Irish I Could Rent a Car . . .
moai, some taller than 30 feet. No one knows why or how the statutes were built. Until relatively recently, historians believed the island was first colonized by South Americans between A.D. 400 and 800, but genetic testing has proven that the inhabitants' ancestors were Polynesian.
The island gets upward of 20,000 tourists each year. Most visit in January and February, when the islands' 3,000 or so residents celebrate the cultural Tapati festival. The only way to get there is to fly from Tahiti or Santiago on LanChile (866-435-9526,
www.lan.com
). From Washington, the round-trip flight is about $1,690 and takes between 19 and 24 hours each way.
The island has about 50 hotels, inns and private home accommodations and 20 restaurants. Sights include Rano Raraku, where nearly 400 statues in varying degrees of completion are strewn; Ahu Tongariki, with 15 standing statues and petroglyphs; Ahu Akivi, a well-preserved platform of seven moai and stone columns sitting in line with the summer solstice; and Anakena Beach for swimming and snorkeling.
Info sources include the Chilean Tourism Promotion Corporation (866-YES-CHILE,
www.visit-chile.org
) and the Easter Island Foundation (
www.islandheritage.org
).
© 2004 The Washington Post Company
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_____Correction_____
The June 20 Travel Q&A column incorrectly stated the Project Liberty Ship in Baltimore will offer a free six-hour cruise to veterans and military personnel Nov. 6. The company has not yet decided what Veterans Day-related activities will be offered this year.
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