Day 5: Rapa Nui

Today we went diving at two very nice sites off the coast of Easter Island. The coral is very nice and the formations made by the lava are fun to swim around and through. It reminds me of diving off the south coast of Lana'i in Hawaii with its sharp cliffs and interesting underwater lava formations. However, the islands are devoid of much in the way of aquatic life which is unfortunate. Tomorrow, conditions permitting, we will hopefully be able to dive near the little islands off the southwest coast (the ones which were the site of the triathlon competition that I described earlier in the week). After diving and some lunch, we set off on our bikes for the highest peak on the island: Maunga Terevaka (550m above sea level). Unfortunately, the dotted line on the map that we chose to reach the base of the extinct volcano was basically some cow tracks through the endless fields of lava rocks. It's crazy - the whole interior of the island is just covered in lava rock. Anyhow, we reached Ahu Akivi which is the only main Ahu that is not found along the coast and was restored in the 1960s. It is also interesting that it faces directly towards the setting sun on the Spring and Autumn equinox perhaps suggesting some sort of astrological meaning. From Ahu Akivi we climbed and climbed toward our final destination. Again, no real path to speak of. And as such, it seemed to take forever to hike up to the top (with our bikes). We got to the top, and quite honestly, it wasn't that impressive. But hey, it was good exercise nonetheless.

Not the best photo, but just to illustrate how rocky the interior of the island is. That is Maunga Terevaka - the highest point on the island off in the distance and where we would ultimately end up at the end of this ride/hike.

Ahu Akivi - seven inland moais looking towards the sea.

Us at the top of the island on Maunga Terevaka. You can also see the town of Hanga Roa off in the distance.

Day 4: Rapa Nui

Yesterday we intended to watch the sunrise at the impressive Ahu with fifteen moai that showed up in pictures a few days ago. From there we were going to set out on bike to visit the northeast part of the island including the area where the moai were made and then on to the beach. Unfortunately, we encountered a whole lot of rain and instead of a sunrise per se, it just kinda got light out. So we got a ride back to town and slept through the rainstorm. By midday the weather had improved and we set off on bike to explore the southeast part of the island which is littered with a bunch of ahu sites where the moai have not been restored to their upright position. Not only were the sites pretty cool, but also the views of the ocean and the massive waves crashing against the rugged coast were an awesome site.

Ahu Vinapu - this ahu is thought to be from a later period of construction and conspicuously appears to have the same fine mason work as that found in many of the Inca sites in Peru.

Ahu Vaihu - This site was kind of neat because many of the top knots ended up quite a distance from the acutal moais after they were tipped over. Some even rolled down to the rocks of the inlet that is adjacent to this ahu.

Lovely sky above Ahu Ura Uranga

Ahu Akahanga - the last stop on our bike tour before turning back towards town.

Ahu Huri A Urenga - This moai is interesting in that he has four hands. If you look closely at the belly of this moai you can see the four hands carved into the stone.

Blog Update:

Hope those of you who have been dropping in from time to time are enjoying the blog. It was a hurried process to get it up and running, but Spain photos are now all up and captioned and Marta has written a little synopsis of our time there. Photos of our host families in Peru were added to the Peru post and several photos have been added to days 1-3 of Easter Island. Hope to upload a few photos of a pretty lazy day 4 later this evening. -Drew y Marta

Day 3: Rapa Nui

Today Marta and I went SCUBA diving off the coast of Easter Island. The main attraction was a moai statue that was apparently a replica that was made that fell off the back of a British vessel into the bay. Oops. After diving we washed some clothes, ate lunch and then set off on bikes to the top of one of the volcanoes on the island. It felt great to be on the bikes even though it was hotter than blazes and really humid. The ride was enjoyable and the views made it worth the trip. There is also an important archeological site at the top of the volcano called Orongo. Photos of the trip and an explanation of Orongo are below.

This is Rano Kau volcano crater on the southeast end of the island. It was a 1 hour bike ride to the top - hot and humid.

Feels good to be on the bikes, but wish our RC crew could be hitting the trails with us.

Petroglyphs at the Orongo archeological site. This place was home to an annual ceremony which sounds a lot like a triathlon. Competitors would swim out to the far island seen in this photo, scale the cliff, retrieve an egg, climb back down and swim back across the channel and present the intact egg to the competition organizer. The winner was awarded one of several virgins who were kept in a cave about 20 km away. The virgins would stay in the cave for the three months preceding the competition to lighten their complexion as that was a desirable trait (Marta and I would be very desirable I guess). Several virgins were kept in the cave so that the winner would not have to wind up with one of his cousins. Inscribed on the petroglyphs are the not only the winners, but also those who died in competition.

Singletrack!

Heading back down to Hanga Roa.

Day 2: Rapa Nui

We spent today on a tour with Paul showing us around the majority of the island and the major archeological sites. All deserve more time to be spent at each, so we have rented bikes and will explore most in that manner later in the week. Tomorrow we will go SCUBA diving and then hike (or bike?) to the top of one of the volcanoes to see the crater.

Moai at the Ahu Tongariki which was not placed back on the Ahu. The mountain in the background is the site of the quarry where all the moai on the island were carved.

Ahu Tongariki

Ahu Tongariki - the largest Ahu site restored. Fifteen moais are lined up here and there are several that were not repositioned (like the one in the above photo). Also many had "top knots"as seen on the one just over Drew's head. It looks like a red hat that is on top of it. However, these were thought to represent the hair of the person depicted in the moai. They were carved at a separate quarry than the moai - thus the different color. The top knots are larger than a SUV.

Ahu Tongariki - four of the fifteen moai are shown here, including a better view of the gentleman wearing the top knot.

Playa Anakena - this is one of the only white sand beaches on the entire island as most of the coastline is very rugged. It is at the very north end about 20km from town. The palm trees were a gift from Tahiti. Interestingly, you don't find too many palm trees on the island because apparently the wind that blows on the island makes it difficult for them to grow.

Ahu Nau Nau on Playa Anakena - this is the site where researchers discovered the moai likely had "eyes" made of coral.

Day 1: Rapa Nui

We arrived to Easter Island on Sunday morning. Slept off the jet leg and then got a tour from our guide Paul - an American who worked on some of the archeological digs in the 60s, married a local Rapa Nui and now calls the island home. The stone figures also called "moai" are massive in size and grandeur. Just hard to wrap your head around how someone cannot only conceptualize creating something so great, but also execute the carving and transport of such behemoths. The photos below are from Ahu Tahai which is a striking site just on the edge of town and about a five minute walk from the house where we are staying. Ahu is the complex and platform on which the moai stand.

Peru

We're back in Peru for the first time since leaving the Peace Corps. Went to see our host families from training in Chosica yesterday and also saw much of the Peace Corps staff in the office. Nice to be back. Off to Easter Island tonight (Saturday night).

Drew's host family during Peace Corps training in Chosica (about 1.5 hours outside of Lima). A very sweet couple and their grandchildren that live with them. Victor, Ubalda, Yoko, Amador y Sarita.

Marta and her host mom Leonor in Chosica.

Spain

Marta is going to write some profound thoughts about our vacation here....

I finally have time to sit down and reflect on our trip to Catalunya. It has been a whirlwind few weeks since we returned from Spain, and I have yet to really look at our pictures!

Drew and I spent the first two weeks of March exploring Catalunya (aka around Barcelona). It was a great vacation to take our minds off the upcoming Match Day! I have wanted to go to Barcelona ever since I saw my brother's pictures of Gaudi's spectacular creations - he really is one of the greatest and most artistic architects I have come across. We planned half of our trip in the Catalunya countryside and the other half in Barcelona. If we not braved the mini European rental car for that first half, I don't think we would have been satisfied with the full Catalonian experience.

We started off our trip barely making it out of the parking garage in Barcelona and accidentally drove directly through Barcelona rush hour traffic. Drew perhaps only yelled at my navigation skills about five times. It felt like we were on the Amazing Race, haha. We managed to make our way north up the Costa Brava, stopping for lunch at a beautiful small town called Tossa del Mar. The towns were half open as it is still winter there, so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. We happened upon a Travel & Leisure article before leaving that recommended a rural hotel in the medieval town of Ullastret. We may have been one of two couples sleeping in the town that evening, but the owner and chef cooked us a magnificent and typical meal. The food was all local and the sheep were raised on traditional, organic grains. How Portland, right? Usually Travel & Leisure is out of our price range, but this was a terrific find! We visited another local medieval town before heading farther north to the Cap de Creus Peninsula.

We spent the next night in Cadaques - a small coastal town put on the map by Salvador Dali. Here is where he spent his summers painting and where we were able to visit his house in Port Lligat. If you thought, his paintings were odd, his house is just as unique. You can see the bear entryway in our pictures below. His classic "egg" symbolism appears throughout the garden - I believe to represent pregnant or fertile women in many of his paintings. I'm not up on all my Dali art history, however! On our way back inland, I made Drew drive up a foggy, windy road to the Sant Pere de Rodes monastery. I was shocked to find it open as it looked absolutely deserted when we walked up.This place was an amazing find - built in the 10th-11th century with pristine views of the sea on a clear day. Perhaps I would have been more impressed with the Montserrat monastery outside of Barcelona had we not found this place. But it was great to have the place to ourselves. Finally, we made the necessary stop at the Dali museum in Figueres, a work created by Dali himself displaying much of his art and personal collection. He is even buried there!

The next leg of our trip was to the cava (same as champagne but produced in Spain) and wine region. Fortunately we made friends with the hotel owner who happened to also be a FC Barcelona socio. He invitared us gratis to Barcelona vs. Real Zaragoza and even bought us a bottle of cava in a special socios' only room prior to the game. How we landed that deal, who knows....but it was amazing to finally attend a European soccer game with 92,000 other fans at Camp Nou. The cava and wine region was good - honestly we didn't really know what we were doing because apparently many of the places require pre-arranged tours. But we did get to see two cava/wineries and pick up some good bottles of wine for Carnival!

After 4 days with our rental car, we paid the hefty $60 airport tax and $60 for a half tank of gas and finally started using public transportation. The first stop - Sitges, Spain - 40 km south of Barcelona known for its Carnival, amazing beaches, and gay nightlife. We arrived at 9am to a town that appeared empty...as 11am rolled around, the boardwalk filled up as people recovered from their hangovers and ready for another day of Carnival! Drew and I enjoyed a day of sunshine at a cafe and the beach before transitioning to Carnival mode. Of course, we had to carry a bit of wine out in our empty diet coke bottle....and slowly the beach filled up with young adults ready for an evening of fun. We saw the childrens' parade in the afternoon and then staked out a spot at the main square to watch the Carnival parade. It started at 9pm...by midnight, there were still more groups to come. Drew got some amazing photos of the costumes.

Finally on to our five days in Barcelona. Of everything we did, the Gaudi places were the most amazing. It was a bit of a shot to transition from the countryside to Barcelona, which is a huge touristy city. We stayed at a small, budget hotel on Placa Catalunya - a perfect location between Las Ramblas and the newer Eixample district. We arrived at Gaudi's Parque Guell on the first afternoon and could hardly walk around the number of tourists. Of course we soon realized why so many people vacation to see this city. Park Guell was originally designed to be a gated community but it was a bust and eventually donated to the city. Gaudi's famous gingerbread houses mark the entryway and there are beautiful of the city from the hill above. Perhaps what I love most about his work is the bright tiled colors, lack of straight lines, and design based on nature. This is most apparent in the Sagrada Familia, where you truly feel like you are walking through a forest by the way the columns branch out to support the facades. You can check out some of Drew's captions about more of Gaudi's work below. Day 2 began with Sagrada Familia....usually I get bored after seeing too many churches but this is definitely not a church to get bored with. The interior has a balcony that can seat a choir of 1,000 - seriously?! The design of the church is so intricate, it is hard to believe how something like this was even constructed. Although the work continues today, they hope to complete the church in the next 30 years (after only 130 prior years of work!).

Other highlights of Barcelona include walking down Las Ramblas and through the maze of streets of the Barrio Gotica, visiting the Joan Miro museum and the Castle in Monjuic, and taking the cable car up to the monastery Montserrat. Finally, our last day was spent visiting Gaudi's famous apts on Passeig de Gracia. Below you can see pictures of Casa Mila (La Pedrera - my favorite!) and Casa Batllo. Both are amazing for different reasons. The entryway of Casa Mila feels like you are entering a rain forest while Casa Batllo has more of a water theme with many hues of blue. I think I am talking too much about Gaudi and not enough about the rest of Barcelona, but visiting his work definitely vale!

Hopefully you can enjoy many of the great photos (curtesy of Drew) below. I think it is now my responsibility to make a photo book, haha.

Hasta la proxima! Marta

Barcelona

Parque Guell - originally designed as the centerpiece of a sixty house upper-class community in Barcelona. The housing development never materialized, but the park remains as one of Gaudi's more well known works.

Gaudi's house in Parque Guell

Intricate detail in Parque Guell - this is ceiling of the columned terrace.

Famous Lizard at the lower entry to the park.

"Gingerbread" houses at the entrance to the park

Sagrada Familia

Gaudi used nature as his inspiration in all of his work. Note how the columns branch like trees and the ceiling tiles look like leaves.

The organ was designed by a renowned organ maker from Barcelona. Much of the work that has been done since Gaudi's death has been done by Catalan artists and various artists from other regions of Spain.

The church is designed in the shape of a cross. The head of the cross is where the alter sits. The other three points of the cross are the main entrances each representing different parts of the life of Jesus. This is the passion facade.

Note the stark, almost cubist design found on this facade symbolizing the sorrow of his death. This shows one of the nine scenes depicting the last days of Jesus' life. This shows one of those who judged Jesus washing his hands as his wife on the right hand side of the photo walks away in sadness and disapproval as he has judged an innocent man.

The divinity facade is the other of the three entrances that is complete. It was the first to be done and Gaudi actually oversaw some of its construction. (The third - to be the Glory facade is under the early stages of construction.)

You can take an elevator to the top of on of the bell tower. From there you can see a lot of the current construction as well as views of Barcelona. You can also appreciate the intricate detail that is found throughout the structure.

"What is the truth," and many other sayings are inscribed on this, the main door of the passion facade.

Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau in Barcelona. Built in the same modernist style of the early 20th century that made Gaudi famous. This was built by another modernist architect, Lluís Domènech i Montaner.
More about him here if interested: http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/travel/19cultured-barcelona.html

The tour was kind of a bust and the who place is under renovation and perhaps someday will be worth the 10 euros apiece that we paid for the tour. They recently stopped using the hospital and so it is only now that they are restoring it

Placa Catalunya at the top of Las Ramblas. This is the view from our hostal room.

Las Ramblas is a busy pedestrian street filled with tourists and street performers.

Placa Reial - plaza in the Gothic district of Barcelona with restaurants surrounding the square.

Tram to the top of Montjuic. Montjuic is a hill in Barcelona home to parks, museums and a lot of the 1992 Olympic sites.

Montjuic Castle at the top of the tram.

Main entrance to the Olympic Stadium.

Olympic Stadium. Surprised that it really did not seem that big.

Tapestry created by Joan Miro displayed at the entrance to the John Miro Museum

Famous Miro work outside. Um... apparently no photos inside the museum. Lame.

National Museum of Catalan Art. We didn't go in, but building looked cool.

Tram ride to the top of Monserrat - a monastery that is about 1.5 hours outside of Barcelona.

Us before our admiration of churches wore off.

Inside the church.

Right behind me in this photo was the sacred Virgin Mary found in a cave nearby (very John Smith sounding story). Anyhow, that was apparently the most sacred part of Monserrat. Oops. Didn't realize that until after we walked by it.

Not sure what we are looking at.

Famous choir boys. They perform for 15 minutes at 1pm each day. Not sure what they do the rest of the day.

Marta and her friend Rick's book.

Entrance to one of the two famous apartment buildings designed by Antoni Gaudi. This one is called Casa Mila "La Pedrera." Both were phenomenal. Gaudi worked with the concept of total art - meaning that he not only designed the structures, but also the doors, furniture and more.

Note even Gaudi's influence on the iron work that adorns the outside of the windows.

The arched "attic" area of Casa Mila. Was a functional place for tenants to do their laundry and also provided a way to trap heat in the winter months and release it through windows during hot Barcelona summers.

Roof of the Casa Mila. Nothing was left without his artistic touch.

Chimneys and water towers on the roof.

Natural light was a key element in the apartments as well. Each of the apartments had two courtyards that allowed natural light to flow into all of the tenant's complexes.

Outside of Casa Mila.

The following photos transition to Casa Batllo. This is the ceiling of the main room of the first floor of Casa Batllo. Gaudi was contracted by a wealthy Barcelona family to renovate this apartment building. One of his only renovation projects I believe. The wealthy family occupied two of the floors of the building and the remaining floors above were apartments.

View from the main room of Casa Batllo onto Las Ramblas.

Difficult to find straight lines in the place.

Looking up one of the two opening in Casa Batllo that provided the natural light.

Note how the tiles get darker towards the top. This was to balance out the light that would enter. The darker tiles at the top would absorb more of the light than the lighter ones at the bottom. This, in theory, allowed for a more even flow of light and color in these openings.

Gaudi used arches in almost all of his works. He used weighted strings upside down to formulate the arches in his head - much like a necklace hangs forms a natural arch on someones neck.

Rooftop of Casa Batllo. Smaller and less impressive than Casa Mila. (And it was overcast.)

More arches. Almost appearing as the ribs of a whale.

Looking through one of the glass pieces that served as a railing. Apparently was trying to create the sensation that you were underwater.

The detail of the doors and railings was just amazing.

Outside of Casa Batllo. You can kind of tell how Gaudi just built out on the existing structure on the lower floors.

Casa Batllo. The patios almost look like Carnival masks. Some speculate that was Gaudi's actual intent since the Carnival parades did pass by the house on Las Ramblas.