Live - SIlver Explorer October 25 2017, Guayaquil to Valparaiso

[caradara]

Wonderful pictures and commentary. I want to compliment Silversea on something that happened to us. We took the included tour of Valparaiso which was very good however I had a panic attack about taking the furnicular (silly me but I couldn't help it). We wanted to walk down and the guide wouldn't allow it due to pickpockets (or so she said). A taxi came and drove us around to meet the group below. Everyone was very kind and I doubt that the other tourists from the ship even realized what was happening. Just a way that Silversea steps up.

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

Santiago to Easter Island!

 

We were up around 6:00 and finished our final packing. We have the one checked bag, and our carry-ons. We had some coffee and pastries for breakfast at the hotel buffet, then checked out and walked across the street to the airport. Actually you don't even have to cross the street - there is an elevator to the second floor and you walk to the check-in counters from there. Nice setup!

 

There is a business class check in and bag drop for LATAM, at the far end of the international terminal. We used that, but then we had to walk back along the entire length of the terminal to go through domestic security. A few extra steps are good for us, though.

 

Security was pretty quick and well organized. And yes, you can bring bottles of wine through! Had we known that, we might have tried to go all carry-on, but our setup should be just fine. I doubt that there will be a big wait for our bags at Easter Island.

 

We found a Priority Pass lounge and grabbed some seats, but the coffee machines were broken! What is that all about?! We were OK without extra coffee, as we had already had some in the hotel, but our friends had to go to Starbucks for their fix. I caught up with a little computer work, and then it was time to board.

 

This would be our first 787, and we were looking forward to it. The layout did not disappoint - I never realized how large a plane this was. It was a 2-2-2 configuration in Business Class, with a very large pitch of over 6’ which felt incredibly spacious. The tinting windows were really cool too. So we toasted our good fortune and settled in.

 

 

We pushed back and took off on time. Santiago faded into the distance with a final view of the mountains. So pretty!

 

 

Inflight service was nice, and the food wasn’t too bad for airplane food. I even got a glass of Sauvignon Blanc for dessert!

 

 

Many people slept but I wasn’t really tired so I caught up on the last few days of blogging. I also used my underwater camera, which has a pressure-based altimeter, to confirm that the cabin is indeed pressurized to just under 6000 feet in a 787. Nice!

 

The flight was incredibly smooth and quiet. We arrived in the vicinity of Easter Island about 30 minutes early, on-track for an early arrival. It is so remote here. Nothing but ocean.

 

 

One thing I noticed different about this flight was that we didn’t even start descending until we were 20 minutes out, and then we descended very quickly. Within 5 minutes we dropped from 38,000 feet to 20,000 feet. Cool!

 

We flew along the north coast, giving the A/B seats a gorgeous view of the island. Unfortunately we were on the right side, which was the wrong side to see that. Then we flew past the north coast and did a quick, tight, banked turn, then headed for the runway. So here is our first glimpse.

 

 

Touchdown around 12:40, 35 minutes early. Amazing how quickly you can land when there’s nobody ahead of you in line! We taxied off the runway and disembarked onto the tarmac near the terminal, pausing for a few pictures here and there.

 

 

It looks like a very pretty airport! An open-air design, much like Kailua-Kona (Hawaii), if you've even been there.

[jpalbny]

A very interesting report.The vineyards look great.T shirts so appropriate.

 

I actually like the HI at SCL-they treat you well.

 

In Australia you can also carry on bottles of wine.Maybe a lot of folk are not as paranoid as Americans;):D.Actually just modern scanning techniques.

 

Very interested in Easter Island.We were there a few years ago and later this year will arrive on the Explorer via Hawaii and Tahiti.

 

Easter Island...coming right up! Good to know about the wine allowance in Australia. Might have to take advantage of that when we're there in 6 weeks or so. :D

 

Lucky you - getting to visit twice in one lifetime! I only know one other person who's been there one time. I want to grow up to travel like you guys!

 

Thanks JP & Chris

That area reminded us of Napa Valley in CA. We spent days at those vineyards and loved them all. It looks like your on your way to Santiago. That town is a close resemblance of a modern USA town. Using the underground is simple and clean. Hope you spent a few day there...

 

Thanks again for taking the time from your busy schedule to post your experiences.

 

We didn't spend nearly enough time in Santiago but we will certainly be back. Perhaps as early as next year. So many places to go back to! But yes, the vineyards were beautiful. And what we saw of the city was very nice as well. That's coming up in a few days, after Easter Island.

 

 

Wonderful pictures and commentary. I want to compliment Silversea on something that happened to us. We took the included tour of Valparaiso which was very good however I had a panic attack about taking the furnicular (silly me but I couldn't help it). We wanted to walk down and the guide wouldn't allow it due to pickpockets (or so she said). A taxi came and drove us around to meet the group below. Everyone was very kind and I doubt that the other tourists from the ship even realized what was happening. Just a way that Silversea steps up.

 

Hi Laura! Nice to hear from you again. Those ascenseurs did look pretty rickety, I agree. I wasn't thrilled about going on them either. One ride down was enough for me!

 

SS really took great care of us on this trip. So glad we were able to explore this part of the world with them. Glad to hear how they stepped up and took care of you. Hope to see you again on another cruise.

[RachelG]

Can’t wait to hear about Easter Island. On my bucket list!

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

So we took a few minutes to enjoy the sunshine, and the surroundings. I can't believe that we are really standing on Easter Island!

 

 

It is a cute little airport.

 

 

Then we joined the rush into the terminal to pick up our bag.

 

 

We had our single bag within five minutes, then stepped out to catch the shuttle to our hotel.

 

Regarding hotels. We had been looking at the #1 luxury lodge on the island, Explora, for years. But when we finally decided to take the plunge and visit Easter Island, it was fully booked for one of the nights that we needed! So we went with the #2 hotel on the island, Hanga Roa Eco Village and Spa. It looks nice, and it's in town, as opposed to Explora which is off in the middle of nowhere. So we're hoping that the more convenient location pays off. Maybe we can wander into town on our own, in our spare time.

 

It was a 5-minute ride to the hotel and they had drinks waiting for us while we checked in.

 

 

The grounds look beautiful too. Here is one of the restaurants. We had booked a mid-range package with them that included one tour per day, breakfast daily, and one additional meal (lunch or dinner, with drinks) per day. So we'd be here a lot.

 

 

They also have a nice pool.

 

 

We had arranged for a private guide to take us around on Friday and Saturday, and we figure that we'll tour with the hotel on Thursday and Sunday. So we’d miss one hotel tour, but that should be OK. The hotel has packages with no tours or meals, and packages with two tours and all three meals, included each day. It's a nice range of options.

 

Soon we were shown to our room. Not without a hiccup though; the staff was surprised to hear that we hadn’t bought a park entry pass at the airport. Um... Sorry, I thought that the hotel includes tours in its package? If we had needed to buy this as an extra, I wish we'd known that beforehand.

 

Guess we have to take care of this before this afternoon's tour with the hotel. I hate surprises. It sounds like the hotel communications are taken care of by a central reservations office in Santiago, and sometimes (very important) things don't get communicated well from the island to the mainland.

 

NOTE to anybody else considering Easter Island. Buy a park entry pass at the airport. The desk is obvious and situated right where you come in from the tarmac; I saw it but assumed that the hotel would take care of that for us. It's $80 US in cash (NO CCs) or the equivalent in CLP.

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

So we were shown to our room at Hanga Roa Eco Lodge. Lots of stone and wood in the decor. Here is the living area, with a nice couch and drink table.

 

 

Our bed. This part of the room, and the living area, looked out through floor-to-ceiling glass windows, with a sliding door to the patio. And an ocean view. Lovely.

 

 

The tree trunks added a natural touch to the room. Behind the trees, there is a kitchenette with a high countertop, and a fridge, cooktop, and microwave. We put the Pinotel from yesterday's wine tasting expedition, and our Viogner, in the fridge to chill for later.

 

 

Here is the first part of the bathroom. The basin sinks, made of dark volcanic rock, were really striking. Further around the bend was a large shower, and a WC. There was a second WC at the entryway of the room.

 

 

So we settled in, collected our luggage, and got changed for our afternoon tour. We headed back to the main building (pictured below) to figure out how to get park entry passes in time to go on the afternoon tour at 3:00. The only other sales point was the tourism office, which was in town about a 15 minute walk from the hotel. We had about an hour to take care of that.

 

 

The pool looked inviting, but we had business to take care of first. The four of us needed park tickets!

 

 

However, our private guide had shown up to meet us, unexpectedly, and was waiting in the lobby. This was part good news, and part bad news. The good news was that he’d drive us to the tourism office to get the park tickets, so that part was easy.

 

The bad news. He said that he had "messed up" and double-booked himself for this time period, so he was committed to taking a Lindblad group out for the next few days, instead of us. Apparently he had us on his calendar for next week, and only discovered the error after he'd booked the other group. Incidentally, that was the group that had booked the Explora...

 

We decided that he would find a colleague to be a replacement guide for the four of us on Saturday, while we’d do two group tours with the hotel on Friday, and do Sunday around town on our ourn. That should work OK...hopefully!

 

It will end up being cheaper for us, and we’ll get to use all three included hotel tours. But talk about a last-minute change of plans!

 

But, we're on Easter Island, and in a few minutes we'll head out to the quarry to see moai. Life is good.

[jillyf]

Have enjoyed your trip report and look forward to more of Easter Island.

We stayed at Explora in 2009 and loved the history ( and mystery) of the island.

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

So, with our park passes in hand, we loaded up into a van for the hotel's 3PM tour. There were only the four of us, and one other couple. Looks like it will be fun! We were visiting the eastern part of the island, where there are two famous sites.

 

But first, we drove along the southern coast. Beautiful water color, and great surf. If you look far enough, you can see Antarctica - more than 5000 km to the south! So remote.

 

 

After about 30 minutes we arrived at Rano Raraku, the volcanic crater from which almost all of the moai had been quarried. Our guide gave us some of the history of the place as we approached. There are a few mysteries still about why so many statues were abandoned here. We heard some of those theories today.

 

 

We got our park passes stamped at the gate, and then we started walking along a path up the hill. There were countless statues scattered about the hillside.

 

 

Some were intact, and some had been broken.

 

 

Some were standing up, looking like they were meant to be placed there. But the statues were carved here to be brought somewhere else on the island. They were not meant to stay here. If a moai stayed here, that means that there was a problem with it, or it had been abandoned.

 

Moai had no symbolic power until they were placed on their platform. So even though this guy looks like he belongs here, it was probably not the original plan.

 

 

Another one, buried up to his neck (almost all of the moai were representations of males).

 

 

But this was just the beginning. There are supposedly 397 moai here, in various states of completion or ruin. I don't think we'll have time to see all of them.

[mysty]

JP, really enjoying this! We missed Easter Island in 2016 and I am happy to be able to see it now through your eyes and camera lens! Thank You!

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

So many moai!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We climbed up towards the actual quarry for an overview.

 

 

So, I will share my understanding of some of the theories that we heard today. Moai were carved to represent departed ancestors, most usually one who was a powerful leader. Once carved, transported to the ahu (platform), and erected on the ahu, the moai was given eyes. It was believed that the departed's spirit now resided in the completed moai, and gave protection to the living.

 

The handling of moai was subject to many strict rules. If any rule was broken, the moai would not be sacred, and therefore could not be used for its intended purpose. It was therefore abandoned.

 

For instance, a moai could not touch the earth. Our guide believed that during the initial carving at this site, extra rock was left on the back of the moai, so that they could be slid down the hill. Then they were stood up at the bottom of the hill, and that extra rock on their back was carved off. Then the moai were "walked" to their final destination.

 

This makes some sense. The finished moai have concave backs. Some of the moai here have convex backs which come to a point, like a boat's keel. Before and after.

 

Supposedly there are a few popular routes on the island, along which the moai were transported to the major ahu. Those routes are littered with moai who didn't complete the entire journey. They were left where they fell.

 

Fascinating. It sounds good. I have no idea what is historically accurate, but it's sure interesting to stand among the moai and hear these oral traditions come to life. Others who have visited - what stories have you heard?

[57 varieties]

JP, really enjoying this! We missed Easter Island in 2016 and I am happy to be able to see it now through your eyes and camera lens! Thank You!

 

 

 

Mysty, we saw the backs of their heads! Not quite the same though. Thank you JP.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[jpalbny]

Have enjoyed your trip report and look forward to more of Easter Island.

We stayed at Explora in 2009 and loved the history ( and mystery) of the island.

 

It was fascinating! Everybody had some different twist on the oral traditions. It just added to the mystery. And our hotel was great too. We ended up being happy that we had booked the place in town, instead of the Explora, but I am sure that Explora is great as well.

 

JP, really enjoying this! We missed Easter Island in 2016 and I am happy to be able to see it now through your eyes and camera lens! Thank You!

 

 

Mysty, we saw the backs of their heads! Not quite the same though. Thank you JP.

 

Mysty and 57 varieties, that scenario is my worst nightmare, and a big reason why we decided that we would not try to get there by cruise ship. It's at least 4 sea days to Easter Island from anywhere else, and that makes it such a lengthy proposition just to get there, so that's another reason that it wouldn't work for us.

 

But after all that time, to just sit there with it in sight but not land? I'd give serious thought to making a swim for it. But those waters are rough!

 

Silversea is being very optimistic in that they are actually doing an embark/disembark operation on Easter Island in October of this year. You can't dock a cruise ship there, so they will have to tender the guests and their luggage back and forth. They go from Tahiti to Easter Island, disembark/embark, and continue from there to Valparaiso.

 

Crazy! I hope the seas cooperate. BTW, both voyages are already sold out...

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

At the quarry, an unfinished moai. The front is carved but not the back. Nobody at this point knows how to finish the job. Was there an imperfection in the rock that caused the carvers to abandon the job? Or did work stop for other reasons?

 

 

In the distance, sea cliffs, rugged coastline, and an ahu with many moai. That looks like a cool place to visit.

 

 

This moai is Tukuturi. He is fairly unique in that he was carved with legs. He's kind of kneeling. The other moai are carved pretty much from the waist up. The statue is also made from a different kind of stone. They think that he is newer than most of the moai here, and probably carved somewhere else, and brought here.

 

 

A closer look at the distant ahu. I realized that this will be our next stop, ahu Tongariki. The iconic site, with fifteen standing moai.

 

 

So we worked our way back through the quarry. One lonely moai next to his birthplace.

 

 

And one very happy tourist! Wow. I can't believe we're here.

 

 

So why are there so many moai here in the quarry, and what about the unfinished ones?

 

Our guide's version of the oral tradition says that there was a civil war on the island. Perhaps the craftsmen were called home to fight? Or work stopped because the wars consumed all of the resources, and society could no longer afford the luxury of constructing moai?

 

Whatever the truth is, this is a fascinating place to see moai in all phases of construction. We learned a lot of history and understood a little bit about how the moai were carved. A great introduction to the island!

[RachelG]

Loving your pics, and your report makes me want to go there even more. How is the food?

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

So from here it was just a few minutes to ahu Tongariki. The fifteen moai look impressive even though they are all a little worse for the wear.

 

 

From here you can see the volcanic cone of the quarry, where we had just been.

 

 

The poor moai. They had suffered a double whammy. They were first toppled over during the island's civil war, and then swept several hundred meters further inland by a tsunami in 1960. Re-erecting them on the ahu was quite a project. Apparently the ahu had been totally destroyed by the tsunami as well, and had to be rebuilt first.

 

 

I'm glad that they went to all that trouble just to make a good spot for a selfie.

 

 

We headed around to the back to take pictures - trying to avoid all of those tourists.

 

 

Caught in the act!

 

 

I wish that the lighting had been better for pictures. This glare can be tough to deal with.

Edited January 31, 2018 by jpalbny

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

One last view of the ahu.

 

 

Chris with the "traveling moai."

 

 

This moai was lent to Japan for an exhibition in the early 1980s. This was the beginning of a working relationship between Rapa Nui and Japan, culminating in an offer by the Japanese to help restore ahu Tongariki.

 

The traveling moai has hands!

 

 

Another moai. This one has no eye sockets carved into its face. That means it was never erected onto the ahu. It may have fallen, or broken, before then. There was a very well-defined sequence for moai handling.

 

Once a moai had arrived at an ahu and was erected atop it, then the eye sockets were carved into its face. When the white coral eyes were inserted into the eye sockets, the moai was then ready to house the spirit of the departed ancestor.

 

Of course, there is always that one tourist who disobeys the sign.

 

 

After our visit, we went across the street for snacks and drinks. Like we really needed more to eat, but we obliged.

 

 

This guy was hanging around, just in case we had scraps. I think they know the routine!

 

 

Back to the hotel for some R&R before dinner.

[jpalbny]

Thursday, November 9th

 

First Day on Easter Island

 

Back at the hotel, we cracked a bottle of Pinotel open, and relaxed in our suite before dinner.

 

We had a great dinner at the hotel. They started us off with the drink of the day - a mojito.

 

 

The servings were bigger than expected. This is my appetizer - a ceviche sampler. It's big enough for two people to share as a full meal! But it was far too delicious to even consider leaving a bite.

 

 

Good thing that Chris's seared whitefish appetizer is smaller.

 

 

I had the local whitefish over "squid" cannelloni, which were stuffed with a delicious mixture of shellfish. I think they were squid ink pasta rather than real squid tubes. And that is a huge chunk of fish on top.

 

 

Chris had a preparation of salmon, but I didn't write down exactly what it was. It looks like it's wrapped in bacon and served with a mushroom demiglaze, over sweet potatoes.

 

 

We shared dessert but even that was excessive. I don't think I can move at this point.

 

 

There was plenty of nice wine to be had with dinner, as well. The all-inclusive meal really didn't cut any corners. A great dinner!

 

Our guide (former guide?) stopped by to invite us to have dinner with him, at his daughter’s restaurant, tomorrow night. That works OK for us, as we can have lunch at the hotel, as our included meal, between our two tours tomorrow.

 

After dinner, we relaxed on our patio for a while, listening to the surf crash against the rocks, and toasting our good fortune to have seen moai. Then it was time for bed.

[jpalbny]

Loving your pics, and your report makes me want to go there even more. How is the food?

 

Rachel, lots of good food to be had on the island. Our dinners at the hotel were great; some pictures above from the first night. We ate at a few restaurants around the island as well and really enjoyed the fresh fish and nice vegetables.

 

I was hoping to starve during these three days but no chance of that happening. It was just as decadent as Silversea.

[brimary]

Thanks for your detailed report and fantastic pictures which brought back many happy memories from a cruise on the Silver Shadow from New Zealand to Acapulco many years ago when the weather was kind enough to allow the Tenders in and out for approx five hours.A special Island which we shall never forget.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[jpalbny]

Friday, November 10th

 

Day 2, Easter Island

 

We slept in, and headed to breakfast around 8:30. It was a nice buffet. The coffee was strong and there was plenty of hot milk to go with it. There was an omelet station, a few hot foods, and plenty of fruit and pastries so all was good with us.

 

After breakfast it was time to head out on tour. This morning it was a little bigger group than yesterday, with the four of us and six Spanish-speaking guests. So the tour would be bilingual. That might be good, as it will give us some more time at the sites.

 

Our first stop this morning was Ahu Vinapu, which is tucked away in the southwest corner of the island, between the volcanic crater Rano Kao and the airport. It looks a little cloudy today as we arrived at the site. Hope the rain isn't too bad.

 

 

While the guide was occupied with the Spanish-speaking group, we had a chance to poke around the site on our own and take some photos. Although the ahu is in ruins now, you can still appreciate some of the very precise stonework that was used when it was built.

 

 

It was construction work like this which led Thor Heyerdahl to form his hypothesis that the Rapa Nui were influenced by contact with the Inca. Most now discount this hypothesis. Just because this wall looks like Saqsaywaman in Cusco, doesn't mean that it was carved by the Inca. There is no genetic evidence that the Inca were ever here.

 

Moai lie about the site, left where they fell when the ahu was desecrated during the civil war on the island. The old religion based on ancestor worship ended in the late 1700s, coincident with the moai being toppled.

 

Any moai that are standing today were re-erected in modern times. This is what ahu Tongariki must have looked like before the site was restored.

 

 

This moai is almost buried in the turf. You can tell that it was once erected on the ahu, because its eye sockets are carved out. It makes me feel like I'm in a graveyard.

 

 

And a hat. Called a Pukao, it represents the topknot worn by a cheiftan. It's carved from a different red stone than the moai are carved from. As if it wasn't hard enough to get a moai up on an ahu - they needed the extra challenge of getting this pukao up on top of the moai!

 

 

A desolate lonely spot now. But good to see this and compare it with the place that we saw yesterday - kind of a before and after experience. And we were duly impressed by the fact that this is 8 miles (13 km) from the quarry. That's a long way to walk your moai!

 

 

So far it hasn't rained too hard. Next we are off to see Orongo, which is a ceremonial village used after the age of the moai, when the cult of the birdman was the dominant religion on the island.

[jpalbny]

Friday, November 10th

 

Easter Island

 

Back in the van, we headed out of Ahu Vinapu and took a small road behind the airport. After a hairpin turn we started climbing up the side of the volcanic cone towards Orango. There was a view of the airport, and some volcanic cones, as we climbed higher.

 

 

After a brief stop at the visitor's center, we took the walking path into the ceremonial village. In the distance, the islets of Motu Iti, Motu Nui, and Motu Kao Kao were visible in the haze. Now I realized that these were the ones we saw on our approach to the runway yesterday.

 

The sooty tern uses these islets as nesting grounds.

 

 

There were circular stone buildings here at the edge of the cliff. Maybe we should crawl in and take cover. It's spitting rain on and off, just enough to be annoying.

 

 

Low ceilings and doorways! But, an awesome coastal location and view.

 

 

These buildings were used for a relatively short period of time every year, during the birdman ceremony. The winner of the competition became the birdman (Tangata Manu) for the next year.

 

Every year, the competitors for the birdman title would appoint someone else to go camp out on the islets, awaiting the arrival of the sooty terns. The competitors and their sponsors waited in the relative "comfort" of Orongo,

 

 

while the real competitors camped out on the islets and waited for the birds to arrive and lay eggs.

 

 

When the first egg was laid and found, it was collected by whichever of the appointees found it first. That person would then swim back to the mainland and climb up the sea cliffs, while carrying the egg, and present the egg to the person for whom he was competing.

 

That person then became the bird man for the next year. No word on what happened to the poor sucker who actually did all the work on their behalf...

 

It was a pretty tough competition. The swim to and from those islets is no picnic; some competitors drowned or were eaten by sharks. And the climb back up the steep sea cliffs narrowed the field too. All this hard work to get the egg so that somebody else reaped the glory and the benefit? A bit of a raw deal if you ask me.

[jpalbny]

Friday, November 10th

 

Easter Island

 

There was an overlook into the volcanic crater, Ranu Kao. You have a choice; with or without tourists in the way.

 

 

 

It's an interesting landscape down there. Supposedly there are some unique flora and fauna, but they don't allow tourists down there in order to protect said flora and fauna.

 

There were a lot of petroglyphs in the village. In the dim light they don't photograph very well. This is an example.

 

 

We made our way back to the visitor's center. Here they had a more modern petroglyph.

 

 

There were a few vendors in the parking lot, selling trinkets. We were more interested in a second crater overlook that we saw, a short scramble up from the parking lot. It's a little wet and raw this morning. Not the idyllic South Pacific weather today!

 

 

In this shot, you can see a low spot on the crater rim. This is the shortest part of the sea cliff, where the birdman competitors would climb up. Looks easy from here, right?

 

 

We had a bit more time here to enjoy the view, while everybody else used the facilities. We're not really that far from home, so maybe we can head back for lunch? The bathrooms in the hotel are probably a lot nicer.

[jpalbny]

Friday, November 10th

 

Easter Island

 

From our high viewpoint we could see the town of Hanga Roa, and the airport runway. Shouldn't be far, if we get a move on.

 

 

Time for a few more crater pictures.

 

 

Now we will get out of the way and let you enjoy the same view that we had.

 

 

So we gathered the stragglers from the WC and pried them away from the vendors, then made the short drive back to the hotel. We were back by 12:30 and ready for lunch shortly thereafter.

 

As it didn't look too bad out, we decided to sit outside on the covered patio. Service was quite leisurely, but the food was delicious. We skipped the appetizers today. I had a ceviche main dish.

 

 

Chris had a piece of pork loin with caramelized onions and fried potatoes.

 

 

We did save room for dessert, though. Meringue swimming in a tropical fruit syrupy puree. Time for an insulin shot!

 

 

The meal was relaxed, and the pace so leisurely, that we had to scurry for our check at the end of the meal - even though the meal was included you still have to sign for it. Then a quick dash back to the room to get ready for our afternoon tour at 3:00.

[spinnaker2]

HI JP.

Terrific thread!

Did you get to see any of the Moai that were excavated which exposed their torso and additional petroglyphs?

[Post it]

We're considering doing part of this trip including Easter Island and I've enjoyed reading your posts. What would be the minimal number of days to spend in Easter Island and what are the must sees on it?