Chile 2017 - Final Blog

San Pedro de Atacama – Day Four (26/05/2017)

The flight back to Santiago wasn’t until the evening so I had the morning to do more meandering around San Pedro de Atacama.  It is very small though and apart from shopping and eating there’s not a lot to do!  I took a walk through the cemetery which was a slightly odd place.  Lots of very simple graves of earth next to much more extravagant small buildings made of breeze blocks to house generations of the same family.  I’m normally ok in graveyards but this one was giving me the creeps.

The archaeological museum was closed for refurbishment but one of our tour guides had recommended the Museum of Meteorites.  It is nothing more than a large dome tent but for a few pounds you got an audio guide and the chance to see and feel some meteorites, including some of the oldest material ever found.  It was ok but the explanations were quite wordy and technical and difficult to follow.

Back in town I had lunch in the plaza and bought myself a final souvenir, a lovely ring of silver and lapis lazuli.  My Aussie and Kiwi companions joined me on the transfer and the flight back to Santiago – they were then connecting back home while I had one final day.  From Santiago airport I took a shared taxi again to my hotel.  The CasaNoble Boutique is a lovely little hotel, right in the centre of quite a decent part of town and it was a bargain!  Jay had recommended a restaurant in the area so I quickly changed and went straight back out to Casa Lastarria.  It was a really nice meal of slow cooked pork ribs that fell off the bone.  After dinner it was time for bed.

Santiago – Final Day (27/05/2017)

I didn’t rush up or out on my final morning but I wished that I’d been a little more speedy!  My breakfast was amazing, best of the whole holiday.  The shower was less so but eventually I headed out with the plan to visit a vineyard towards the south east of the city.  As it was still early and I didn’t fancy drinking before lunchtime I had a walk around the area near the hotel (I think I retraced some of the steps me and Josselyne took but we were too busy chatting for me to take much notice!). I found myself at a metro station, charged up my Bip! card and took two trains to Las Mercedes.  Lots of people visit Concha Y Toro, the famous vineyard behind the Casillero del Diablo brand but our guide at Valle de la Luna had introduced me to the Carmenere which is famously produced at Santa Rita.  A 30 minute bus ride later and I was left at the entrance.

It was a long walk around the vineyard to the visitors centre.  It was a gloriously sunny day and I’m sure it was the quietest place I had been to.  Everywhere else had either the chatter of tourists, the crash of the sea or the hubbub of the city.  All I had to accompany me was birdsong, the babble of a stream and an occasional light aircraft.  In keeping with the rest of the morning I perhaps meandered a little too slowly and consequently missed an English tour at midday by 10 minutes with the next not being until 3pm.  This wasn’t overly appealing as I knew the journey back to my hotel was liable to take 2 hours but I was kindly shown a few things I could look at in the mean time.  I started with lunch in the onsite café (the restaurant was way to pricey!).  Next was a museum – the owner of the vineyard Ricardo Clark has collected a huge amount of Andean and pre-Colombian artefacts and he offers them on display here for free.  There are (as always in these museums) lots of pots but the items that particularly caught my eye were the gold and the weaved materials.  There were some large gold pieces but the intricacy of some of the tiny pieces was a real thing of beauty.

It was already 14:30 when I came out of the museum so I decided that I would take the 3pm tour.  And I was very glad I did as I was the only one and I had a private guide!  The bulk of the tour is not so much around the vines themselves but inside showing the machinery and explaining the process.  The steel vats used for fermentation are vast and there are a huge number of them.  As it was also the weekend we were the only ones in the building so, rather excitedly, he took me up the metal stairs to get an overhead view from the gantry.  Even the guide had never been up here!

The cellars with the barrels of red wine had a really curious and strong aroma to them, the smell of red wine and oak.  There were some huge old wooden barrels that have been replaced by the steel.  I was also shown into the original cellar.  This has been damaged by the earthquakes in the area – unsurprisingly the walls have had to be reinforced as the original structure was held together by egg-whites!  This cellar is now a national monument.  Another cellar at the conclusion of my tour is where 120 patriots sheltered during Chile’s war of independence in 1814 (Santa Rita produced a commercial, easy-drinking wine called 120 in tribute).

This was where my tastings were to happen.  Again, this was really well explain, how to look at the wine and what to look for.  How to smell the wine and finally tasting.  There was a white blend, a red Cabernet blend and a Carminere (of course!).  It was a nice generous amount to taste too and I was sold on the Carminere and bought a bottle (if I had more room in my suitcase I’d have bought more!).  By now it was well past 4pm so I walked round to the entrance in the hope a bus would stop and take me to a metro station (any would do!).  I didn’t wait long but it was a rather nerve-wracking journey not knowing where I was going, where I should get off and just keeping a sharp eye out for the Metro sign.  It definitely took longer than I expected and by the time I got back to my hotel I had less than an hour to change and confirm plans for the evening!

I wanted to see both Josselyne and Marillion fan Nicole again so I suggested all three of us meet up.  There had been a bit of back-and-forth regarding a meeting place.  I knew I was early but Nicole got stuck in traffic and Josselyne was fashionably Latino late – I was starting to think I had been stood up and with no connection I wasn’t sure what was happening!  Both did arrive however and Nicole drove us to her apartment from where we walked to La Nunoa.  We stopped at a bar for terremotos, pisco sour and a bite to eat and chatted about all sorts of things.  It was gone “last metro” time when we decided to leave so Nicole drove us back to my hotel where I had two single beds so Josselyne could stop over as her place was a little further out of town.

Travelling Home (28-29/05/2017)

So I now find myself in Madrid airport with a particularly annoying delay.  Josselyne came with me all the way to Santiago airport and it was lovely to have someone to say goodbye to at the security.  I’m so glad that Jen put us in touch and that I took up the offer of a friend in Santiago.  I was checked into one of the worst seats on the plane – the back row – on a horrible old Airbus rather than the nice Dreamliner I had arrived on.  Fortunately the guy in the middle of three seats managed to get moved so I had a little more space.  It was a very turbulent flight with the seatbelt signs illuminated for most of the journey.  I dozed on and off – the neck cushion I bought made things a little more comfortable but I still couldn’t sleep properly.  However on waking from one doze I noticed that was were to land on Gran Canaria!  I had heard a call for a doctor earlier in the flight and it had been decided to stop to let the passenger get proper medical attention.

This was not looking good for someone with some pretty tight plane changes.  British Airways had been trouble with computer problems over the weekend which was already making my route via Heathrow look tenuous.  And what makes it all so annoying?  My flights via Heathrow are scheduled to be on time but the medical delay meant that I missed the flight from Madrid.  There are plenty of other flights but BA’s backlog means I’ll be 6 hours delayed getting back into Manchester.  It’s almost like I’ve been tempting fate.  I’ve thought with every flight that I would rather my final journey is the one to cause me problems – I think I’ve changed my mind!  Still, the diary for Chile 2017 is complete.

Over and out…

San Pedro de Atacama - Days 2 & 3

San Pedro de Atacama – Day Two (24/05/2017)

As I said our early start wasn’t quite as early as expected – our original pick up time was 5:30am but it had been changed to 6:30am for safety reasons.  It has been unseasonably cold here and there is a lot of snow and ice on some roads making them unsurpassable.  However our trip to Tatio Geysers was still going ahead which we were grateful for!

I knew there was the potential of being a bit cold but hadn’t really grasped the concept of an altitude of 4000m so I put on as many layers as I could including my new alpaca jumper.  We also had additional blankets provided for us in the minibus.  Joining Helen, Kerry and I were four New Zealanders.  The temperature certainly descended as we climbed higher and whether it was due to cold, the thinning of the air or just general tiredness I dozed off on a few occasions.  The landscape was changing from desert browns, gradually greener, then whiter of snow.  At one point when I woke I was surprised to see the view completely white!

Once at our first stop we wrapped up in everything we could (I was very grateful of the blanket which I used as a scarf) and were shown around the geyser field.  At 4300m this is the highest geothermal field in the world.   There are over 80 active geysers making it the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere (a fact somewhat disputed by the Kiwis in the group!) and the third largest in the world.   There are no dramatic spurts of water but the steam rising from the ground is somewhat eerie.  We made a couple of stops to look at various rock formations created by the boiling water and also heard stories of accidents due to tourists trying to get the best photos and falling in (someone recently died from 90% burns).  The different colours in the rocks were rather fascinating.  It was also interesting to see the activity cycle between the different geysers.  Very difficult to get photos at just the right time though, especially with frozen hands!

Due to the early start breakfast was included in the trip which we had in view of the geysers.  Breakfast al fresco at 4300m is a chilly affair and our guide and driver did a great job (I really wish I’d taken a photo!). Copious amounts of toast were provided with butter (rather solid), cheese, ham and dulce de leche.  We had been out for a good few hours by now and I’m not normally one to do anything until I’ve eaten, so with that and the cold I was famished and ate as if I hadn’t been fed for days.  Coffee and hot chocolate were also brewed, best drunk in a mixture of the two.  It felt rather insane to be stood outside the van in the sub-zero temparatures and winds!

On the way back down we stopped a few times to observe the birds and animals native to this part of the world.  I managed to catch a photo of a vicuna (an elegant type of llama) that crossed the road in front of us along with various coots and ducks on a small patch of frozen water (sorry I can’t remember exactly what for the bird fans!). We also stopped at Macucha, a very tiny village which is largely empty apart from tourists for most of the year.  Here I was able to try some llama that had been very nicely barbecued.  Our final stop was a canyon which is particularly green and where there is evidence of human habitation from thousands of years ago.

Our half day tour over and back at the hotel at midday I updated the diary and then went for a venture.  I bought a lovely ice cream from a local shop and walked to the square to try to pick up wifi but it doesn’t seem to have worked at all while I’ve been here.  I then remembered there was a football match on - the Europa League final with my team Manchester Utd playing Ajax of the Netherlands.  Given the events in Manchester over the last few days I particularly felt that I’d like to watch it so I found a table in the only bar in town, grabbed a litre of beer and settled in.  It’s a great little place playing rock music and it was full of English speakers.  Man Utd came out 2-0 winners in a win that felt it was a great tribute to the great city.

Two pints of beer on a relatively empty stomach at high altitude made me rather woozy so I grabbed and empanada at a local store (and rather impressed myself with my Spanish.  Maybe I should just get drunk in these places).  I thought I’d take the opportunity at the warmest part of the day to have a shower and wash my hair.  No water in the shower hot tap.  Reception was visited, a workman called out but it couldn’t be fixed.  They offered me an alternative room but rather than move all my unpacked stuff I asked if I could just borrow the shower in the other room (which is opposite so no major problem).

I met Helen and Kerry for dinner and we opted for Las Delicias de Carmen which had been recommended to both me and Helen by others.  It was ok but not amazing, the portions are huge and we all wished we’d taken the guide’s advice and just ordered two dishes between the three of us.  This place also isn’t cheap, something that the Aussies were struggling with after weeks in Bolivia and Peru!  We didn’t have enough Pesos to cover but fortunately I had enough for mine and they could pay in US dollars.  Nowhere seems to take credit cards here!  A relatively early night reading and a good night’s sleep was in order.

San Pedro de Atacama – Day Three (25/05/2017)

Our final tour was to take us to the salt lakes and the lagoons, however the bad weather was to hit our full day excursion.  We again had a slightly later start than normal.  The 8:30am pick-up meant I could enjoy the hotel breakfast – this hotel is pretty simple but the breakfast was probably my favourite of the trip (so far!).  All pretty standard fare but the crusty bread was fresh, the coffee was excellent, the juice was freshly squeezed and the fried eggs were top quality.  All finished off with cheesecake (well if it’s on offer it would be rude not to!).

Salar de Atacama is just 10km south of San Pedro but we travelled further to Laguna Chaxa.  This was definitely the bit I was looking for most on the “desert” section of the trip – flamingoes!  We took the long path round, enjoying the view and waiting for a large group of noisy Brazilians to move on.  The vastness of the flat is very other-worldly, especially for an islander.  The salt here isn’t white but more coffee-coloured due to many other minerals that also accumulate (lithium is among the mining here).  The pools of water evaporate to leave a brine in which millions of tiny brown shrimp live.  This is what attracts the flamingoes.  It was here more than anywhere that I really wished I had a “proper” camera.  I took lots of iPhone shots, hopefully some are worth keeping.  They were fascinating to watch.  There are three breeds and the Chilean flamingoes in particular turn in tiny steps to throw up more shrimp to feed.  There was something rather balletic about them.  There were also avocets, Andean gulls and plovers which were rather friendly and gave me my best photos!

We could have stayed and watched them for ages but moved on.  We took the road towards the high altitude lagoons of Minique and Miscanti but the road was shut just after Socaire.  This was where we were to take lunch but as it wasn’t yet midday it wasn’t ready yet.  Our guide showed us around a rather uninteresting church and it was around now that Kerry floated the idea that instead of our guide trying to fill time until our scheduled return of 4pm that we would be happy to just go back to San Pedro.  He came up with a few ideas but it was rather cold to be seeing things we weren’t that bothered about.  We agreed to think about it over lunch.

While we waited for lunch they agreed we could visit a hydroponic greenhouse in the village.  It’s obviously quite difficult to grow anything in the land around here due to the harsh and ever-changing conditions so the Chilean government has invested in the project.  Having worked on farms I find this stuff quite interesting.  They have lots of lettuce in various stages of growth.  The most impressive things was how consistent the crops were!  They also have various chards, spinaches and greens, strawberries and sweet peppers and they previously had a crop of fava beans.  It’s an impressive little operation.

Lunch was really good.  Our guide had brought some coca tea which was nice enough (he promised us we wouldn’t see white elephants from drinking it!) and the restaurant provided a vegetable soup, steak, rice, quinoa and salad and a set vanilla cream to finish.  We agreed when we got back to the bus that we were happy to go straight back to San Pedro which was still some distance.  We did make one stop at the road sign declaring the Tropic of Capricorn.  Again I dozed on the way back – as intriguing as the scenery is it’s also a little monotonous in this area.

More diary writing in my room, listening to the winds and rain in the driest desert in the world after seeing Facebook reports of glorious summer in the UK.  Typical!  Then out to do final souvenir shopping (I’ve forgotten what I’ve bought for who now).  The wind had whipped up a lot of dust so I braved a shower despite the cold in the room and the wind whistling through the window in the bathroom.  It was certainly refreshing!  Everything was unpacked and repacked, just leaving the last items for Santiago at the top (I’ve tried to do this as intelligently as I can!).

For my final evening in San Pedro I was meeting up with two Marillion fans who I first met at the weekend and who were in town.  I had passed Jay on the street the day before and Matt was flying in as I packed and got ready!  I met Jay near the one “pub” but it was packed so we found an alternative restaurant.  There’s only one place which doesn’t serve food so we felt a little conspicuous sat just drinking.  The place was nice enough, we sat outside by the fire listening to some live music and catching up.  When Matt finally messaged to say he and his friend Tony were checked in we moved on to La Pica Del Indio which I chose purely because it’s highly rated on TripAdvisor.  It turned out to be a good choice!  I had steak with mushroom sauce and piles of fries but having had a bit to drink and not eaten since lunch I almost finished the lot!  Jay had been out all day and had an early start so left and Tony also left a little earlier.  Matt and I ventured for somewhere else to drink and ended up in Adobe again, sat around the fire.  They said we couldn’t drink without ordering food which was a great excuse for dessert!  I had a chocolate mousse with basil which was stunning.  We were kicked out at closing time of 1am.  Probably a good thing…

Valparaiso / San Pedro de Atacama (Day One)

Valparaiso (22/05/2017)

Lots of guide books and people had recommended taking a trip to Valparaiso, a port city 90 minutes from Santiago.  Malcolm was transferring to the Crowne and by the time I had packed and checked out it was gone 11am.  We took the metro to Pajaritos and then picked up a bus.  The journey was largely uninteresting but it did take us past some vineyards.

Valparaiso – or Valpo as the Chileans call it – has it’s bus station on the opposite end of town to where we really wanted to go but we decided to walk across town as we didn’t have any firm plans.  I’ll be honest, I didn’t much like the place!  It’s all very run down.  You can see that it would have been very pretty in it’s day but everything is covered in graffiti, smashed windows and some are just facades propped up by scaffolding.  This is not just human dereliction – earthquakes have caused a lot of damage and the city, despite being a vital port, never seems able to fully recover it's former glory.

We walked west, stopping for a pizza on the way.  We gazed up the hills surrounding the city, steep streets with multi-coloured houses as far as you could see.  There are many funiculars that transport people up and down.  We made it to the port end and took Ascensor Artilleria.  This gave us a great view of the choreography of the port with trailers and containers weaving around.  The streets up here were a little nicer.

Time was ticking and I think both Malcolm and I were tiring of the place so we embarked on the walk back to the bus station.  It must have taken an hour – it was a long way!  By the time we got back to the Crowne so that I could pick up my luggage it was gone 8pm.  Sadly no time for a final drink.  Back in the metro, suitcase in tow.  Back to Pajaritos for the airport bus.  Then back out from the airport in a shuttle to my airport hotel.

San Pedro de Atacama – Day One (23/05/2017)

The two hour hop to Calama departed at 7am.  Not much comfort in this plane but I dozed and wrote a few words inspired by the sad events back at home in Manchester.  It felt particularly poignant, having travelled so far to go to music concerts and have such carnage take place at an arena I’ve been to so often.

During the 90 minute transfer I got acquainted with two British-born Australians who were to become my buddies for the trip.  They have been in South / Central America for three weeks and this is their last trip.  My hotel is much more basic, especially coming from a Western chain in the city!  And it’s so COLD!  The adobe buildings are far to insulated from the warmth for my liking!  I had plenty of time before the afternoon excursion so a wonder around the town of San Pedro was in order.

It’s not very big, full of hotels and hostels, tour companies, gift shops, restaurants and a bar / café or two but it still has a certain charm.  It’s what I imagine parts of Glastonbury Festival to be like if it were a permanent place.  I had decided I needed extra layers for the early morning trip tomorrow so I bought an alpaca jumper and gloves.  I also scoped the stalls out for more gifts (further shopping to be done on Friday morning!)

When the sun came out it was nice and warm so I sat in the square for a mochaccino and a chicken quesadilla, listening to some terribly cheesy panpipes from around the corner.  I then came back to the hotel and sat around the pool writing some diary.  The pick up for the afternoon / evening tour was 15:30 and we were heading to the Valle de la Luna.

It wasn’t too far to drive and we all agreed to take the walking option rather than the driving.  As the altitude is around 2400m our guide took things slowly – I had already noticed I was getting breathless quite easily.  The landscape is stunning and amazingly very variable, with many different rock formations in view at any time.  You could also see deposits of salt from the Salt Mountains which border these valleys and the salt flats (which I’m visiting on Thursday).  I took a few photos but it was almost impossible to capture the magnificence of the vista.

Back in the van and a drive to Valle de la Muerte.  This was never intended to be the Valley of Death but the Valley of Mars.  The geologist (I think our guide said he was Belgian) who named it was misheard between Muerte and Marte.  This was our spot for sunset and we were told that this would be an unusual one for us as we would be looking east, not west.  Indeed as the light dimmed the colours in the west were constantly changing.  It was stunning.  We then enjoyed some complimentary Chilean wine and cheese as we watched a few stars come out.

We were returned to our hotels around 6pm and told that our pick up time was slightly later than previously planned - only 6:30am!  We were also instructed not to eat too much and to not drink that night.  I arranged to meet my new friends for a light dinner.  After a bit of looking around we chose Adobe which has a nice open fire in the middle.  Taken out guides advice two of us had starters and Helen – who has been a bit poorly for a few days – ordered pasta which we all helped finish.  The wine we’d already drunk was enough in any case!

Marillion Weekend - Days 2 & 3

Marillion Weekend – Day Two (20/05/2017)

I decided to have a somewhat lazy day on Saturday.  It was a little more hassle finding somewhere for breakfast on a weekend – the place from yesterday was shut and McDonalds didn’t deem to have any breakfast.  I found somewhere for some eggs, ham and toast, then returned to my room to write up the previous two days.  A protest or parade of some sort came down the road so I nipped down to take some photos.

At around 2pm cabin fever set in so I crossed the road to Centro Gabriela Mistral, otherwise known as GAM.  This is a huge art centre with galleries, performance and rehearsal spaces along with a bookshop and a wine shop.  I stopped for coffee and cake, then had a look at a couple of galleries, one showcasing Chilean cartoon illustration and another with handmade toys from around South America.  The most striking thing about the centre however was that there were teenage kids dancing EVERYWHERE!  I don’t know if this occurs every weekend or if there was something in particular happening but the courtyard was full of rehearsal and choreography.  There seemed to be one major piece being taught in the middle but all around were other small groups.  The majority were street / RnB style but there was also a duo of tap dancers.  Musically there was an unspoken democracy where no two groups would play at the same time.  I sat in the sunshine at a bar with a Piscola, watching these talented youngsters practising over and over.  It was inspiring and my kind of bliss!

I had to tear myself away to get ready for the evening.  We were meeting at a bar just south of my hotel.  It was a nice little place and  many of my new friends were in attendance.  I grabbed some (proper) food and probably made to leave 3 or 4 times before the last of us walked the mile to the venue.  Teatro Caupolican is a fine concert hall but it is in the middle of an area with no bars and few restaurants.  It’s not the nicest area and not somewhere you want to be hanging around too long.

The Marillion gig tonight comprised of an edited version of Clutching At Straws and a few other Fish-era classics before a full performance of the new album FEAR.  The seats again gave a slightly odd atmosphere although the crowd did stand and dance a little to Incommunicado and Market Square Heroes.  The first three (of five!) songs from the new album are terrific and The Leavers feels particularly poignant at these Weekends.  However for me White Paper is nice enough but has little impact and The New Kings leaves me cold – it’s a rather strange track to end the concert with and it almost felt as if we had to wait 22 hours for the encore.

Another quick run around the venue as the merchandise stalls shut to count and a late night at the Sheraton.  They have some gas fire pit / tables outside and we sat huddled around the flickering flames.  Steve Rothery held court and we chatted with a few people who had taken him and Pete to an observatory during the week.  One guy from the North East of England was particularly easy to talk to and I gratefully accepted some of the wine they had brought (especially given the prices at the bar in the Sheraton!)  The taxi returned me to my hotel around 3am.

Marillion Weekend – Day Three (21/05/2017)

As doors opened at 1pm on Sunday there as little to do beforehand.  I treated myself to the hotel breakfast, watched another protest make it’s way down Alameda and made my own way to the venue (given the area this is not something I would want to do alone after dark).  The afternoon show is always an informal affair.  There is a Q&A with questions submitted by fans beforehand, a photo session for entrants who had put their names in a box during the weekend and then Swap The Band where some musical fans get to perform with the band.  The photo session for me was a little eye-opening.  As someone who has met the band a few times and who gets to see them live very often I forget that for a lot of people that chance to just shake a hand or for a quick hug is priceless.  The reactions of the competition winners reminded me of how lucky I have been down the years and perhaps how much I’ve taken it for granted.

Swap The Band was great as always and I love the enthusiasm that the crowd has for it.  I’m also always a little jealous of the lucky people who get that chance!  The guitarist impressed everyone – he’s only 13 and gave a terrific performance of Sugar Mice.

Kicked out for the afternoon we had four hours to occupy ourselves before the evening show.  As I said before there is nothing in the vicinity of the venue so we (about 50 of us) traipsed back up to the main road, Alameda.  Compounded by it being a Sunday and many places being closed, the Italian restaurant we found looked rather worried at the sight of us all!  However the place was large and there was plenty of space, despite initial protests.  Much pisco was consumed and I had a fantastic stifado with alfredo sauce.

Gradually people made their way back to Caupolican and again I was one of the last to leave.  I’m not a particular fan of support bands but I did catch a little of Sunday night's.  Despite being completely not my sort of thing I rather enjoyed their jazz prog.  The set on Sunday at the UK convention had been, not just my favourite, but possibly one of my favourite Marillion gigs of all time (it was also my 80th!).  It was hard to know how Santiago would measure up.  This show had two points of note; it was a performance in full of 1999’s Marillion.com album and in a very rare departure for the band they had guest musicians on stage.  The string quartet arrangements added a beautiful new level of detail to an album that has many lovely songs but perhaps lacks a little in cohesion.
My most emotional moment of the weekend was Go!, a song that I’ve always held dear.  In the UK to a plan had been hatched fr the fans to surprise the band by lighting tiny LEDs at a specific point towards the end of the song.  The worked fantastically and was an amazing moment but I think the excitement of it perhaps led to me not immersing myself in the song so much.  This time it took me over completely and the strings made it soar.  “It only takes a fraction of a second to turn your life upside down”.

In response to the UK moment in Go! The Web In Spanish arranged for hundreds of glow-sticks to be dished out to fans as they entered and everyone was instructed to wave them during Enlightened.  This song was written in and about São Paulo so it holds a special place for South America.  It perhaps didn’t have the same impact as in the UK but it was still a beautiful sight (until people threw them at the stage at the end and boy, do they hurt when they hit you!

A saxophonist and trumpet player were also recruited to play parts of the album that are usually triggered samples.  The saxophonist was nowhere near as good as the UK but the song House featuring. Muted trumpet was a wonder to behold.  The interplay between trumpet and guitar in this gentle, unassuming song.  Some people find it dull but I could have listened to it for hours.  I really hope that comes across on the DVD.

The second half of the final night was a selection of songs, some of which utilised the additional musicians.  In particular it was so much nicer to here the saxophone solos from Berlin and This Strange Engine live.  One note on the evening that I will perhaps elaborate on more in my gig review is that the videos are becoming distracting.  King especially (this was noted in the UK too) – the scratch video of stars corrupted by fame, most of them dead, has become more of an obituary reel with the crowd cheering or applauding their favourites.  There’s a certain irony in it and I do wonder how many are actually listening to the song any more.

Post gig and post merch count I was allowed to sneak into the after-gig gathering (no beer though!)  I had lovely warm smiles from both bassist Pete and singer h along with the somewhat inevitable question, “what the bloody hell are you doing here?”  Me and Rita took an Uber back to the Sheraton – unfortunately the bar was shut but I still had good chats with Lucy, drummer Ian and various crew members.

There is a real feeling that this is an end of an era for me.  I will always be a fan of the band but I no longer feel the need to do these ridiculous trips.  My life has already taken a huge change in priorities.  It is possible to have too much of a good thing and having nearly lost it all (at one point I felt I would never see Marillion again) I can now appreciate just having enough.  The last hoorah was pretty special though, so many treasured memories of a wonderful weekend on the other side of the world.

A City United

Halfway around the world
Inspired by music,
Inspired by friendship,
Inspired by a coming together
In pursuit of an experience shared.

Looking back halfway around the world
In a city so close to my adopted home.
Thousands in that same pursuit
Travelling not so far, but seeking the same coming together.
United in joy and a feeling of belonging.

Night after night
In a city landscaped by it's music,
Shaped by the passion and the heart of it's people,
The sounds that define a culture
Note upon note, word upon word
Building a city beyond buildings

No-one imagines they will not return home,
And from halfway around the world
Awaiting another plane,
I feel a lump in my throat
A tear prick my eye,
The thought of a child not returning home,
From a longing to belong,
From a feeling of euphoric togetherness
To lives being blown apart

I visualise the concourse I have walked so many times
Now stained red.
From halfway around the world
I feel a poignant sadness
The horror strikes so close to my home and my heart,
To the places I live and the places I play.

But no sounds of explosions will quieten the city of music,
The screams and the cries will weave their way
Into the fabric of the notes and the words,
It will pause and it will breathe
And it will sing again.
Hate will not tear apart
A City United.

Back in Santiago

Back in Santiago (18/05/2017)

I spent a last few moments on Easter Island nipping to the post office - postcards are so retro but I felt compelled to send a couple!  They also put an Easter Island stamp in my passport, a great tip I had from an American girl a couple of days earlier.  I then went for a final walk to the coast to take in my last view and consider again my existence on this tiny speck of land in the vast ocean.  I eventually managed to wrench myself away, back to the hotel to collect my things for my transfer.  The driver gave me a moai necklace as a parting gift.

Mataveri airport is so small and so close to the town you can check in then go for a wander!  However the flight was earlier than I had thought so I contented with buying a last few souvenirs at the airport, through security to a lovely outside waiting area.  The flight was fine – I listened to Marillion on the in-flight entertainment and chose a classic movie in Casablanca.  I was rather confused by the time – I thought were were to land at 6pm but the on-board screens said 7pm.  When we landed my phone picked up the time as 6pm.  A cursory glance at someone’s watch told me 6pm so it seems the Dreamliner’s computers hadn’t updated with the clocks going back!

To get into Santiago quicker I thought I’d take a shared taxi.  At around £8 I figured it wasn’t bad and would save me the hassle of lugging my case on subways and buses.  However rush hour traffic and a screaming child in my ear made me wonder if it was such a good idea!  It took 90 minutes to get to the Crowne Plaza, my home for the next four nights.  I quickly changed and half-unpacked (a pat on the back with the idea of packing the clothes for Santiago at the top so I could leave the things I wouldn’t need in the case), then took a taxi to the Sheraton to collect my good pal Malcolm.  Indeed I impressed myself with communicating in very broken Spanish that we were collecting and then going on elsewhere!

With Malcolm in tow we headed to a pizza restaurant, joining a few other crew members.  It was good to meet some new Marillion folks – there were six of us, all different nationalities.  After pizza a drink was had back at the Sheraton before our Chilean host Christian took me and Stefan (one of the official photographers for the weekend) back to the Crowne.

Marillion Weekend – Day One (19/05/2017)

I woke pretty early and lounged in bed, falling back into the old internet habits.  Breakfast wasn’t included with my room so after getting up my original plan was to walk to a McDonald’s I had seen nearby.  However I passed an independent café and decided that was a much better idea.  Eventually I managed to get two fried eggs, some toast and some coffee, perfectly adequate and about a quarter the price of the hotel option!

When I mentioned to my friend Jen that I was coming to Santiago she was very insistent that I should contact her friend Jocelyn who she met in Barcelona.  The joys of modern contact, I had messaged Jocelyn and she agreed to meet me at my hotel at 11am.  She was a little late but that wasn’t a problem.  It was most useful to have an interpreter to help purchase a Bip! card, the transport card for Santiago’s metro and buses.  We took the subway from Baquedano to Pedro de Valdivia.

Jocelyn got a little lost but she found the way to the cable car station to take us to the top of San Cristobel.  The cable car has only just started running again after being closed for about 20 years.  It is tiny (860m) bit of the Andes in the middle of the city with a 22m high statue of Virgin de la Immaculada at the top.  From here you can really see how much the city of Santiago sprawls around, almost as far as the eye can see.  You can also see a thick brown haze of smog in the air.  It’s a peaceful area with the music of a plaintive female vocal and acoustic guitar in the air.

We took the funicular back down to the bottom of the hill and went walking.  I’m not 100% sure where we went!  Jocelyn’s first thought was to got to the Mercado Central where there are a number of restaurants specialising in fish.  We looked at the menus and felt they were overpriced so she had another idea.  Instead we had lunch of steak, chips and egg with terremotos (earthquakes) at La Piojera. The terremoto is a drink of Chilean legend.  It’s basically a large glass of pipeno (a fermented white wine) with grenadine and pineapple ice cream.  Sort of a dessert and drink in one!  The bar / restaurant itself was a spit-and-sawdust kind of place, graffiti covered the walls and there were odd metal trellises that had plastic straws tied to them.  Jocelyn loves the idea of being a tour guide in Santiago and I said it was a perfect place for tourists as it feels kinda real!

Jocelyn and I got on great and we had a good giggle (especially post-terremoto!).  She mocked my English accent – in South America I think they are much more used to hearing American English – and I introduced her to some new words and phrases.  From the bar we walked all the way to the venue so that I could collect my tickets.  If I’d have known how far it was I would have waited until later!  My original plan (this seems to be a phrase I’m using a lot on this trip) was to return to my hotel and change before the gigs but it was already approaching 5pm and there was a fan meet at Bar Nacional, back the way we had come.  Here I sadly had to say goodbye to Jocelyn as she had to work that evening (she is an English teacher).  She was terrific company and we both parted hoping to meet again before I return to the UK.

The fan meet was bustling with people from all over the world.  I had a good long catch up with Marillion’s manager Lucy – despite her being surrounded by people who wanted photos and to shake her hand it was lovely for her to spare time for me.  I also met up with Mark who I think is the only fellow British fan to make the trip.  Nicole from Chile who had organised the meet, Kathryn who had been guiding Mark around, American Matt who was at the LA gig I was scheduled to attend in October last year.  And lots of others who I have no doubt missed or forgotten in a terremoto / pisco haze.  They had a karaoke system and played the Marillion songs they had for us to sing along to.  We left just after 7pm to walk the mile back to the venue.

At Teatro Caupolican I found my seat – dead centre, right in front of the mixing desk, in a block of three rows I was in the second row.  It was all very tight and I couldn’t imagine it would be a good idea to try to get in and out through the concert!  I chatted with Malcolm during the (rather noisy) support act, then took my seat.  I have been asked to write reviews of the three shows but as I sit here I realise that I’m not sure it’s something I can do.  Certainly I think it’s something to do separately from this diary.  However a few notes (if only to give me something to work from if I do write a review piece!):

It wasn’t sold out but the downstairs area was full and enthusiastic.  Being seated was a little strange, especially in such small seats!  Not much dancing room to You’re Gone as I usually would!  I struck up a good rapport with Guillermo beside me who was Chilean but living in the US.  Unfortunately to my right was a gentleman who spent most of the gig hugging his merchandise.  The crowd very often stood to applaud but there was little standing during songs until the end (it will be interesting to see the reaction to the Saturday night set list!)  The set focussed largely on songs that don’t often get an outing.  There were a number that particularly resonate with me of late – Beyond You, The Only Unforgiveable Thing, 100 Nights.  Also a series of songs that are not so much political but let’s say social commentary, A Few Words From The Dead, A Voice From The Past and Gaza.  These all chime very closely to my own thoughts and beliefs.  I still don’t like that quiet version of Hard As Love though!

Oh, and one thing everyone at that gig will tell you is that it was FREEZING!!!

Post gig I helped Malcolm with counting the merchandise, running around behind the stage and getting lost trying to find all three selling points.  Our work done I hitched a ride (thanks Rich!) with the crew back to the Sheraton for a final drink.  Everyone’s still conserving their energy for their duties though and at about 1am I got a taxi back to my bed.

Easter Island - Days 3 & 4

Easter Island – Day Three (16/05/2017)

Another 9:15am pick up, today we were to survey the more local sites.  Tahai is actually walking distance from the hotel and I’ve seen it from across the bay but I knew we were visiting on tour so hadn’t walked this far yet.  Tahai has a single moai complete with eyes and pukao.  The pukao was an additional red stone carved and put on top of some moai’s heads to represent topknots (they look like hats but in fact they are hair).  The eyes are not of the original coral but painted on to demonstrate to visitors how the moai would have looked in their prime.  There is another single moai and a separate ahu containing five moai (and an empty platform) in varying degrees of destruction.  This was one of the first ahus, restored by American William Mulloy who dedicated his life and work to Easter Island.  The primitive methods of the 1960s are evident in the concrete band around their necks where they were “glued” back together.  A sixth moai from the empty spot lies just a few dozen metres away, face down and broken into four pieces, too difficult to resurrect.  Although he died in the US, Mulloy’s remains were returned to Easter Island and there is a memorial to him near this site which we visited.  He did a huge amount to promote the island and it’s mysteries and, for the most part, the Rapa Nui are grateful.

We moved on to Huri A Urenga which is in quite a compact area.  Quite a change to the vast expanses laid out before most of the moai but I think that is as much due to the changing environment that original design.  An Italian team is currently working on cleaning the lichen from the moai and this is the second one to be completed (each takes around six months).  Next up was Puna Pau.  This is the quarry from which the red stone of the pukao was mined.  It’s not overly interesting – and there’s no amazing view from the top – but there are a few pukao dotted about giving a sense of the size of them.  Although the rock is significantly lighter they would still have been a few tonnes in weight and quite a feat to get on a moai head!

This was just a half day trip so we had one more stop, Ahu Akivi.  Another Mulloy restoration of seven moai, they are unique in being the only moai erected inland and seemingly facing the sea.  It has been discovered that they are orientated to face the rise of the summer solstice, indicating that the position of the sun was important to the ancient Rapa Nui.  Further excavations have also found the remains of a village between the ahu and the sea.  This was a detailed set of moai with differing features again.  My English companions and I had started to analyse the moai we saw to try to determine their moods and personalities!

As I got off the coach my guide said I was on that afternoon tour for Orongo but I insisted I wasn't on until the following day.  I decided to relax by the pool for a few hours and nip out for a little souvenir shopping before changing for an evening at Kari Kari, a meal and traditional dance performance.  The concierge (maybe that word is a little strong, receptionist might be better) was supposed to book me a place – he hadn’t but there was a table and a seat available in any case.  The meal was lovely.  I chose the seafood soup, steak with rice and dessert was a crème caramel.  It was a good, hunk of steak, nicely cooked!  I also had a pisco sour included (I had to pay for the second one!)

My seat for the show was second row, dead centre.  The music was all enveloping – the sound in the small theatre incredible.  The dancing was beautiful.  The women moved so fluidly, undulating like the ocean.  The men, strong, aggressive and spiky in contrast.  On a few occasions members of the audience were invited to join the performers and many went fully into it!  One boy in particular was impressive in his commitment and a middle aged man found himself shirtless but gave it as much fire and bravado as he possibly could!  There were changes of costume and mood.  Unfortunately the slower moments coincided with the seven hour time difference catching up on me and I found myself dozing for parts of the performance.  At the end one dancer pointed to me as he spoke in Rapa Nui.  The English translation didn’t mention anything about audience members falling asleep but just invited us onto the stage for photographs.  I had to speak to the guy who had found me out and apologise!  He invited me for a drink after he had changed which I politely declined, siting that I clearly needed my bed…

When I returned I took a cursory glance at the schedule passed to me on my first day by the tour company and found that my guide was right and I was wrong.  My tour of Orongo HAD been that afternoon!  No lie in for me then, I’d better be up to sort this out…

Easter Island – Day Four (17/05/2017)

I figured the easiest way to fix my little screw up was to go straight to the Rapa Nui Travel offices.  I got there around 9am as planned and my guide was there, full of apologies.  They had tried to get hold of me (I was only by the pool as well!) so I could join the previous afternoon’s tour as they weren’t running the half day to Orongo today.  BUT (and this had already crossed my mind and I was sort of ready for it), I could hike it myself.  I was assured it would be around a 3 hour round trip.  They furnished me with a map and off I went.  I probably didn’t have enough water with me (annoyingly I didn’t think of this until after I passed the last shop).  I walked around the airport (nipping in to use the facilities)

It was an easy walk to Ana Kai Tangata, a sea cave with some ancient paintings inside.  They were hard to make out and this is where a guide is extremely useful as they can point out exactly what you are looking for!  It was a lovely place for watching and listening to the crash of the waves though.

Back up to the road and a ranger pointed me to the trail for Orongo.  Today’s history lesson concerns the birdman cult.  It is not known exactly when the birdman ceremony began but some think it may have taken over from the moai traditions when it became clear they were unsustainable.  However we know about it in quite some detail as it was still practiced late into the 19th century.  Every year each chief would choose a representative (hopu) from his tribe to compete.  They would gather at Orongo in August and wait for the first of the migratory sooty terns to appear.  When it did, the competitors would scale the cliffs to the water, swim out to the largest of three islets, Motu Nui around 2 km away.  Each hopu would stake his place and wait for the first egg to be laid.  Whoever found the first egg would shout to the mainland – the other hopu would verify it was indeed an egg from the sooty tern and bow down in reverence.  It was a very respectful competition.

The winner would return to the shore with the egg and either he or his chief would become the birdman – or tangata manu - for the next year.  He would have all of his hair shaved off and live in strict seclusion where the only human contact he would have would be with a priest who would bathe and feed him.  Meanwhile the tribe would rule the rest of the island until the following year.  Doesn’t sound much like a prize to me…

Orongo itself is the far side of Rano Kau, the crater of an extinct volcano.  Obviously, uphill.  And today happened to be the hottest day of my trip.  It was a hard slog up for about an hour.  There was a lovely shaded section of trees for a time but for the most part the landscape was open and the crater was shielding any cooling breeze.  It was one of those hikes when you keep stopping and thinking, “surely not much further?” – I knew nowhere on the island was particularly high and this wasn’t the highest place but the ascent just seemed to go on and on.

Eventually the top was reached and the view across the crater to the sea was absolutely spectacular.  This really felt like the “navel of the universe”, this deep crater of wetlands which is now a protected eco system.  It was like I’d come back to the beginning of the world. So many thoughts ran through my head as a caught my breath.  Everything in my life that had brought me to that point – marriage, separation, the love of a band, falling out with friends, misreading an itinerary.  All of these things in my life that had lead me to this place on the other side of the world, on my own.  The accomplishment of finding my own way, in so many aspects made this a rather emotional moment for me.

Gathering my thoughts together, I embarked on the footpath around the crater to Orongo.  I say footpath.  A great deal of it was overgrown and I was glad of the company of a couple who helped guide the way.  Fortunately the foliage were soft yellow flowers (I think they are lupins) and at least it was relatively flat!  At the visitors centre I read the displays regarding the birdman ceremony, then ventured out to see the islets and the village.  You could feel the wind whipping around and realise how sheltered from the elements it must be inside the crater.  Indeed at one point the path moves inside the crater and you feel the temperature rise instantly.  I hovered with an English tour guide for a while but felt a bit dodgy listening to his entire tour for free.  So I continued to walk around the village – this would have been largely ceremonial and not used for tribal living.  However I couldn’t see any of the famed petroglyphs, again I missed having a guide to point them out.

An interesting point of note is that the moai currently residing in the British Museum is from Orongo.  Hoa Hakananai’a – “lost / stolen friend” is unusual as he was made from basalt, a much harder rock than the traditional moai.  The carvings on his back date to the era of the birdman cult.  It is likely that the moai itself is older and was thrown down, then repurposed.  I find it rather sad that he’s not here.

I returned to the footpath down the road rather than the overgrown way.  I had another moment taking in the view over the crater before embarking on the much easier descent.  I think it took about a third of the time down!  I passed an American girl at about the halfway point and assured her it was worth the sweat – by this time it was gone midday and I was glad I’d gone up when it was a little cooler.  As I reached the end of the path and reconnected to a road I seemed to acquire a dog.  There are dogs everywhere here.  They don’t look like strays, I think people treat them like cats and let them roam free and come home when they are hungry.  The dog accompanied me past the airport where I decided to follow the coast around into Hanga Roa.  I visited my last “new” moai at Hanga Piko and continued along the road.

The English gentlemen had recommended a restaurant around here which I hadn’t expected to go to but as I was passing, it was lunchtime and I had just burned a significant quantity of calories I duly went to Mahia.  There was no-one else there and I took a table right at the open window.  The recommendation was that this had the best fish in town so I ordered the local fish (which always seems to be tuna!).  It was a huge slab, about 4cm thick and cooked perfectly for me - ,  raw but just warm on the inside.  The seasoning was sublime.  It was served with green sweet potatoes – much nicer and slightly less overpowering than the orange ones we get in the UK.  I had another emotional moment – again, if I had visited Orongo on yesterday’s trip I would never find myself eating this amazing piece of fish watching the waves crashing in front of me.  Fortune has a funny way of presenting itself sometimes.

I finished with some baked bananas.  There was a little hassle with paying – the connection with the credit card machine went down and they had to scrabble together the change for the 20,000CLP notes the cash machine kindly dispensed yesterday.

My previous plan for the day had been to visit the museum before the afternoon trip.  I believed it closed around 4pm and only took an hour to visit so I continued along the coast road, stopping for some souvenirs on the way.  Past Tahai that we had visited yesterday morning and I again clocked some stalls and a wooden moai that I had taken a fancy to.  Shopping can wait, museum first.  The museum was ok but didn’t explain much I hadn’t already heard or read about.  It did however have a rare female moai, the only remaining coral eye and the remains of a moai head with good detail that you can get really close to.

From the museum I returned the way I had come.  I did shop.  I have spent a lot more on souvenirs and gifts than I normally would but I think I’ll allow myself just this once!  I stopped by the five moai and sat down, took the boots off my aching feet and wrote the diary for a while.  I considered staying out until the sunset but that was still two hours off.  I was hot, sweaty and dirty from my travels.  I needed to be clean again.

So now I’m sat in the hotel reception writing up my last adventures on Easter Island.  Having eaten at lunch I’m not really hungry for dinner so I think all that remains is for me to pack.  I could happily spend a few more days here.  It’s a wonderful combination of a place where life slows down but it’s still a source of endless fascination.

(PS – I will upload more pics when I have better internet!)

Easter Island - Days 1 & 2

Easter Island – Day One (14/05/2017)

The flight at 6 hours was long but fine.  I was rather disappointed to be served (late) breakfast rather than (early) lunch!  Another two films watched – Hidden Figures (AN ABSOLUTE MUST SEE!) and Music and Lyrics (as I fancied something easy to watch and Hugh Grant is incredibly easy to watch).  I think I watch more films in the air than I do on the ground!  Sadly I didn’t get a window seat but in the event it didn’t matter too much as it was rather overcast when we landed.  Hanga Roa airport is absolutely perfect – it looks like a thatched hut and nothing more!  It took ages for the bags to come through (I’m not sure the airport was ever built to cope with a Dreamliner full of people).  I’m sure the staff had their lunch break between the first batch of cases and the second…

I found my transfer without any problems and met a couple of English gentlemen on the bus.  They were dropped off at their hotel first, then I came to mine.  Once I got to my room I did a proper happy dance!  It's a very pretty little hotel.  Not plush (there’s not even a TV in the room!) but absolutely what you would want and expect (I’m sat out on the terrace in the sunshine writing this).  There’s only wifi in the reception area but that’s probably a good thing for me!

Freshened up and changed I went for a wander around Hanga Roa, the main (only!) town on the island.  I headed towards the coast where I saw my first moai then stopped for some food; my first empanadas in South America (shrimp, pineapple and cheese) and a juice made from a local fruit (no idea what!).  I got chatting to a guy who is a ranger for the national parks that make up most of the archaelogical sites on the island.  He offered to show me around some of the sites I wouldn’t get on my tour – it’s a shame but I thought I’d best be sensible and decline.

I walked along the coast for quite a while,  then came across a host of black flag, skull and crossbones, graffiti on corrugated iron.  Then I saw some flags bearing the name Hotel Pirata.  I’m still not 100% sure it’s actually a hotel.  It was rather intimidating.  So I turned around and came back.  I might venture that way again some other time!  So back the way I came, then into the town on my way back to the hotel via a shop for some water and snacks.  I also stopped at a wifi point to upload some photos and check what time sunset would be.

A quick change and out for the sunset, but sadly it was rather cloudy and nothing spectacular.  Hopefully a better one tomorrow.  I stopped on the way back to watch some of a local football match.  The pitch is just over the road from the sea, it was a rather evocative place to watch sport.  Having eaten quite late I didn’t feel the need for any dinner so, despite it only being 7:30pm I returned to the hotel.  I guess it’s the one thing I’m already missing from travel company – someone to go for a drink with – but I was actually more than happy to sit outside with a book (current reading is Little Women).

Easter Island – Day Two (15/05/2017)

Today was a full day excursion so I took a full backpack – swimsuit and towel, fleece, waterproof jacket!  The bus collected me around 9:20am and Julia was the guide.  The two English gentlemen I met on the airport transfer joined us along with a lady from Brazil and a family from Peru.  Julia did a great job of conducting the tour in both Spanish and English!

A little moai / Rapa Nui history.  Some believe that Easter Island was the last place on Earth that humans started to inhabit.  The first Polynesians came to the island around 9th century but it would have been the second wave who started to make moai around the 14th century.  Moai were raised on ahu (ceremonial platforms) and they marked the burial spots of the great tribal chiefs of the Rapa Nui (the native people of Easter Island).  They were almost all erected to face inland and were said to contain great protective power for their village.

However, by the time the Europeans discovered the island in the early 18th century the population was already depleted.  No-one really knows why.  It almost certainly was due to a lack of resources; the extinction of an indiginous palm tree depleted the fertility of the soil and also meant there was no wood to build canoes and fish.  A common theory is that the environmental change was caused by the obsession of building moai; others think it must have been a sudden but natural climatic change.  Either way, lack of food lead to warfare between the clans and the arrival of Europeans and their diseases (coupled with many Rapa Nui being traded as slaves in the 19th century) meant the Rapa Nui people almost completely died out – only around 100 native people remained in the mid 19th century – and with it died much of the knowledge and history of Easter Island and it’s people.  Eventually in 1888 the island was annexed by the Chilean government, although the Rapa Nui were not allowed out of Hanga Roa (much less off the island) until 1964 when they were given full citizenship

We were to travel along the south coast of Easter Island and then turn towards the north east corner before returning.  Our first two stops were Vaihu and Akahenga.  These are two sites of fallen moai.  By the mid 19th century every moai had been toppled, practically all of them face down.  There are a number of theories as to why.  The theory Julia explained is the common one; that rival tribes would throw down the moai to weaken their enemies.  I’ve seen another which hypothesises that the Rapa Nui were so ashamed of the destruction of their land and depletion of the people that they laid the moai down so they couldn’t see.  These figures were rather eerie in their submissive pose.  At Akahenga we could see the remains of the village, one of the largest.  The houses only had covered areas for sleeping and there was also a cave which would have been used overnight.  Julia told us some people today still feel the need to get out of the town and sleep in caves! She also explained that because they had so many people here they didn’t have the resources to build bigger or more moai.

Tongariki however was a small village with the largest ahu containing 15 moai.  These were all washed ashore by a tsunami in 1960 but a Japanese businessman sent two cranes to assist with restoring them to their correct positions.  Not only are there a lot assembled in one place, these are HUGE!  They are incredibly impressive and rather imposing.  They are also surprisingly expressive – they all stand proud and serene but the more you look the more you see differences between them, especially having so many lined up together.  Moai were carved in the likeness of the chief they were commemorating so they have different sizes of nose, chin, ears etc.  They no longer have eyes (which would have been made of coral and obsidian and were said to contain the moai’s power) but they still feel like they are surveying the area before them.  We were afforded plenty of time here but I really could have stayed for hours.  It suddenly occurred to me that I will most likely never be in this place again and I just wanted to enjoy it as much as possible despite a little rain.  Julia also showed us some petroglyphs – these would have been carved later, around the 19th century when the cult of the Birdman ceremony was practiced (more about this another day!)

Of course we had to move on and our next stop was Rano Raraku.  This was the quarry from which all moai were produced.  There were lots of finished but abandoned moai here – once they had been made it was the villages’ responsibility to then move the moai from the quarry to the village.  The common myth of them being transport in logs has been replaced by them by pulled to and fro by ropes and “walked” into place.  Indeed there are numerous other moai that have been abandoned as they fell over and the Rapa Nui had no way of returning them to an upright position.  There are also many unfinished moai, some out of the rock awaiting the back to be completed, some part carved and some just etched onto the rock surface.  The decline in the Rapa Nui people was so sudden it meant the quarrymen downed tools practically overnight and left hundreds of moai in varying stages of completion.  It’s like those hidden item puzzles where there are different images of moai all over the place – if you can spot them!  This includes the largest of all the moai which was never dug away from the ground – it took a while for me to work out the outline in the rock!

We had our lunch at Rano Raruku and continued to our final two stops.  First was Te Pito Kura.  This is the site of the last standing moai but it was brought down even after the Europeans had invaded.  There is also the “navel of the world”, a magnetic stone that legend stated had been brought with the original Polynesian settlers and was the only proof the Rapa Nui had of life in the outside world (it has since been proved to actually be from Easter Island!).  The final stop, Anakena, is believed to be where Hotu Matu’a, a Polynesian tribal chief first landed after embarking on a voyage inspired by a dream of the island.  It also has a beach and 8 moai.  I had a brief dip in the crystal blue Pacific waters with my English friends, then walked around snapping photos of the moai (7 on one platform and a lone one).  It was quite a view from the sea!

As the bus returned us to Hanga Roa and our hotels, I reflected on how the moai stand looking inland and how it makes me feel about the political situation in my increasingly insular homeland.  The large ahus of moai with their backs to the sea don't feel like they are guarding their people from the outside world.  They are not keeping people out.  They are keeping people in.  Their imposing nature almost feels like you shouldn’t pass them to the sea and whatever lies beyond.  The remoteness must have made many of the later generations feel like this was the only inhabited place in the universe.  I wonder if the politics of our future will be about trying to keep us where we are and not to strive for anything further than our own four walls.  Or maybe we are already there.

Back at the hotel I rested, changed and headed out to see a much better sunset.  I got chatting with an Argentinian lady about all sorts of random stuff (should I still have an opinion of Princess Diana?!  Interestingly there is a perception in Argentina that she was a poor school teacher before she married Prince Charles.)  I then saw the bar / restaurant next to my sunset spot had a fire going so it looked like a nice place for dinner.  We are out of season here so the town seems quiet but this is when it occurred to me that yesterday was Sunday and that would be why everywhere was closed!

I treated myself to my first pisco sour (lovely!) and some seared tuna (very nice although maybe a little tough).  Then a second cocktail, a kiwi caiparinha (delicious) and the recommended dessert, a chocolate volcano (yummy!).  Given how far things have to be imported Easter Island isn’t cheap though, I’m already dreading the credit card bill!

Back to the hotel for diary writing but I’m still out of the timezone and fell asleep at 9:30pm (ok, two cocktails probably didn't help!).  Woke again at 5:30am.  I hope the two hour time difference puts my body clock in the right place when I return to Santiago..

Chile #2 - Working It Out On My Own

Well, I narrowly avoided getting scammed while getting to my hotel!  The hotel provides a free transfer but someone with an official looking card for the provider TransVIP collared me, took me halfway round the airport to a cab that was gonna charge me £30!  Common sense kicked in and I walked away and back to where I needed to go for my free transfer.

Luckily there was a room available when I got to the hotel despite it only being 10:30 which meant I could shower and changed properly.  This was when I found out that Chile doesn’t have European chargers (TV had a USB port for a temporary fix) and also that I should have reset my unused Uber account while still in the UK.

The nerves kicked in just around them.  Can I do this?  In a foreign country on my own where I really don't speak the language?  I had to push myself out of the hotel and into Santiago.  I was sure I could get the hotel to get me a taxi in but I had no idea how to get back as the hotel was in an industrial estate with no public transport.  I’m sure I’ll find a way…

This was where I was starting to realise how little English is spoken here.  You would expect a reception for an airport hotel to have pretty good English but this one is minimal.  Taxi drivers, restaurants, museums, Metro – as I was to discover there really is very little English and my attempts at learning Spanish had definitely not succeeded!

I did manage to communicate that I wanted the taxi driver to take me to Plaza de Armas which seemed to be the centre of everything.  I think he was (very kindly) trying to arrange a time to pick me up and take me back but we just couldn’t communicate.  I’ll pay for a black and yellow cab – I’m sure it will be more expensive but if it’s the only way back I’ll have to go with that.

Anyway, Plaza de Armas. It IS the centre of everything!  Quite a large square with lots of trees and benches.  A real hubbub of activity, especially on a Saturday.  Kind of Santiago’s Covent Garden or Las Ramblas.  Street performers – a traditional band, a man dressed as a giant rock, a Michael Jackson impersonator, a puppeteer.  Despite the misty morning when I landed a few hours earlier and the forecasts of rain (it’s been raining all week apparently) it was a gloriously sunny day.  I wondered round, sat for a bit in the centre and then decided I was hungry.  Yo soy una turista, so I chose the tourist trap restaurant on the square.  It wasn’t bad actually.  Had an Italiano sandwich – thin sliced beef with tomatoes, a huge amount of mayonnaise and what seemed like a whole avocado!  Also a very full, rather large single glass of red wine.  I sat on the terrace absorbing the square.  No Wifi – there was something lovely about being cut from the strings of the internet.  I’ve never been much of a people watcher but I indulged a little.  I noticed lots of people carrying their babies (and it occurred to me how rare this is in England where we would automatically take them in a pram).  I noticed lots of slogan T-shirts, almost all in English.  I noticed that the men’s bodies seem disproportionately long legged with short, stocky chests.  I giggled at some of the locals wearing thick coats and gloves while I sat in a t-shirt!  I listened to the band and watched the rock-man fist bumping passing kids (in exchange for a few pesos).

I seriously considered taking the open-top bus tour but decided to venture for a while on foot instead.  I bought an ice cream (chocolate and lucuma, an Andean fruit which tasted rather like caramel) and wandered south down Paseo Ahumeda.  It was full of market stalls – well, people had laid out their wares on the pedestrianised street.  I had thought about finding an electrical store to by an adaptor but I managed to find one for about £1.20 (which surprisingly works and hasn’t blown anything up yet!)  This brought me out at Avenida Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, the main route through Santiago. I turned left / east along the road, nipping into Iglesias San Francisco before crossing back over and going north again.  I zig-zagged back to Plaza de Armas, passing Teatro Municipal, Palacio de la Moneda and then going into Iglesias San Agustin.

San Agustin houses the Cristo de Mayo.  Legend has it that in the 1647 earthquake this figure of Christ’s crown of thorns slipped around his neck.  When someone tried to move the crown back onto his head, the carved face began to bleed.  The crown has been left around his neck ever since and it is celebrated every year on 13th May – today!  I had tried to research when the statue was to be paraded and, assuming it was in the morning I assumed I had missed it.  It actually starts at 7pm – however that was 4 hours away and I was already sleepy (the wine probably didn’t help on that front!).  I did see the statue on his carriage waiting for the evening.  It’s possibly one of the ugliest effigies of Christ I’ve ever seen…

I was still pondering this for the next hour.  I visited the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolumbino but I had to resist the temptation to lie on the viewing bench and have a kip!  I returned to Plaza de Armas – I’m presuming it was a particular hive of activity because of the imminent celebrations.  Women had baked cakes to sell outside the cathedral.  I had a walk around the cathedral – although I don’t believe in god I love the peace of churches and cathedrals, especially in countries where people are actually using them for worship.  There was a service occurring in the nearest chapel to the open door – a real contrast of the peace inside against to noise outside.

I considered again doing the tourist bus just to stay for the parade but tiredness and worrying about getting back to my hotel forced me to choose not to.  It was a hard decision to make – if I was staying in the city I would definitely have made an effort to see it.  I had two choices back.  I figured I’d try to get a price on a taxi all the way – it was 13,000 pesos in so I presumed on double that for a city cab.  I spoke to one taxi driver who basically said he wouldn’t drive to the airport.  So plan B – get the metro to San Pablo (which at 4 miles away was the nearest metro stop to the hotel) and try to get a cab from there.  If all else failed I’d walk back (although without internet and maps that would prove very tricky!)

And this is where the language barrier really frustrated me – my lack of understanding more than anything else.  I should be able to understand but my aural comprehension is terrible.  Eventually I decided just to get a single ticket - I could have got a Bip card, like a London Oyster card given that I was returning to Santiago next weekend but I decided to sort that out next weekend.  Got to San Pablo, lots of taxis here – yay!  First one had no idea about the hotel – I did at least work out he wanted to take me to the airport and said no.  Then I realised I had the address on the calendar on my phone – second taxi driver seemed to understand and I was on my way.  I was very glad I didn’t have to walk through here – there was a sense that this is “real” Santiago.  Not quite shanty towns but lots of small, temporary looking buildings.  Interesting to see from a car, I’m glad I wasn’t walking through it.

Safely back at the hotel at about 6pm!  Cheap adapter works!  And – AND – I found Eurovision on the TV!  I missed all the performances but relaxed with the results on a Portuguese station where they sounded rather bemused as the votes rolled in for their song.  I love having a tiny bit of home when I’m away.

All that was left was to pack (again) for my early departure.  A mixture of not much sleep on the plane, the time difference and living on adrenaline for the day has taken it’s toll and I was asleep by 8:30pm.  Given the alarm was set for 3:30am I didn’t mind too much and the clocks going back gave me another hour.  I’ve not had 8 hours solid sleep for weeks!

So now I’m checked in and waiting for the flight to Easter Island.  I’m very glad to have five days where someone is holding my hand on a tour!  I’m also looking forward to four nights in the same bed…

Chile #1 - The Journey

Madrid Airport

Three flights today and two have been delayed.  Manchester to Heathrow ended up 35 minutes late which made for a pretty frantic connection.  The Madrid plane was on time but now I’m sat at Madrid airport facing a 1 hour delay.  At least I’m not feeling panicked for a connection this time but I just want to get on a plane and SLEEP!  A G&T (at Manchester) and a beer (at Madrid) has made me ready for zzzzz…..

Landing in Madrid and I felt incredibly emotional.  The difference of being in a place where you don’t speak the language.  I really did feel very alone in that moment.  I suspect I’ll feel something similar on landing in Santiago.

I had to pick up a boarding pass here which involved someone at the information desk calling someone from LAN airlines to bring it up to me.  The lovely assistant is here at the gate too and made sure I knew what was going on with the delay.

There’s an announcement and movement.  Looks like the problem has been fixed sooner than I expected…

Thoughts In The Air
We’ve been flying away from the dawn but it’s gradually catching us up.  If I look backwards from the window I can just see the sky starting to tinge with orange.  13 hours of night and only intermittent light sleep.  When you’re sat in economy for this long you realise why people pay thousands extra for business…

I watched Moonlight on the flight.  A bit disappointing.  It’s very dialogue driven which is not ideal with the background hum of an aircraft.  But nothing seemed to happen!  I also watched Fantastic Beasts And How To Find Them (mostly from Heathrow to Madrid) which was much more enjoyable.

The Andes are very beautiful to fly over, especially just as the dawn is breaking.  White with snow like peaks of newly sifted icing sugar.  There’s a perfect line of pink and an almost full moon in the sky.  Although we left an hour late we appear to have made up the time and will land a few minutes early.  Once over the mountains we will start our descent and I will start to get nervous.  I think I’ve worked out how to get to hotel #1.  And I hope my luggage made it through the changes with me. How I get into Santiago from there I’m not 100% sure…