It was another early day for us. Our flight to Easter Island was scheduled to depart at 8:20AM, and we needed to be at the airport two hours before departure since it was an international flight. It was close to a six hour flight, but we gained two hours with the time zone difference. So we were able to check into the Tahai Tai Hotel around noon.
After getting settled into our room, we took a ten minute walk into the one and only town on the island. At this point, we were pretty hungry, so we walked into the first restaurant we could find. We had lunch at the Haka Honu Restaurant where we watched surfers from our outdoor seating. I ordered steak with mushrooms served with sweet potatoes. This steak was definitely better than the one I had yesterday, and the sweet potatoes were also very good. Alice ordered a chicken and shrimp noodle dish. I tried some of her dish, and it was pretty good also. The noodle dish definitely had some Asian influence to it. We both had fresh juice to drink – guava and papaya.
After lunch, we continued exploring the town. During lunch, it got pretty cold because of the ocean breeze, but as we walked further away from the ocean, it got hot. Then out of nowhere we were hit with rain. If we didn’t find tree cover, I think we would have been drenched. During our stroll through town, we saw an arrow sign for a Museo. So we decided to follow the arrows and look for this museum. After what seemed like an eternity, we finally found the Museo Antropologico P. Sebastian Englert.
It was a pretty small museum but also pretty informative. Easter Island is actually formed by three different volcanoes. I also learned a little bit about the Moais (the giant statues of heads for which the island is famous). The historians all agree that the native people constructed the Moais to represent their ancestors. But there are many different theories as to how the Moais were moved from where they were constructed to where they stood.
After the museum, we retraced our steps back into town and did a little souvenir shopping. Now why is it that as soon as you buy a souvenir, you will find it cheaper at the next store? We shopped until 6PM, and then made our way over to La Taverne du Pecheur for dinner. Alice had spaghetti bolognese which was more spaghetti than bolognese. I had Red Snapper Aglioli which came with so many sides, I don’t think I will be able to name them all. The fish itself was delicious. But it also came with a stuffed tomato, garlic mashed potatoes, taro, a stuffed spiky potato wedge, and rice. It was the best meal I’ve had so far on this trip, and I’d definitely recommend La Taverne du Pecheur if you’re in the mood for seafood.
One thing we forgot to do was carry a flashlight with us on our stroll. By the time we finished dinner, it was dark. We managed to get back to our hotel safe and sound, but next time we won’t forget the flashlight. After a long, adventurous day, we were ready to wash up and head to bed. But wouldn’t you know it….no hot water! So we ended up switching to a different room. It’s almost 11PM as I am writing this, so it’s time for me to go to bed. It’s another early start tomorrow.