Monumental Magic

Easter Island intrigues with its mysterious stone statues.

- KIM FOLEY MACKINNON

THERE IS NEVER A MOMENT on Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, as it’s commonly called, when you aren’t intensely aware of exactly where you are. The tiny island in the middle of the ocean is so far removed from the mainland — about 2,200 miles from Chile — it is one of the most remote places on the planet. Its mysterious moai, the giant heads that graced countless magazine covers and intrigued explorers for centuries, fascinated me for as long as I can remember. I was young the first time I learned about them, and they seemed one of the most exotic things in the world. I vowed to see them in person one day.

When I finally got the chance to visit, I was thrilled. Nothing you see in books, magazines or films can do them justice. The carved stone blocks average 13 feet in height and weigh about 14 tons. No media can convey the intense feelings the moai spark as you stand underneath them in person, gazing up in wonder. It’s humbling and puzzling to think of the effort it took to carve and erect these giant figures, for purposes which we may never understand.