Where 13 - London via Tahiti and Easter Island

HI Peeps,

Back in the UK at this time of year in the cold and dark ? I must be mad ! But after 12 months of travelling comtinuously I decided that I needed a bit of a break as I was getting so blase about seeing all these wonderful places and people. Not to mention moving on every couple of days....... I just need a holiday !

So I'm back near London for a few weeks and planning to go back to South America in January and pick up where I left off. Before I came back I did manage to take in the delights of French Polynesia and Easter Island plus a couple of nights in Santiago, Chile.

The Good Bits
- The strange Moai (carved stone statues) of Easter Island. They are up to 10m high with tiny hands and no legs - really they are all Head and belly ! As well as several ceremonial sites where they stand there are 600 of them at the quarry where they were carved; many of these are hidden up to their necks in the ground with heads of 5m tall.

- French Polynesia (Tahiti and Morea) - This is Paradise! Beautiful lagoons, clear waters, great snorkelling - just like it says in all the advertising blurb!
- Swimming with the Stingrays - they are surprisingly timid creatures and will rub past you with their enourmous 1 metre 'wingspan'.
- Shark feeding - the black tipped reef sharks are up to 3m long. Being in the water with them is adrenalin pumping stuff (no shark cage).

The Bad bits
- Shark Feeding - well they are supposed to eat the fish, but I reckon their eyesight isn't up to much. One of them just swam right into my chest and I felt it (luckily their mouths are set below their snouts and so it didn't get a bite out of me). I decided that shark feeding is not such a great idea !
- the food on Easter Island is the worst on this trip (with the possible exception of Lao). The supermarkets were fully stocked with nothing good to eat !
- French Poly was expensive - I think the most expensive place I've been. Great weather though.
- The UK - This is definitelly the most expensive place I've been. And shame about the weather !!
- The journey back -another long journey from Santiago (27 hours) - somehow I managed to fly into and out of Soa Paulo twice in the same day and not get off either time !

Looking forward to January....
Luv
Pete