I took the opportunity to visit Chile recently, my third South American country!  My brother Kevin, my sister-in-law Virginia and my two year old nephew Michael moved to Chile in early 2003 and I wanted to visit them, and tour Chile.  My relatives in Chile live in La Serena, a coastal town about 5 hours drive north of Santiago.  It's very beautiful.

The explorer highlight of the trip was visiting Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, o se dicé "Isla de Pascua" en Español.  Five hours by plane from Santiago in the middle of nowhere in the Pacific, Rapa Nui is the home of the Moai, the mysterious stone "heads" of the Rapa Nui people.  Between 300 and 400 of these massive sculptures (up to 15 meters high and estimated to weigh 70 tons) are scattered across a small (26 km across) volcanic island in various states of being. 

I spent some time in Santiago, staying downtown not too far from the Plaza de Armas, My guide Rodrigo and driver Sergio showed me around Santiago, and took me on a day tour to Valparaiso and Viña del Mar, on the coast west of Santiago.  Finally I took a day trip by train to Curicó, where my guide Virginia took me for a tour of the city and three wineries.  

Easter Island Intro page

Gallery 1: Easter Island

Gallery 2: Easter Island

Gallery 3: Easter Island

Gallery 4: Santiago, Curicó, Valparaiso & Viña del Mar

Gallery 5: La Serena, Observatorio Cerro Pachón and Valle Elqui.