Needles and pins

Oh, hello there. What day is it? I´m a little confused and I´ve lost track of the date. Oh well...

I´m on Easter Island (or Isla de Pascua or Rapa Nui depending which language you use). I arrived yesterday and I´ve already seen my first Maoi. This afternoon I´m doing a tour and I´ll be doing another one tomorrow - as my good friend G once said "Why do it yourself? You´re on holiday and you´re paying for your leisure" I like not having to worry about driving, reading maps, remembering where I am or where I´m going. I like leaving that to the professionals. Ok, it can get a little crowded at times but as long as I get time to take photos and absorb some of the atmosphere, I don´t mind. After all, I am on holiday, why should I get stressed and why shouldn´t I contribute to the local economy?

Anyway, my photos of Valparaiso are up on flickr.com and I did get to ride the funiculars as well as walk the hills for several hours. The naval museum was interesting and had some beautiful stained glass windows. The hostel was pants but clean and quiet so I´m not really complaining. I had my first Pisco Sour (which, I think, is Peru´s national drink). Very interesting. At first you think "Nice, refreshing, not too sweet" then you notice your tongue and lips are tingling and five minutes later they are numb and you are feeling tipsy. Still, as fast as it comes on, it disappears. Lovely - must try that again.

On my last full day, I set out to find the old prison but first I went to the "Monumento A Los Heroes" which commemorates the war between Chile and Peru in the 1800´s. Very impressive and I even managed to get a photo without any tourists but with a couple of sailors. I don´t know if they were supposed to be guarding the monument, providing information or just photo opportunities but I did notice how much they enjoyed having their photo taken with the tourists. From there I went up a funicular but I kind of chose the wrong one (oops). So, making the most of it, I decided to walk from one hill to another. On the map it looked easy... well you know me and maps. I did walk for about three and a half hours. I didn´t find the old prison but I did follow the signs to La Sebestiana. This is one of the former homes of Neruda (Chile´s Nobel Prize winning poet). The signs indicated it was just around the corner. It wasn´t. Two hours later I finally roll up at the gates to find that it´s shut on Mondays (so that must have been on Monday). I took a couple of photos through the gates just to prove I´d been there and then started the long weary walk home. I had noticed buses and collectivo taxis along the way but they all seemed to be going in the wrong direction. Anyway, eventually I found myself on the corner of a street I recognised just as a trolley bus appeared, so I hopped on (only for a couple of stops). I can now say I´ve ridden a trolley bus - yeah me!

Remember, the photographic evidence is on flickr!