attempting to punch policeman outside of buckingham palace. westminister abbey was closed again. (it was also closed the last time i was in london.) fortunately, i was able to get in early monday before my flight. the poets’ corner was my favorite. black cabbies in front of buckingham palace gratuitous tourist shot eye on the thames liane, raaj, & patella on millennium bridge
I usually ponder my next trip for a while, before I buy a ticket. About 3 weeks ago, though, a high school friend IM’ed me at work. I was mid work email, so I was ignoring him. :) And then he wrote something like, “I was talking to Liane last night… and we’re thinking of doing a long weekend in London. Flights are cheap. Wanna come?” My initial reaction, was… are you guys crazy? But, I checked and there was a direct flight from Seattle for $530. We figured out we could get free hotel on Starwood points. The trip …
Well, I’m back in Seattle! I have to say, it was quite a shock to go from bikini & sunglasses to wintercoat & boots. The 28 hours of travel was kinda exhausting too. The trip was fabulous, and just what I needed. I took about a zillion photos (okay, around 1200), so expect them to come trinkling in. In the meantime, here’s a video I took in Ranu Raraku, the volcanic quarry where most of the moai were carved.
Moai are the giant “head” statues found throughout Easter Island. They rest upon ceremonial platforms (called “ahus”), and represent different high-ranking ancestors. Archeologists estimate that 1000-some statues were carved between 1000-1600AD. All the maoi were made from the volcanic rock on the east side of the island. They were (likely) then rolled on logs to the far corners of the 60 sq mi island. Most of the moai were toppled by the 1700s, the result of inter-tribal fighting. (Deforestation, which caused an ecological & agricultural collapse, was a major contribution.) It wasn’t until this century that some of the moai …
*blush* hug!! “nose dive”….. get it??? 🙂
On the east side of the island is Rano Raraku, a volcanic crater that served as the moai quarry. Walking around Ranu Raraku there was something eerily magical in the air . Some of the statues were half carved, still firmly in the rockbed. Others were sticking out of the ground, waiting to be finished and dragged to their final locations. I went several times, at sunrise and at sunset. The colors changed so drastically, from morning to night. And even as the sun went moved in & out of clouds. …
I returned back to Ahu Tongariki several times, including once at sunset… all in a row close up solitary moai sitting on a rock, waiting for sunset. (that’s my shadow) can you see me? look closer. me
Planning this trip in August, I was captured by the idea of seeing my first Easter Island moai at sunrise on January 1st. On the island on December 31st, I tried to figure out how to make it happen. I had heard that biking around the island was fairly easy – this place, afterall, isn´t that large. However, after renting a bicycle, I discovered the best place for sunrise is Ahu Tongariki, which is on the far east side of the island. The (only) town of Hanga Roa is, of course, on the far west side of the island. Yep, …