moves and the mosquitos are coming in waves to suck our blood. It’s a good thing we are dragging the bloody mosquito net around the world without ever using it or having it with us when we need it. The coil that burns doesn’t help at all.
We wake up around 08:00 and we both feel beat up. Somehow, I am looking forward to a proper bed and a place to stay longer then a few days. It’s hard to believe that I got to a point where I feel saturated with traveling and exploration. I thought it was not possible. A quick shower to cool down a bit and freshly peeled pineapple for breakfast. By 09:00 we are ready and picked up for our tour. The minibus takes us to Cook’s Bay (which we later find out Cpt. Cook never visited – he actually anchored in the bay west of this one) where we pay 6000 francs pp and jump on the catamaran. As we slowly make our way out of the bay we pass school kids paddling the traditional canoes with side arm for better stability. Looks like fun.
Then we slowly make our way on the inside of the reef, in the beautifully turquoise and blue lagoon. The French have ripped out a small channel in the corals for the boats. It’s convenient but not very environmentally friendly. The captain, a local named Siki, is actually quite a character. We finally arrive to the place just off the shore of a pretty cool kitesurfing spot, where the highlight of the day takes place. Once the catamaran in anchored, the crew lowers the steps at the front of the boat and we all go into the chest deep, clear light blue water where about 20 sting rays and at least as many black tip reef sharks circle around us. The rays are so used to the feeding and the tourists that they come close to us and rub their “wings” against us. It is an amazing feeling to touch something so dangerous. The sharks keep their distance but the feelings inside us go helter-skelter. They are not big, maybe 1-1,5m but they move smooth and very fast. When we put the masks on and dive down the view is surreal. Sharks swimming around and the rays gently gliding by. Katka and I take turns taking pictures and we are totally bummed for not buying that stupid Olympus underwater camera.
In the mean time the wind has picked up and some 10 kite surfers are riding all around us. I ENVY these guys so much. It’s time to move on so everyone gets on board and the captain takes the catamaran to a nearby bay, where we get off and enjoy delicious lunch of salad, spaghetti, chicken, mahimahi fish, pineapples and some drinks. Very well prepared. After lunch some people go snorkeling while I take a short nap. Katka splashes in the blue lagoon. Seeing her this happy makes heart go boom. The last thing of today’s program is coconut husking. I have to give it to Siki that he has is nicely organized with little competition towards the end and also opening a coconut which already has a seed inside. This day trip is definitely worth every franc.
The boat slowly makes its way back and in less than 30 min we arrive back to Cook Bay. Then we all hop in a minivan which takes us to the ferry wharf. We pay the 1365,- francs pp and wait for the Amareti ferry at 16:45. There is a ferry which leaves before that one but it’s a lot slower. The ferry is a massive catamaran and it covers the distance between Moorea and Papeete in less than 30 min. We walk off the boat and slowly make our way to the Teamo Hostel. The owner is there and she speaks very good English. We pay the 2550,- pp get our luggage from the storage and sort the pictures. Carolina and Andre get the ones from me, which is a nice compliment. Then we say goodbye to Andre who is leaving to the airport for his flight to LA. After we shower, repack, sort the photos and back them up we go and say goodbye to Carolina. She is really badly burned so we spray half of our Panthenol spray on her. For now, there is no one else in the dorm, so we just chill and read books. The trip to Moorea was a great one with one negative remark – bloody mosquitos!
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