The island is certainly off the beaten track, 2300 miles ((3700 km) west of Chile and about the same distance from Tahiti. The nearest habitation is Pitcairn island 1400 miles away.

One puzzle is how did the Polynesians manage to get this far around AD 400, navigating the open seas for at least 2 weeks at a stretch.

Anthropologists believe that the voyaging canoes of the Polynesians moved southward, northward and southeast to inhabit Easter Island, Hawaii and New Zealand about the same time. The Polynesians seafarers venerated the ocean and used it to travel far and wide. According to legend some 1500 years ago a Polynesian chief, Hotu Matu'a (the great parent) came to Easter Island in a double canoe from Polynesia with his wife and people landing on Anakena Beach.

An early name for Easter Island was Te-Pito - Te-Henua or "land's end" as it surely was, miles away from Polynesia.

Today, Rapa nui or Easter Island belongs to Chile with only about 2000 Pacific Islanders (Rapanui people) still living on the island, mostly in Hanga Roa the only town on the island. The only port of the island "Cooks Bay" is located here, said to be the place where Captain Cook downed anchor in 1722.

Of course, the most intriguing thing about the island is the hundreds of massive statues called Moai, which line the coast. These were chiseled out of the volcanic basalt, which is found further inland. The other mystifying thing is how these massive monoliths (average weight 14 tons, height 13 feet) were transported to the coast and why. With different theories existing, it still remains as much a mystery today as it was when the "moais" first came to light.

About 900 of them exist in good condition. The Moai building and transportation perhaps took place between 1400 to 1600. What were the moais? Were they sprits of ancestors or important high-ranking men? Unfortunately mute stones tell no tales.

Anakena Beach remains the most Polynesian looking part of the island with swaying coconut palms and white sandy beaches. There is an Ahu with 6 Moai standing guard. This is where the island's first settlers are said to have landed. Ahu Tahai near the town of Hanga Roa is perhaps the earliest Ahu structures on the island going back to 690 AD. Ahu Akivi and Ahu Vinapu are 2 other important Ahu on the island.

Thor Heyerdahl, the explorer, felt that Ahu Vinapu had shades of Peruvian influence. Perhaps pre - Inca people drifted here aided by an El Nino year with winds and currents to reach Rapanui from South America.

Rano Rarku, the main quarry for the statues looks like a virtual graveyard for Moai today. Several half carved, broken and abandoned statues lie strewn everywhere.

Paro, the island's largest Moai weighing 82 tons and is over 32 ft tall, lies face down today. How was such a heavy Moai transported in ancient times? The mystery will perhaps remain unanswered.

Today Easter Island is a large open air national park with Moai scattered all over though principally near the coast, guarding it perhaps from evil forces and preserving it for posterity. You can reach Easter Island on a cruise ship or by taking a five-hour flight from Santiago in Chile.