Ahu, Moai and Pukau

So having worn our feet and legs out yesterday we took the guided tour slightly further afield on the island today.

First stop Ahu Akahanga which is a large Ahu with several fallen Moai we also saw remains of a village with canoe shaped houses, caves and old stoves.

Then onto Ahu Tongariki which supports 15 Moai that were re-erected by a Japanese company because a huge tsunami in 1960 knocked them all over with a look out over Peninsula Poike and the oldest part of the island - this is where the first of the three volcanoes that formed the island is.

After that to Rano Raraku or the nursery. This is where the Moai were hewn from the rock using basalt axes and the like. Then they were rolled down the hill into a hole so they could stand up. In this way their carving was finished with obsidian tools and then the carvers let the families know their moai was finished - delivery was not included!

Had lunch here and then onto Ahu Te Pito Kura and the largest ever erected Moai - 9.98m tall and 60 tonnes of it. It was another fallen down one though. Humour of the visit here was the oohing an aaaahing by the other people on the tour when we got to the "tummy button of the world" a big rock supposedly bought here by Hotu Matua when he claimed the islands. It apparently gives out energy and can affect a compass. I kept quiet about the fact that this just meant it had lumps of iron in it and let the guide break the news!

Finally to Playa Anakena - one of only two White sand beaches on the island for a bit of a chill before heading back.

Phew what a day.

Tomorrow having come one third of the way towards New Zealand we are going to go back the wrong way and head off to Miami so might be quiet for another little while hopefully we're sleeping on the plane! Always assuming we survive dinner tonight as we found a supermarket and hostal has kitchen so it's Chilean supernoodles (from Japan).

Oh and in case you were wondering an Ahu is the platform, the Moai are the big statues and the Pukau is the topknot that supposedly copies their hairstyle. we didn't realise there was so much fashion involved but the original Moai were quite small and then later they became bigger with pointy noses and the like. When they had their eyes painted in it meant their spirit was alive.

Biggest Moai not erected was 21.6m tall and it's still lying down in the nursery. Personally I think the best one is a much older one called Tukuturi which is quite short, he is sat on his feet and has a little goaty beard.

Enough info for now - and we are leaving our first guidebook here to save weight - enjoy the picture of Playa Anakena.