Week 22

It’s been so nice to see my family again and be able to spend time with them in my new home-away-from-home. I pick up my story with Easter Island. On Monday, we took a tour of Rapa Nui with one of the decedents of the Polynesian natives. Needless to say, we saw a whole heck of a lot of Moai (the large stone heads all over the island) as well as ruins from where the people had lived before their island was taken over and their culture diminished. While interesting, it was a bit slow, but a nice relaxing way to start off the week in a new place.

 

Monday brought us a new adventure with horseback riding to the highest peak on the island. I can still feel the aches from where I discovered new muscles I didn’t previously know I had! Nevertheless it was a lot of fun and a great way to explore more of the culture and scenery in a non-harmful way, environmentally speaking. The views were definitely worth any left over pain as well, as you could see in almost every direction, where there was just water and more water, stretching into infinity.

A nice hike up to the top of another of the island’s three main volcanoes was the activity of choice on Tuesday. It was nice and gently sloping for the most part, but as soon as you reached the crater the winds started blowing like crazy! This volcano blocks much of the strongest wind that hits the island, but the damage this element has done is quite extensive. The side of the crater that faces the ocean lacks a huge chunk due to constant wind and water erosion. However, while it is almost impossible to stand while on the rim, the inside of this same crater is home to many different plants and animals.


Humans were not so smart, and built a community on the hillside which we visited. The people living there had been spiritual leaders, and as such there are many intricate petro glyphs carved into the rock, available to views by the public. While they must have been crazy to want to live up in such a high, windy spot, the sentiment is carried even further when you learn about their “birdman” competition. Every year the chiefs of each tribe or their representatives would swim through shark-infested waters to camp out in caves for a few weeks, waiting for a specific species of bird to lay eggs. The man who brought back the first egg successfully was honored as a powerful figure, and his tribe earned power in otherwise tumultuous times. Looking down at those islands, it was easy to see that the people of the time were either very desperate for a leader, or just plain crazy.

Tuesday we also went to a super cool performance of traditional Polynesian/Rapa Nui dancing and music. I don’t know how the men were able to move their feet so quickly, nor how the women could possibly move their hips the way they did, but it was really cool to watch and observe another aspect of the culture. (Plus the male dancers were really good-looking!)

Thursday we went up to Valle Nevado, near Santiago, to go skiing in the Andes! While I can’t say I’m really a fan of down-hill skiing, it was really cool and the conditions were far superior to those in the North-East of the US. There was actually powdered snow (not just ice) and a lot smaller crowds. The slopes also lacked trees, a nice change as you could see for miles around and enjoy the scenery when not negotiating a tricky run. All in all it was beautiful, and a real treat to behold.

My 2-week solo trip to Argentina began on Friday! Walking through security was an interesting experience, as there was not just one line for international departures, but two: one for those going to the United States, and one for everyone else. Needless to say, the “everyone else” line was significantly quicker and more relaxed. Customs was also a lot faster and lax, which was nice.

Friday and Saturday I spent in Cordoba, Argentina, accustoming myself to a new country, and more difficult, a new accent. When I first tried talking to an Argentine I had the hardest time understanding about half their speech. While I’m now pretty sure in what they’re saying, it still presents a difficulty at times, especially with the tendency to make “shhhh” sounds where I don’t expect them to be! On the visual spectrum, the first pass I made through the plaza principal gave a sight of what I’d consider the most stereotypical Friday afternoon in a plaza to be. There were people sitting and talking, drinking mate, and even some elderly people dancing traditional dances. (Turns out that it was a “talent show” put on by the elders of the community, but at the time I didn’t know that.) The city is really friendly, and not even too hard to navigate, so I went walking around seeing what there was to see.

 

Saturday I got up early(ish) to go on a tour in the area around Cordoba. The tour took us on a scenic route past lakes and mountain passes, to a small city called La Paz. There we visited the giant cu-cu clock in the middle of the square as well as an alfahor factory (alfahores are traditional cookies.) The free samples were quite tasty! We also took a cable-car thingy up a surrounding hill, where you got a view of the entire city and lake: a gorgeous area that is famous for tourism.

I’m posting a day early because tomorrow I travel to Buenos Aires all day, so there won’t be much to say and I probably won’t have internet. However, keep reading because I’m going to try to post every Sunday, if possible, even while traveling.