We got to the airport well on time for our 9.30 flight to Easter Island, a domestic flight even though the island is a tiny speck in a lot of ocean... My bag was 16.6 kilos, an all time low which I cannot really account for.

We were sitting in the back row (the only place we could sit together), and listened to the radio stations, lipsynching Maroon 5 to each other, watching Taxi, a ripoff of the French film with Queen Latifah., had breakfast (Lan Chile still rules on the airline food, it was jummie!) and looked around at the Polynesian faces surrounding us, telltale signs that South America was becoming a memory.

We had quite a bumpy landing and walked down the steps to the tarmac (so much more glamourous than those tunnels). It was sunny, very humid and clammy. Lots of people were waiting for their friends and family with garlands of flowers which they hung around the new arrivals' necks.

We all trooped in for our luggage and ours seemed to be a long time, but their wasn't really a big crew and a lot of bags and boxes with stuff that is hard to get on the island. We saw one big box with a bike. When we got it eventually, we stepped out the door into hot and humid Rapa Nui.

Finding a hostel turned out to be a bit tricky, as Chez Oscar was nowhere to be found, another was rented out to a family and we were getting progressively sweaty. In the end we settled for Residencial Kaveriu, not exactly the cleanest, prettiest or fresh smelling-est one of the bunch, but it was a place to rest our weary heads and have a much needed shower.

We walked down the high street, if you can call it that. It was siesta so most things were closed. There is loads of green and all the buildings are set back, so you have the feeling you are walking through a leafy suburb. Saying that, considering there are only 3900 people on the island in total, they have plenty of space to spread out a bit, but they nearly all live in Hanga Roa.

We walked to the beach, which had a cruise ship and a threemaster in the distance. Our first moai (the statues Easter Island is so famous for) was waiting for us on Ahu Tautira, and another, damaged one stood nearby. We had lunch (an edible but distinctly ordinary spaghetti), watching people galopping by on their horse, driving their 4WD or simply walking.

We purchased a map and a bottle of water and marvelled at the ridiculous price of both, something we would continue to do during our stay and later in French Polynesia... At Pea Beach (the name a good indication of how small it is) we met Isabel and Sonia, from Oxford and Melbourne respectively. We spotted a turtle coming up for air and Sonia spent a good 15 minutes waiting for it to come up so she would get a shot (photo, not gun).

It started raining and we had a drink together, even though it had pretty much stopped by the time we reached the bar. These two minute downpours are very common around here, but instead of leaving you refreshed, they just leave you even more sticky.

We had dinner with the four of us. Our garcon and cook was a little strange. He had a very long plait and a bandana on his head, flowery trousers and a very effeminate manner. This wasn't just a camp gay guy, he was peculiar. We figured some people marry too close to home in this community...

We were at the island at the time of Tapati Rapa Nui, a two week festival which is not only for the tourists, but a chance for the whole community to come out and party. There was a show on about the legend of Rapa Nui (something with a boy riding on a turtle) but as it was all in the local language, we had to guess what was going on.

After that, there was a dance group from New Caledonia. They mix Polynesian dances from various islands (Fiji, Samoa etc) with modern elements (the music had a beat under it). The ladies all looked drop dead gorgeous and changed clothes nearly every song. The men looked slightly ridiculous, truth be told. It was pretty fascinating, even though the women specialised mainly in waving their arms photogenically and the men mainly stomped around like sumo wrestlers on heat.

When we went home, we were snarled at by a bad tempered Alsatian, causing us to avoid all canines in the next five days...