25 Aug – we get up early. I dislike getting up early. But, I figure it is worth it to go to Rapa Nui. Bus to airport, and a quick breakfast at a cafe called “ARS” (juvenile snort chuckle). During breakfast, we experiment on the best way to eat the rather large and messy burgers they serve here. Each person with a different method. I think my civilised use of cutlery was the loser. But, my lack of appetite due to over-exposure to alcohol last night may have hindered my efforts. Take note, All Blacks.
But – onto plane. All sitting seperately. Pen again gets a faulty entertainment unit, and an australian couple next to her who ask three different air stewardesses to fix it. Ben gets an english couple, and decides not to talk to them when glancing across to see the music playlist set up by the girl. I sit next to a woman who is just plain annoying. And chats to me. I hate that.
Arrive on Rapa Nui. Airport is exactly as you’d expect/want from a small island airport. Walk across runway, past palmtrees, into tiny airport. Big bloody stone head outside. Cool. Walk through touts, and take name of one hostel cheaper than the rest. Ignore offers of free transfers, and walk to town. Find the cheap hostel, and check in there. Basic, but cheap. And price rises a bit when we ask if we can use the kitchen. Oh well. Then, a walk to and along shore. Big bloody stone head. Very expensive restaurants. Big stone head that looks a little tard-like. Well, very tard-like. Boggly eyes too. Lunch at a small relatively cheap place. Back to hostel, and then Ben & I head to the supermarket for supplies. Going to cook at home. Stop at a bar on the way back. Cocktails. Pen eventually comes to find us. She takes the groceries home, then joins us. After quite some time, a local man starts calling Pen “Princess”. Rather smitten. We decide to leave, and weave our way home. Cook ourselves some dinner, and drink some wine. Pen’s new boyfriend turns up, walking into the hostel with a flower for Pen. Creepy. We somehow convince him to leave. Then, Ben (of all people) wants more pub. So, we leave Pen – and head to the pub. Just notice Pen’s boyfriend staggering around the back of the hostel. Follow him, and have the “friendly-menacing” chat. Walk him back to the bar, and sit down with him for some drinks. One girl warns us off a certain bar. After a little while, we leave. And head straight to the other bar. Well, straight there after getting a little lost. Walk in – and turn a few heads. Have a few beers, chat to a few locals, until Ben’s head droops onto the table. I think maybe he’s pretending to be sleeping to get rid of the local chap trying to give/sell us the marijuana. But – after local leaves, I struggle to get him awake. For a moment, I declare him clinically dead, and am a little worried. I’d forgotten his love of falling asleep at bars. Anyway, I manage to wake him – and we head home.
Just in time for 3 or 4 hours sleep before getting up on 26 Aug, to go get our rental car. Well – 4WD Suzuki thing. Leave a little later than we expected. Find a big bloody stone head. Not knowing protocol, we climb up onto the platform, and are sitting on the platform drinking chocolate milk when locals start yelling at us. We head off quickly, and read our map which explicitly states this is bad. Drive to somewhere with a touristy sign. Look at some stone circles used to grow crops in. Boring. See a track. Follow it, up a hill. Long way up a hill. At top – there is a road. We could have driven up. Not happy. But – nice view of a crater. Pretty. Then, the old village of Orongo. Houses, etc. View of where the fellows used to swim out to an island – and the first one to get a certain egg and return with it was named as the Bird Man for that year. This was at the end of the civilisation – when the locals started to get even more crazy with their original “Let’s build big feking stone heads” religion.
Anyway, walked all the way back down to our geep (avoiding copyright issues). Then, back to town to use a safe toilet, and have some lunch. And plenty of water & b-b-bounce. Still feeling seedy, headed up the west coast. Big bloody stone heads. A fair few of them. By themselves, and lined up on platforms together. All big. All bloody. All stone. All heads. Nutters. Finish the loop of the west coast with the quarry where they made the ‘hats’ for the big bloody stone heads. Different colour rock. For hats. Absolute nutters. Back to town, and feeling good again. Go watch the sun set over a group of 4 big bloody stone heads. Then, find a restaurant, and have dinner. Rape rape – a type of small lobster.