Turning a new leaf in Rapa Nui:
What a rush I was in running around like a headless chicken in preparation for the afternoon flight to Easter Island. Spent most of the morning with a friend of mine, Caroline before packing having only made the decision to leave three days earlier. From the whole experience in Mendoza, Argentina with everything that had happened to me for days I was roaming around quite lost in a sense as if i was an on-looker watching all things happening in my life but as soon as I discovered the idea of Easter Island that all changed. My sensation and feelings for things was rapidly returning. I was excited to get on that plane quite tense and apprehensive at what I would find on this piece of land in the middle of the Pacific ocean.
The night before I could barely sleep a wink it was like 23 christmas´s in one! I was feeling so happy at this moment in time. The plane journey lasted 5 and a half hours, which gives a little insight into just how remote and isolated the Island really is. The nearest neighbours to Easter Island are the Pitcairn Islands approximately 2000km away. All this fantasy of islands drew me back to reading the book ´The teatime Islands´ written by Ben Fogle when I was not only interested in his writing! Ironically having had my bag stolen including all my literature especially my poetry by Pablo Neruda and Rupert Brooke I had the day before decided to purchase some other works by another famous Chilean writer Gabriela Mistral, and I would like to thank the thief for introducing me to a remarkable poet.
Time on the Island went quite quickly. With only seven days to spend there was plenty of things to see. We had breakfast early each morning outside on the porch overlooking the sea. Some mornings it would be quite breezy but I welcomed this as the sun was very warm. We hired a jeep for a couple of days to cruise around the island and to get out of the one high street in the town, where most of the Rapa Nui people live. The other parts to the island varied greatly. On one side there was a gorgeous white sanded beach called Anakena, when I was in heaven swimming in the sea practically everyday, and one our last day we watched a wedding taking place on the beach, a Spanish couple. The other parts were very impressively forested especially since there was severe deforestation on the Island only ten to fifteen years ago. Then of course the mystery of the Moai. The tall intimidating faces made out of stone which stand on the edge of the shoreline and are dotted around all over the Island. No one know just how they were built and reached the position that they stand on today. Closer to the town in orongo lies a huge crater demonstrating dormant volcanic activity from thousands of years ago.
On our travels around we came across a marina where a sailing boat was anchored. On looking closer it was from Chatham, can you believe your in the middle of the pacific and you come across English sailors! They were Sue and Adrian Payne with two young children Ollie and George. The story of their travels became more and more fascinating as the minutes passed. They invited us on board. So we shared English tea and global stories of their adventures on the 38ft Westerley. They had been sailing for five years non-stop and had just left the Galapagos Islands before heading to Easter Island, they were slightly delayed on the Island for 16 weeks waiting for new part to be delivered as their forstay had snapped 5 days away from anywhere in the middle of the pacific. They plan to continue sailing for another three to five more years. The name of their boat is PAGOS if anyone is interested in following them up. The most remarkable part of their story is that were not sailors before they left the UK. Sue stepped foot on a boat 6 months before they left and Adrian had only done a couple of months of boat racing. They are very brave and open minded people and I wish them every success on their continued voyage to Chile on Wednesday.
One other interesting highlight of my experienc of the Island was the generosity of the people. There are only about 4,000 people who are permantly resident on the island and they have a wicked sense of humour! Every month they all have a big barbecue together called a coranto. Where meat, sweet potato and fanta is served. Only this time it was more special than usual as the President of Chile, Michele Bachelet had come to meet everyone. She only made a brief flying visit on her way back from a Summit in Tokyo mainly because it was Easter Island´s National day, the 9th of September. I actually met with her posing as a journalist of course. What else could I do with 10 bodyguards surrounding her! She asked me how I was and I said Im very well thank you and we had a photograph taken! She immediately rushed down to the beach and rolled up her trousers then stepped in to greet the children playing in the water. She sat to eat for only 30 minutes or so before returning to Chile.
I had a truely magnificent journey to Easter Island, it will be unforgettable and that most special of places in this world shall remain in my memory for a long, long time.
