Reality Tour, South America: All aboard!
Late yesterday on the way back to the hotel from Vina del Mar… (see video)
… we made two additional stops—one was a surprise to see an original (not replica) moai sculpture from Easter Island. My knowledge of Easter Island at the time was limited to this scene from the movie Night at the Museum:
Easter Island Head: Hey! Dum-dum
Larry: Yes?
Easter Island Head: You give me gum-gum
Larry: I give you gum-gum?
Easter Island Head: You new Dum-dum. You give me gum-gum.
Larry: Gee, okay, you know what? I have no gum-gum. Sorry. And my name isn’t Dum-dum. My name’s Larry.
Easter Island Head: No, your name Dum-dum.
[People screaming]
Easter Island Head: Oh, you in trouble, Dum-dum. You’d better run-run. From Attila the Hun-hun.
[Larry runs as Attila and his gang are chasing him]
Easter Island Head: See you later, Dum-dum!
Pat & Bob
So…the Easter Island Head in the movie scene is called a moai and there are more than 850 moais spread around the island which is called Rapa Nui by the local population. Easter Island whose name comes from its discovery by Dutch explorers on Easter Sunday in 1722 is the most isolated inhabited island in the world. Here are photos of Debbie and I and Pat and Bob in front of the moai sculpture. They are sort of like a mute sentinel and remind me of my 13-year-old daughter’s reaction when I inquire, “How was school today?”
This moai was brought to the continent in 1957 by ship and may be the closest I ever get to one. At 2,200 miles west of continental Chile and 1,290
Debbie and I: Easter Island, Moai Replica
miles east of the closest body of land, Pitcairn Island, it is difficult to imagine getting here anytime soon. It is essentially the remoteness of this island, which is no larger than the District of Columbia, that makes it so fascinating. As Max, our local guide tells us, moais are carved from compressed volcanic ash found on the slopes of the Rano Raraku crater. Moais average 13ft. in height and weigh in at around 12 tons. The fascinating part (for me at least) is how the Rapa Nui transported the moais from the Rano quarry to their final resting spot either erected atop an ahu (ceremonial altar) or left lying in transit to an ahu. I mean the weight of these sculptures is impressive but what is known about the transportation of the moais is they did so atop tree trunks. This is where things went horribly
Us at the Vina Mar Winery
wrong for the Rapa Nui. Their mode of transport led to deforestation which stressed the island’s environment and caused war, starvation and the toppling over of the moais. It’s hard not to love this kind of information especially when you try to fathom that we’re talking some time around the 8th century!
The second stop we made gave us our first real taste of Chilean wine. That’s when we stopped at Casas Rivas, established in 1992 at María Pinto in the Maipo (pronounced MY-po) Valley. The vineyards are planted at the foothill of the West Coastal Mountain Range and the main building constructed of cool, white stucco is enhanced by a sweeping veranda overlooking a reflecting pool.
The group gets a lesson on wine...baby grapes...Maggie, Lavinia and Kevin with their purchased wine!
When our group arrived in the late afternoon, the sun was still high in the sky bathing the entire valley in a golden glow. After a brief tour, we gathered around a weathered oak table set with wine glasses too numerous to count.
Wine Cellar
Debbie and I bellied up to the table and learned to twirl, sniff (rather forcefully I must admit) and sip a variety of wines. There was one that I particularly liked and eventually purchased a bottle to take home. It was Casa Rivas’ Gran Reserva Carmenére, made from Chile’s own signature grape. The story goes that this red varietal disappeared from European vineyards in the mid-19th century and reappeared among Chile’s Merlot vines a hundred years later. It has a spicy aroma that I learn is provided by being aged in French oak barrels.
For more on Carmenére, the Bordeaux of Chile, and its storied history, visit http://chilean-wine.suite101.com/article.cfm/carmenre_the_bordeaux_of_chile
posted by Melissa McKee
Collette Vacations
Tags: Chile, Escorted Tours, Food, Reality Tour, Winery
