A Strange Land & Meandering Through Mendoza

In Search of the Birdman......

Imagine this.  There is a land with excellent resources discovered by very adventurous people who travel over long distances at sea to establish a new society.  They fish, hunt, harvest and generally prosper.  Their population grows but as centuries go by they become more polarized, competitive and they fight among themselves. They invest tremendous energy and labor in idolatry. They also totally destroy their ecosystem resulting in a complete breakdown of society and the ultimate near annihilation of their citizens. OK.  Come on. Guess.  What country?  NOPE.  It's Easter Island...a cautionary tale if there ever was one.

I Had No Idea

For a little island this one packs a punch.  First of all it is one of the most remote places on earth.  It is 2,182 miles from Chile and there is NOTHING but water in between.  We flew in on a Dreamliner 787 which was a great flight.  I think they use the new, spiffy planes because you are in big, big trouble if something goes wrong mid way. It is a strange looking island.  At one time there were no palm trees...actually very few trees.  They completely deforested the place and are now trying to replant -- it takes time with trees.  There are three theories about the trees;  1) They used slash and burn agriculture and got carried away; 2)  They brought the dreaded Pacific rat with them on their canoes and they LOVE palm roots and THEY got carried away or;  3)  In order to get the giant Moai (see below) to their ultimate resting sites they were carried away on downed trees.  No matter, the result was catastrophic.

The first moai we saw were recreations...

with symbols on the back.

A pukao (which represents the topknot of the chieftains) lying on the ground. The pukao was carved out of red scoria, a very light rock.

Various moai which have been restored.

These moai heads found near the quarry were much larger than the moai pictured above.

These rocks symbolize the belly button of the earth.

The moai were placed so as to face inland.

When the moai were toppled some suffered more than others.

It is likely that you never delved into the history of Easter Island during World History.  So, here we go with the Cliff Notes version.  Somewhere between 700 and 1100 AD settlers (they're not sure from where exactly) traversed 1,600-2,000 miles of the Pacific in canoes or catamarans carrying everything with them that they would need to form a new settlement. Whew!  They were a clan based society and, at some point, decided the best way to honor their most noteworthy clan members was to erect Moai.  Yes, those are the gigantic stone figures you always see in articles about Easter Island.  So, over 400-500 years they quarried, sculpted, hauled and erected 887 Moai.  They always faced inwards from the shore so they could keep an eye on their clans.

So, they started out with about 100 people (a guess) and the population grew to a height of  10,000-15,000 (another guess).   At this point conflict over land, water, and probably girls, arose and the clans started fighting as well as enduring famine (they ate the rats and some veggies).  Oh, and each other.  Yet another cannibalism story.  So our guide is walking us through this depressing history and we get to cannibalism and I'm ready for the "integrating the spirit of the warrior", "gain the strength of the enemy" pitch we usually get.  However, when asked he replies that they ate each other because "they were hungry".  Hot damn.  Somebody who finally calls a spade a spade.

So, by the time the Europeans arrive, in 1722, there are only about 2,000 Rapa Nui (what they call the indigenous).  But don't worry, between the Europeans and the locals, they manage to reduce the population to 111 by 1877.  How did they further decimate the population?  Let us count the ways: 1) more famine; 2) more fighting; 3) enslavement by Peruvians (called Blackbirding which sounds benign); 4) smallpox, measles, etc. Everybody was so disenchanted by the mess they had created that they started toppling the Moai in order to "destroy the socio-spiritual power or "mana" of the statues". Somehow, I don't think we can lay all this on the Moai.

In several areas of the island the surf was quite dramatic.

We saw individuals and groups using outriggers...

as well as surfers. This is the first surfboard with a hydrofoil that I have seen. Notice how high the surfboard is above the water

The landscape on Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) is quite dramatic.

There were natural caves among the cliffs by the ocean.

Deirdre couldn't resist playing with these little puppies we encountered.

This particular puppy was very shy.

We also encountered chickens at one lunch stop (this was a lucky one that didn't end up on the menu.

It also avoided this predator.

This Catholic Church in Hanga Roa, with its construction of native stone and markings on the column, was unique.

These carved columns on this store were also very interesting.

A carved tree stump by the quarry...

and a strange stone sculpture at our hotel.

Finally the Birdman

Having now endured a recitation of their bleak history, I shall launch into a description of the Birdman religion/cult.  Every year contestants, all prominent, were chosen to participate in the Birdman  contest.  God knows how they ever thought this one up.  OK, the contestants don't actually compete but they get a "lesser" person to be their surrogate.  There is a huge cliff, choppy Pacific water filled with sharks and an island (also with huge cliffs).  So, at the word GO!, the hopus (lesser folk) climb down or fall down the cliff.  If they live, they swim across the channel to the island.  There they search for -- are you ready?-- the first sooty tern egg of the year.  This can take days.  Once the lucky participant finds one, he secures it in a reed basket that he ties to his head for the swim back.  Meanwhile, when the egg is found, screams are launched to the mainland saying:  "Go shave your head, you have got the egg."  Which the sponsor of the lucky hopu does.  Once the egg is given by the hopu to the contestant whose shaved head is painted red or white (winner's choice I guess), the contestant takes it in his hand and is ready for his prize.  While his clan gets food and stuff, he is locked into a ceremonial house where he lets his nails grow and wears a headdress of human hair.  He is completely secluded and only allowed to eat and sleep.  Most "winners" lost their minds after a few months.  And that passed for sport on Easter Island.

The island in the background was where the contestants had to reach.

The ceremonial houses were made of stone with earth on top.

A rendering of the "bird man".

These cows were grazing on the cliffs above the ocean.

These next photos show the crater from an extinct volcano.

The crater fills with rainwater and islands of reeds and grasses have formed on top of the water.

The sunsets were very dramatic.

From Rigor to Relaxation

We'd been traveling for almost 20 days at this point and Michael's gimp factor was ratcheting up. We'd been on far too many planes and buses and we needed some downtime.  And some wine.  So off we flew to Mendoza -- just the two of us.  Mendoza is famous for its vineyards, wonderful climate and dramatic scenery.  When we arrived it was raining torrentially and we couldn't see either vineyards or scenery as we wended our way towards the Air BnB I had rented for the week.

It didn't go smoothly.  First, our hostess Graciela, was a sort of frantic melding of the mother-in-law on Bewitched and Lucille Ball.  The apartment was more cramped than anticipated (how DO they DO that with the photos on line?) and it was pretty chilly.  By morning, Michael was in a snit and suggesting we depart.  He was so cold that had been forced to sleep in his socks, the roof had leaked and we had no wi-fi.  Of these,the greatest sin was no wi-fi.

Graciela appeared in a frowsy whirlwind of friendliness bearing a huge tray with a bounty of breakfast arrayed upon it.   I started my speech; "Graciela, you are very nice but I don't think this is going to work out.  You see, the roof leaks, it's freezing and we can't communicate with the world."
Startled, she almost dropped the breakfast tray and burst into tears.  Pointing proudly to the 4.7 Star decal on her door she said, "By this evening, everything will be perfect.  My reputation is at stake. Trust me."  What could we do?  We shrugged our shoulders and departed for the nearest winery to nurse our grievances.

Sure enough, Graciela pulled it off.  Extra space heater, roof fixed, wi-fi --well, better at least.  We said we'd stay.  The next morning Graciela arrives at our door in a frenzy to announce that someone has thrown a rock through the back window of our rental car.  This is not relaxing.  By this point in our traveling lives this kind of thing just makes you glower and move on.  Go to the airport, new car, done.

We went to the best Spa of our lives in Mendoza.  There really isn't much to say about it because, you know, it's a spa.  But the photos will show you how cool it was.  Also, they strictly limit how many people get in, so you are never tripping over each other or fighting for a rock to sit on or anything.
One strange thing we saw in Mendoza.  The Malbec we buy at Costco is cheaper than the same Malbec in Argentina -- odd, yes?

This was on the ceiling of an old shopping arcade in Mendoza.

You never know who you might run into --- even in Mendoza.

We were also entertained by this group of gauchos with their ladies as the danced in the pedestrian way of a shopping district.

One of the wineries we visited for lunch had an amazing backdrop of the Andes.

Since this was Argentina all the meat was cooked on an open fire on the grill.

The winery also had an art collection consisting of sculptures & paintings. The floating balls were designed to give an ever changing view.

This bird was hanging out on the winery lawn.

A view from one of the spa pools to the river and canyon.

The spa consisted of many pools with different water temperatures (all very warm to hot).

This swimming pool was up above the thermal pools, but was also heated by the thermal springs.

There was even a private chapel on the grounds.

The view of the mountains on the drive back from the spa.

So from Mendoza it's back to Santiago and then on to conquer Patagonia.  We'll try to finish up this series with the next post.  Happy Post Thanksgiving.  Brace for Christmas.